‘How important are wings to a bird?’: Musician helps de-stress residents of Latitude Five25

COLUMBUS, Ohio. Residents of Latitude Five25 spent Thursday packing their belongings to move in permanently after being asked to vacate the apartment by Friday.

City officials said the buildings at Sawyer Boulevard did not have potable water, heat, or a working fire extinguishing system. In addition, only one of the four elevators was working.

Dozens of residents were evacuated Sunday after spending a week at the Dodge Park Recreation Center, a temporary emergency shelter used by the American Red Cross. The rest of the residents were asked to vacate the apartment by noon Friday.

RELATED: Remaining Latitude Five25 Residents to Move After City Deems Apartments Unsafe

Ann Barrett has lived in the complex for just over a year.

“Every time it looks like they’re trying to fix something, something else goes wrong. The elevators never work. There is no heating. No hot water, no baths,” she explained. “Even if they board up the buildings, how do we get our things out?”

On Thursday, right outside the front door of the Latitude Five25, Roger Parish could be heard playing his trumpet, hoping to help his neighbors through a busy week.

“This [music] mentally transports me to… I don’t know… an alternate world,” Parish said.

Parish has been living in the complex for almost two years.

“I haven’t seen a single month when something didn’t happen… the electricity went out… the water, you know, that’s the nature of the building,” he said.

Parish’s possessions include his three keyboards and a trumpet, and when asked what these items mean to him, he replied: “How important are wings to a bird? necessary in order to do what you do,” he said.

City officials said the buildings in question were determined to be unsafe and several city departments evacuated both towers.

Joy Bivens of the Franklin County Health and Human Services Council should help residents figure out what to do next.

“We are trying to help our partners, shelter management and others, for example, to provide our residents with a more stable living situation,” Bivens said.

The City is working with Franklin County and other service providers to provide temporary housing for the displaced.

Franklin County Commissioners convened in an emergency meeting Wednesday to allocate $750,000 for temporary housing and support for ongoing operations at the Dodge Community Center.

Mayor Andrew Ginter is working with the Columbus City Council to allocate an additional $750,000 for this effort.

In addition, the City Attorney’s Office has filed a lawsuit to declare contempt of building owners, transfer ownership of the buildings, and find a suitable buyer for the property.

Bivens said Franklin County encourages the community to adopt families in need. If you can help, please call 614-233-2105.