CHICAGO, IL — Tenants at Oglesby Towers in South Shore say a bed bug problem has spread through apartments on at least five floors and into the building’s laundry room, adding to frustration over utility charges that residents say have become harder and harder to predict. Some tenants say they have been asking for treatment since April, but the building has not been treated.
The complaints come as residents continue pressing TLC Management over the Ratio Utility Billing System, or RUBS, which they say has produced monthly bills that swing wildly from one month to the next. Tenants at the 191-unit high-rise, 6700 S. Oglesby Ave., say the system has made it difficult to budget and has become especially stressful for people living on fixed incomes.
Residents say sightings now include apartments, halls and the laundry room
Several tenants say the problem is no longer limited to one unit. Photos reviewed by the Herald show what appear to be bed bugs in apartments and in the laundry room, and residents say they have also been spotted in lint traps. One tenant, who asked that her first name not be published, said she first noticed what she believed was a bed bug in an elevator a couple of months ago.
That same resident, Mrs. Foster, said the elevator sighting made her worry the insects had already reached common areas and nearby hallways. She said other tenants have reported seeing the pests in their beds and in other parts of the building. For residents, the concern is not just about bites, but about how quickly the insects can move from one apartment to another in a high-rise setting.
Tenants say repeated work orders have not led to extermination
Foster said residents have filed work orders about bed bugs since April, but management has not treated the building. She said maintenance workers who responded to complaints said they found no evidence of infestation, while tenants continued reporting bites and sightings. Some residents have paid for exterminators on their own after those visits, she said…