Indiana Borough has declared the building at 547 Philadelphia Street “uninhabitable”, bringing to light a landlord/tenant dispute that could leave twelve people without a home as early as Monday.
(Sign posted outside Boomies bar declaring property uninhabitable)
The borough last week posted a notice on the building deeming it “uninhabitable due to termination of Public Water Service”, and ordering all residents out by 4 PM on Monday.
The building houses Boomies bar on the lower floor and apartments above, and a respondent who claims to represent owner Shane Caylor says the tenants all decided to stop paying rent, leaving them with no funds to pay the water bill. That led to the shut-off. She also says eviction notices were sent to the tenants about a month ago.
However, the tenants claim they are current on their rent and were given no eviction notices. They say there were rumors of the building being sold, which went unaddressed by the landlords and owners, leaving tenants wondering what would happen to their homes.
The tenants say they are looking into their legal options.
