Two Palm Springs residents are suing their landlords for $2 million, claiming mold in their apartments made them sick.Mary Akins says she lost months laying in bed, suffering from respiratory, intestinal and other issues caused by mold in her apartment at 1850 S. Camino Real.

Don Keating points to photos of mushrooms growing out of his ceiling and to health problems from mold in his apartment at 967 Camino Parocela. An attorney for McLean Company Rentals in Palm Springs, Keating's landlord, said Keating's suit is similar to one he filed last year and lost.

And attorney Drew Hanker with Belmont Brokerage and Management in Long Beach, Akins' landlord, said it's too soon to comment.

Akins could not be reached Friday, but residents who lived in her apartment complex said she definitely has a case.
"(Once I moved out) I felt 100 percent better," said Marty Schultz, who lived a few doors down from Akins. "I am not sinusy in the morning, no more aches and pains. It's a huge change."

Schultz said he lived in the apartment for eight years and experienced headaches, joint aches and his body hurt.
Within a month of moving out, he felt better, he said.

He recently was contacted by Akins' attorney and is considering filing a suit against Belmont.

Lance Caldwell also lived near Akins and said there was black mold in his bathroom cupboards when he moved in. He said he was consistently congested and the air smelled musty and stale.

His neighbors had the same problems, he said.

"Now I am feeling better," said Caldwell, who moved last year.

It was last year that The Desert Sun documented Akins' case and received dozens of responses from valley residents who said they also had mold in their homes and apartments.

In March 2006, the city of Palm Springs cited Belmont for not waterproofing stucco around Akins' apartment and wrote that "the smell of moisture is intense and overwhelming" inside her home. Reports from mold experts hired by Akins also show proof of mold.

But Akins' former apartment manager, Stan Gilstrap, said Friday that tests done by experts hired by Belmont show there were no problems associated with mold in any of the apartments.
 
"I never saw anything," said Gilstrap, who also is named in Akins' lawsuit. "She's trying to get something for nothing."
Terrence Phillips, who has rented Schultz's former apartment, said he hasn't experienced any problems.
As for Keating, his lawsuit says water damage from rain caused mold to grow inside his apartment.
Catherine Gayer, an attorney for McLean Company Rentals, admits there was mold.

But owner Michael McLean offered to help Keating move, which he refused, she said.

A suit was filed, which Keating lost last year. This new suit alleges the same issues, she said.

"It (looks) identical to what we have already resolved," she said. "If he wanted to move out, he should have."

Keating said Friday that McLean refused to help him. He said he stayed because he was promised assistance was coming. Now that he has moved to another apartment, Keating said he feels "100 percent calmer."

"He (McLean) did nothing (even when he saw) mushrooms growing out of the ceiling," said Keating.

http://www.thedesertsun.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070303/NEWS0802/703030325/1006

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