'Completely preventable': Judge holds Latitude Five25 owners in contempt, sets $4.3M fine

The owner of the troubled Latitude Five25 apartments on Columbus' Near East Side has been fined $4.3 million by a Franklin County Municipal Court judge.

Paxe Latitude, the New Jersey-based real estate company that owns the twin tower apartment complex on Sawyer Boulevard, was held in contempt of court Thursday and fined for violating numerous provisions of a January court order.

In addition, a court-appointed receiver will be stepping in to take over management of the property, according to a court order filed Thursday.

In her nine-page order, Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Stephanie Mingo, who heads the court's Environmental Division, said the situation at Latitude Five25 was “completely preventable.”

Mingo also noted that the “seismic effort” to assist displaced residents fell entirely on city officials and not on property owners.

Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein, who has been pursuing legal action against Paxe Latitude for nearly a year, said the incident has left residents scrambling to find a place to live as “the towers remain unsafe for human occupancy.” Klein said in a statement that the property owners “spent years ruining the lives of tenants.”

“The ownership group at Latitude Five25 is unfit to continue operation and must be removed,” Klein said. “The City will do everything in its power to ensure these owners pay this judgment, including holding each of them personally liable if we need to.”

Last month, Paxe Latitude agreed to find a buyer to sell the property after the city determined the building was unsafe for habitation in late December, forcing tenants to move out at Christmas and search for housing. Some were placed in hotels with the help of emergency funds provided through the city and Franklin County.

From our ongoing coverage:  Latitude Five25 residents relocating after Near East Side towers deemed unsafe

Klein filed a contempt motion on Dec. 27 against Paxe Latitude, asking the court to appoint a receiver and order the owner to pay for all repairs and relocation costs.

At the time, city officials said 152 of the towers' 400 units were occupied. The order said no units could be reoccupied until the owner complies with the city's emergency orders for health and safety repairs.

Dispatch was there when first Latitude Five25 residents displaces on Christmas Day found new homes

According to court documents, Paxe Latitude violated multiple provisions of their January agreement with the city, including failing to sell the property by the required date and keep up with utility payments.

Mingo imposed a $2.5 million fine to be paid by March 3 to refund any paid January rent, reimburse out-of-pocket expenses incurred by displaced tenants, and to compensate attorney fees incurred by Legal Aid, which has been representing tenants.

Paxe also has been ordered to pay $1.13 million to the City of Columbus and $750,000 to Franklin County by March 13 to reimburse taxpayers for the emergency funds they spent on temporarily housing displaced tenants.

Additionally, Paxe still owed large outstanding balances to multiple utility providers, which must be paid in full by April 13.

Mingo also ordered that the property’s lender, Lument, be allowed to exercise its option to request that a receiver be appointed to take over the property.

Steven Tigges, of Zeiger, Tigges and Little, who is representing Lument, could not be immediately reached for comment Thursday evening.

Problems have been ongoing for a long time: No power or hot water, bedbugs and other issues at Latitude Five25 towers

Klein’s office noted that any future receiver or property owner will still be subject to the city’s nuisance case as long as it remains active, which requires any ownership or management group to keep the property in compliance with all city and state codes, maintain security and ensure safe, sanitary living conditions for tenants.

In September, the Columbus City Attorney's office filed a contempt action against Paxe Latitude for violating a May 2022 court order to fix code violations and address security concerns at the apartments.

The Latitude Five25 apartment buildings used to be known as Sawyer Towers and were once a public housing complex owned by the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority.

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Cbehrens@dispatch.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Latitude Five25 owners held in contempt, fined $4.3 million by judge