Chicago inspectors found 99 building code violations in the 67-unit West Side building that partially collapsed last week after a car backed into a support pillar.
The owner of the building at 4327 W. 18th St. must correct the violations, ranging from fractured supports and broken bricks to defective smoke detectors and problems with rodents, roaches and termites by Oct. 15, said Buildings Department spokeswoman Breelyn Pete. After Oct. 15, the owners could face fines of up to $500 per violation per day, she said.
On Sept. 7, Marsha Markham, 48, of Cudahy, Wis., backed into a pillar in the parking lot, causing part of the building’s second and third floors to collapse. Markham and a man who helped free her from her car suffered minor injuries.
The building, owned by Habitat Boulevard, which operates 1,500 units of subsidized housing in Chicago, has a history of violations, according to the Buildings Department. Dozens of violations were outlined during a May inspection and while some problems were fixed, many were not, according to last week’s inspections.
Since the collapse, the Buildings Department is inspecting all of Habitat’s properties, Pete said.
Of the nine families displaced last week by the collapse, five have been placed in vacant Habitat units and the others are still being housed by the city’s Department of Human Services, Pete said.
