Over the weekend, a Facebook post about mold drew more than 200 comments. The post, in the Port Orchard group, started with a complaint about mold in an apartment complex owned by Housing Kitsap. The person who initially posted said she had been unable to get a response to her complaints from the public housing agency.
On Monday, I spoke with Stuart Grogan, Housing Kitsap’s executive director, who said he learned about the complaint over the weekend from South Kitsap Commissioner Charlotte Garrido. Somebody on the comment thread had contacted Garrido.
Grogan said he checked the agency’s complaint logs and found none had recently been received regarding the unit in question at Housing Kitsap’s Heritage site, in Port Orchard.
In November, I reported on Housing Kitsap’s meth abatement efforts at the Viewmont East Apartments also in Port Orchard.
Housing Kitsap send a crew out to the Heritage site apartment on Monday. Inspectors do not believe the mold reported is the highly toxic form known as black mold. Grogan said they’re working on further diagnosis of the type of mold present and why the mold is forming.
Mold spores proliferate on damp surfaces. Molds produce allergens and irritants that can cause a reaction in eyes, nose, throat and lungs of both mold-allergic and non-allergic people, according to materials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that are posted on the Kitsap Public Health District website. The key to mold control is moisture control, according to the EPA. Water damage, leaky plumbing and poor ventilation contribute to the growth of mold.
Housing Kitsap will follow up later this month with a comprehensive analysis of building issues at the Heritage apartments.
Grogan encouraged residents to contact the Housing Kitsap maintenance office to report problems with mold, structural problems or other issues so they can be addressed during the building inspection; (360) 535-6101 (day), (866) 831-2975 (after hours).
I’ll be checking in with Housing Kitsap later this month to see what they found in their survey of the Heritage site. Residents or anyone else with concerns can contact me at christina.henry@kitsapsun.com.
