Columbia leaders hold closed-door meeting with representatives from Colony Apartments’ ownership

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Columbia leaders were face to face with representatives from the highly- scrutinized Monroe Group on Wednesday.

It’s unclear what was discussed or if any agreements have been made.

The Monroe Group owns the Colony Apartments, a federally subsidized complex that the city evacuated in late December.

RELATED STORY: Dozens of Colony Apartments tenants cannot return home more than two weeks after evacuation

The city found residents without heat, and without water and gas leaks in the units.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has threatened to pull federal funding if the separate issues it’s identified are not corrected. That could trigger the relocation of the residents.

City officials have been outspoken critics of the company and its responsiveness.

The State newspaper reported the city has prepared a quote of nearly $200,000 in code violation fines and repair costs as a result of the evacuation, but WIS has been unable to confirm that.

Mayor Daniel Rickenmann and City Manager Teresa Wilson confirmed the meeting with WIS. Before the meeting, Rickenmann said it would be his first face-to-face interaction with leadership from the company.

They entered the Columbia Police Department Metro Region headquarters to meet with the Monroe Group representatives around 10:30 a.m.

District 2 City Councilman Ed McDowell also attended the meeting and declined to comment afterward.

WIS saw Columbia’s top code-enforcer Housing Official David Hatcher walking with Wilson during what appeared to be the aftermath of the meeting at 2:30 p.m.

Police Chief Skip Holbrook was also seen coming out of the building, but it’s unclear if he was a part of the meeting.

It’s unclear who represented the Monroe Group and the company did not respond to a request for comment.

WIS has asked the city for its records and insight into what was discussed.

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