Hundreds of residents at a Westbury luxury apartment complex began scrambling Tuesday for a new place to live, some still reeling from news that they must move out within four months because of what the property owner called "catastrophic" water damage.

Archstone-Smith, the Colorado company that developed and manages the complex, said it was too soon to tell whether shoddy construction or design defects were to blame. Meanwhile, tenants at Archstone Westbury weighed their options and wondered if mold and mildew had affected their health.

"The rug was pulled out from under me today," said Juliette Caputo, 50, who has been living there since August 2005.

Town of Hempstead officials defended its building department, saying their inspections ensure compliance with state safety and structural codes and could not have detected design flaws or other problems that led to the water damage.

Archstone-Smith, which owns about 350 properties nationwide, oversaw construction, using various contractors and subcontractors, company spokesman David Pendery said.

"We don't necessarily know how the water is getting in," Pendery said. "We won't know until we get the building opened up" to assess the full extent of the damage.

Town and county officials said they had met with Archstone over the past week and were trying to help relocate residents, which include some seniors and people on public assistance. Between 360 to 380 of the complex's 400 units are occupied and must be vacated, Pendery said.

"We're helping with the Section Eight ... " said Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi. "I think that this firm has the obligation . . . to do everything they can to find housing for these folks."

Tenants will get their last month's rent free and between $1,300 to $1,900, Pendery said.

Residents interviewed Tuesday said they were dismayed at having to relocate as the holiday season loomed.

Sharise Greenwald, who is eight months pregnant, was in tears as she clutched a memo from building management explaining how she'd have to leave her two-bedroom apartment, where she pays $2,870 a month.

She hopes mold or water damage -- if there is any -- won't make her child sick. "I hope my baby's going to be OK," said Greenwald, 37, who moved in this summer.

Albert and Angie Comanda said they didn't want to leave their apartment but wondered if mold could explain a mysterious cough that Albert, 69, developed this year.

The couple also questioned Archstone's maintenance record, saying the company appeared to simply paint over damage -- such as the brownish water stain in a nearby stairwell -- instead of fixing the underlying problem.

Pendery denied those charges, saying the company addresses such problems "immediately, once they are brought to their .attention."

He said that mold problems at the Westbury complex bore no relation to those at an Archstone building in Bal Harbor, Fla., where the firm agreed in 2003 to pay tenants $25 million in damages. "The Florida issue was as a result of a faulty HVAC [heating ventilation and air conditioning] system."

Pendery said some Westbury tenants had reported water problems -- mostly leaks, but "some calls also about mold" -- in 2005 and 2006. Managers thought these were isolated problems until an uptick of complaints after rains this year, he said.

Results from tests in the past few weeks showed that moisture had seeped into the buildings' inner walls, soaking insulation and potentially compromising interior mechanical systems and structural safety, Pendery said.

Archstone did not test for mold, he said, because "there is no governmental standard for amounts of mold -- it's not like lead paint."

Dealing with mold generally is the responsibility of homeowners and landlords, said state and local health and building officials interviewed Tuesday.

"If you catch it right away and take the proper remedies, it doesn't become an issue," said Joe Sauerwein, commissioner of building and fire prevention in the Town of Brookhaven.

Tuesday town of Hempstead building inspectors checked the Westbury complex for structural damage. The buildings are safe for tenants to occupy in the interim, but an electrical inspection is needed to make sure the water had not damaged internal wiring, town spokesman Mike Deery said.

This story was reported by Sophia Chang, Matthew Chayes, Carl Macgowan And Jennifer Smith.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/ny-limold1128,0,4706906.story?coll=ny-sports-headlines

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