Apartment water fix bucks city deadline

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The deadline has passed for the owner of an Albuquerque apartment complex where half the tenants have been without running water for more than a week .

The city gave the landlord until after 5 p.m. Wednesday to get their water running again.

But with Thanksgiving fast approaching, it's been especially stressful on the residents of the complex at Tennessee Avenue and Zuni Road SE.  For eight days, residents said, they've had to rely on garden hoses and buckets for water.

On Tuesday, the landlord said he'd have the water problem fixed by Wednesday. It's been an all-day process.

"We don't have water for anything, not for dirty dishes nor showers or toilets, and I have a lot of dirty laundry that I need to wash," said Gloria Rosales.

Since Tuesday, workers have been digging a trench along the side of the apartments.

What workers found is the source of the problem, disintegrating pipe. For years the old pipe sat corroding.

"The pipe has been down there in the moisture for so long and the pipe has basically rusted out," said Deputy Director Joe Martinez of Safe City Strike Force. "It's all galvanized line."

There was some confusion as to whether the landlord had indeed hired a plumber. Those helping him Wednesday said the quote for the labor-intensive job was around $8,000.

Still, the city said it's the property owner's responsibility to provide water.

"We'll stay on top of him until he gets it done," said Martinez. Now that the problem is clear, Martinez is worried the other half of tenants there may soon have the same problem. 

"Being that he's got a trench open, it'd be very wise of him to lay another line in there to take care of his other property," explained Martinez. However, he added, the city cannot force the landlord to do that.

Residents have yet another reason they'd like to see running water.  They'd like to be able to cook Thanksgiving dinner. 

"We are going to keep on waiting," Rosales said.  "We can't do anything else but keep on waiting."

Since the landlord has made progress on the problem, the city said it's willing to work with him. Worse-case scenario, the tenants will continue with no water, and the landlord can be cited for inadequate maintenance.

KRQE News 13 received word around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday that water was back on in the affected apartments.