Pests, Filth, and Killer Elevators: Inside Raphael Warnock’s Secret Low-Income Apartment Building

A low-income apartment building owned by Raphael Warnock’s church is plagued by pests, maintenance problems, and filth, according to residents—and at least two people have sued the building this year after the elevator allegedly collapsed on them.

Residents of the Columbia Tower at MLK Village complained about living conditions in the building, telling the Washington Free Beacon that garbage is left to pile up in the storage rooms for days, creating an "overwhelming trash smell," common areas aren’t maintained, and the air vents produce a "sickening" amount of dust.

Tenants also said the elevators often break down, and handicapped residents have had to call the fire department to carry them to their rooms.

The allegations follow a Free Beacon report that found Columbia Tower had attempted to evict at least eight low-income residents over unpaid rent since the start of the pandemic—including one tenant who owed just $28. Warnock serves as senior pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church, which, through a charity it controls called the Ebenezer Building Foundation, owns 99 percent of Columbia Tower, according to records obtained by the Free Beacon. It’s not clear what Warnock’s role was in overseeing Columbia Tower. A repair grant Ebenezer Building Foundation filed in June, however, said Warnock "works closely" with Ebenezer’s executive pastor "in managing the overall vision, ministries, and operations" of the church.

The news raises questions for Warnock, who has campaigned as an ally of low-income Georgians and people with disabilities. It could also draw new scrutiny to Warnock’s compensation from the church, which paid him a $7,417-per-month, tax-free housing allowance last year—an arrangement that allowed him to circumvent federal limits on outside income for U.S. senators.

Court filings reviewed by the Free Beacon appear to back up claims from Columbia Tower residents that there are problems with the living conditions at the building.

Two men filed separate lawsuits against the building in February and May of this year claiming they were injured after the elevator ceiling collapsed on them in May 2020.

One of the alleged victims said he "was in an elevator at Columbia at MLK Village Towers as the elevator ceiling abruptly fell down," knocking him unconscious and resulting in injuries that cost him over $50,000 in medical bills.

"The collapsed elevator ceiling struck the Plaintiff about the head, neck, and back area," said the lawsuit. "The impact of the collapsed elevator ceiling caused the Plaintiff to immediately lose consciousness."

The judge granted the man default judgment in the case, after lawyers for Columbia Tower neglected to respond by the required deadline. The building’s attorneys are currently attempting to get the judgment overturned. The second case is still ongoing. An attorney for the alleged victim said he was unable to comment because that case is "still being litigated."

Residents told a Free Beacon reporter who visited the building in October the only two elevators in the building frequently break down. One resident said she has witnessed firemen physically carry wheelchair-bound tenants up to their rooms during instances when both of the elevators were broken at the same time.

"The firemen will come and help them up and down the stairs," one resident said. "For hours they’re stuck waiting on the bottom floor, or stuck on their floor for hours and hours."

Another resident described an incident in which a police officer and a firefighter had to "tote" a wheelchair-bound African-American man up the stairs because the elevators were broken down.

The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department has not returned numerous requests for comment asking if firefighters have been called to Columbia Tower to carry people up to their rooms. The fire department has also not returned an open records request seeking copies of all incident reports at Columbia Tower since the start of 2020.

Residents said they had no idea their building was owned by Ebenezer Baptist Church, or that it had just received a $5 million grant from Georgia in August to fund building repairs. The grant was bankrolled by funds provided to the state from the...

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