A member of the Marquette Housing Commission speaks during the regular meeting on Tuesday at the Pine Ridge Community Room as other members of the housing authority look on. Residents in attendance at the meeting expressed concern about temporary housing and communication between MHC and the 139 residents that remain displaced. (Journal photo by Lisa Bowers)

MARQUETTE — Steady progress is being made, officials say, in the effort to get 139 residents displaced from Pine Ridge Apartments back into their homes.

Marquette Housing Commission Executive Director Sharon Maki provided an update to commission members during the body’s first regular meeting since the July 30 blaze on the building’s roof.

Six of the original 145 displaced tenants have moved out of Pine Ridge permanently, Maki said, three of whom had planned to move prior to the fire, leaving 139 people in alternative housing awaiting word they can move back in.

A temporary Red Cross shelter set up first at Northern Michigan University’s Superior Dome and then Lakeview Arena housed up to 25% of the resident population initially. That was slowly reduced over a two-week period as MHC officials worked with area landlords and other facilities to place the remaining residents from the shelter into temporary housing. The shelter was officially closed Friday.

Many residents are not happy with their current living conditions or the apparent lack of communication with the MHC, Pine Ridge Apartments Resident Council President Sheri Kromberg said during public comment.

“Unfortunately many of the tenants feel that we have not been communicated with well, so that is an issue that maybe at some point needs to be addressed,” Kromberg said. “There are many who are feeling forgotten or left out. There are plenty that are on couches still and things like that. I think that there might be one or two that are staying at the homeless shelter rather than the shelter that was out here. Just a little concerned that, again, we are given no communication about how things are going.”

Although no commissioners could respond to public comment while the meeting was in session, Maki did answer press questions about the issues of temporary housing and communication following adjournment.

“Unfortunately people did not get placed in the ideal situation, simply because there was not the opportunity to do so,” Maki said. “We worked very hard and communicated with the tenants the best that we could. I do understand that the tenants feel there has been a lack of communication, but this is not something that we’ve done before and we just don’t know the answers to the questions, and any information that they didn’t receive was not because we withheld it from them.”

She said tenants were informed to either call 211 or view the Marquette County Emergency Management Facebook page for any updates. The plan going forward is to hold a resident informational meeting once a more concrete timeline is in place.

“We will be utilizing the local media outlets, our Lake Superior Facebook page, 211, Marquette County Emergency Management Facebook page, mail and phone calls, basically any means necessary to contact everyone,” Maki said in an email.

Maki announced during Tuesday’s meeting that both elevators in the building had been repaired, but would need to be inspected by the Marquette County Building Codes Department. Other permits have been obtained and contractors are on site to repair or replace other systems required before tenants will be allowed to occupy the building. But she said one especially big piece of the puzzle remains “up in the air.”

“So, right now we have (someone) working on the ventilation systems, we have someone working on the fire alarm system, and we do not have anyone working on the roof at this point,” Maki said. “What we had going on (Monday) was, all the insurance companies were here and interested parties regarding the fire were on the roof, and we got the go ahead to start working on that.”

Maki said the original roofing contractor, Lake State out of Iron Mountain, which had been doing work on the building prior to the fire, had been contacted by MHC to perform the needed roof repairs.

“It is our intent to have them come back and do the roof,” she said. “What we need to have is to have the roof secured from getting wet before we can (get residents back in).”

The cause of the fire remains unknown, Maki said.

“We don’t have a cause for the fire, nor do we expect to have a cause for the fire in the near future; there was nothing glaringly obvious,” Maki said. “Fortunately on the financial side of it, it’s not having any impact on getting our tenants back in, because the insurance will pay for the majority of the expenses that are incurred.”

Lisa Bowers can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 242. Her email address is lbowers@miningjournal.net.