Carmichael Apartment Tenants Say Laundry Room Overtaken By Homeless

CARMICHAEL (CBS13— Some tenants in Carmichael say their apartment complex is being overtaken by a group of homeless people who are using drugs and damaging property nearly everyday. Law enforcement has been called out to complex hundreds of times, but the residents say it seems their complaints are being ignored.

The problems are mainly happening inside the laundry room and tenants say they're not only afraid to wash their clothes, but to also let their children outside.

For months, residents at the Brentwood Court Apartments in Carmichael have been hassled by intruders.

Tenant Joe Little said, "They're doing drugs in our laundry room and trying to sell drugs to our kids around here."

Little says six to ten homeless people constantly trespass onto property and camp out in the laundry room, doing drugs and damaging property. He says the transients leave behind beer bottles and drug paraphernalia.

"They urinate in there, they defecate in there."

Brentwood Court tenant Lisa Meeker says, "It's kind of a little scary at night. You don't know who they are."

Tenants say they've notified property management and apartment security nearly everyday.

"We call security, security comes runs them off and ten minutes later they're back."

The Sacramento County Sheriff's Department is also well aware of the issue. Sgt. Tony Turnbull says in the last year it's received about 2-3 calls a month from residents.

Sgt. Turnbull says, "We usually serve them with a trespass notice and that way if they come back, they can be arrested for being on the property."

CBS13 contacted the property management company Dick James and Associates. A representative told CBS 13 it's never received a complaint about the homeless issue. They also also say the laundry rooms are supposed to be locked at all times. In addition, a gate is being installed around the property to keep unwanted guests out.

Little hopes it will work, because he cant afford to be run out of his own home.

"It's sad man, you know we've been crying for help here "

Property management says the gate will be up and running by June 1. They also acknowledged that the transient and drug use issue is unacceptable and hope the gate will make a big difference.