Resident of Lawrence housing for seniors lacks air conditioning; in ‘agony’ during hot days

Claudia Wilch said she and her cat, Biscuit, cast a concerned glance at each other when the temperature in their Babcock Place apartment had risen to 85 degrees.

“It’s cooler in this apartment now than it was last week,” Wilch said. “Last week was just — it was hot, I mean, it was bad. It was agony.”

Babcock Place, at 1700 Massachusetts St. in downtown Lawrence, is a seven-floor, 120-unit apartment building for people ages 50 and up, with preference given to applicants ages 62 and up.

The government-subsidized property is owned by Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority. Rent at Babcock Place is based on 30% of a resident’s gross annual income and can’t exceed a ceiling rent based on current market standards, according to the LDCHA webpage for the building. Utilities, including electricity, are included.

Wilch, 73, said she’s in her second summer there with inadequate air conditioning.

She said she experienced nausea and lightheadedness when the weather was in the 90s and humid last week. Biscuit had also seemed sick.

Shannon Oury, CEO of LDCHA, said on Wednesday that the part shipped in to fix Wilch’s A/C has arrived after being on backorder.

An advocate for herself, Wilch said she’s been persistent about the issue but feels brushed off by management and maintenance. She said Tuesday that she was updated most recently, last week, that the part would arrive this week.

Oury said via email Wednesday that “our HVAC contractor will be scheduled as soon as possible and the tenant will be notified.” She said Wilch’s unit has an air handler not functioning at full capacity, but “the apartment is still comfortable.”

The temperature inside Wilch’s bedroom — the warmest area in the apartment — had gotten up to 81 degrees around 4 p.m. Tuesday. That was when the day peaked at 86 degrees outdoors.

Light cool air from the high vents in the apartment can sometimes be felt at certain angles, although it doesn’t circulate through her rooms. Air handlers circulate airflow.

Wilch said she received a message shortly before this article was published informing her that her A/C will be fixed Tuesday. But high temperatures in the forecast over the next few days are in the 90s and upper 80s.

Wilch uses a standing electric fan, but she has to relocate it between rooms as it’s her only source of relief. The movement is difficult on her injured knee.

Hallways inside the building on Tuesday were muggy, too. Oury said an air handler that controls the common hallways is also broken and the part shipped in to fix it was on backorder for several months. That part arrived as well, she said Wednesday, and it’s scheduled for replacement on Thursday.

Older adults, especially with preexisting health conditions, are at a higher risk of heat-related illnesses, according to the National Institute on Aging, and the hottest days of the year are approaching. It’s unclear to what extent other residents have experienced issues with the heating or air in Babcock Place, but Oury said she’s not aware of any other current reports.

LDCHA operates in accordance with the city’s International Property Maintenance Code, Oury said. The code requires dwellings to be “provided with heating facilities capable of maintaining a room temperature of 68°F (20°C) in all habitable rooms, bathrooms and toilet rooms,” but it does not address a maximum threshold.

Oury said in all instances of no heat, Babcock Place’s maintenance staff are available weekdays and respond within a day after hours and on weekends.

Maintenance responds in the same way to broken A/C systems, she said, and LDCHA provides fans in lieu of an immediate remedy. Window units aren’t possible at Babcock Place.

Under Kansas law, landlords are not required to provide air conditioning, but if they do, they must keep it in “good and safe working order,” according to the Kansas Landlords Handbook.

Wilch said she did ask a maintenance member about fans, but he told her they didn’t provide those. She plans to ask her property manager on Thursday.

Wilch moved into Babcock Place in February 2024, and her A/C wasn’t working properly when management switched from heat a few months in. She said management told her she was on a waiting list for a new heating and cooling installation, but she’s still waiting a year later.

“It’s not reliable, and it usually never works,” Wilch said. “I mean, to me, air conditioning should work when you’ve got the hot days like last week. That’s the one that made me almost ill.”

“… I kind of wonder sometimes when things happen in an apartment, if they were having that problem before and they never fixed it, so it’s still there for the next person,” Wilch said. “I think they wonder how long it’s going to be before this person complains about the same thing the other person was complaining about.”

Wilch keeps her air on high with the thermostat set to 72 degrees, although the temperature doesn’t hit the mark.

The thermostat read 77 degrees at around 4 p.m. Tuesday, and she said it had read 78 degrees when she went to bed Monday night.

Sleep is uncomfortable, but 3-year-old Biscuit maintains her morning routine — curling up on Wilch’s face when it’s time to wake up.

Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.

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