3 Floors Up, She Can’t Go Down Until Lift Fixed

It’s been four days since 83-year-old Leisure World resident Margurette Nicholson became a prisoner in her own condominium. With the building elevator under repair, Nicholson, who is unable to use the stairs, is stuck inside her third-floor Laguna Woods residence.

Some of her neighbors in the 24-unit building are staying with friends or relatives while repairs are made, and a few are renting hotel rooms. But Nicholson, saying she is too proud to stay with friends and unwilling to rent elsewhere, is sticking it out -- and relying on friends who can climb the three flights of stairs to deliver the mail and keep her kitchen stocked.

“I wake up crying every morning,” said Nicholson, who uses a walker. “You feel trapped because you lose your freedom. I appreciate the help from my friends, but I want my independence.”

Since learning two weeks ago that Leisure World’s management company, Professional Community Management, was taking her elevator out of commission for 10 days, Nicholson complained to county, state and federal authorities. No one has responded.

PCM officials contend that they gave residents “reasonable notice” to make other accommodations.

“The Americans with Disabilities Act allows for temporary interruptions for regularly scheduled maintenance,” said Chris Trapp, a legal affairs manager for PCM. “They were told Oct. 1 that they needed to find other accommodations if they weren’t able to use the stairs. It’s maintenance that has to be done. If we waited until the elevators broke down, they could be down for six to eight weeks, and that really would be a problem.”

PCM referred Nicholson to Leisure World’s social services office, which offered a list of drivers and helpers for hire.

When Nicholson realized bureaucrats were not immediately coming to her aid, she started to price lodging, and found nothing cheaper than $67 a night.

“It’s ridiculous,” she said. “My neighbor went to New York to stay with her kids because it was less than the price of a hotel.”

Attorney Donna Bashaw, an elder-law specialist in Laguna Hills who was contacted by Nicholson, said the management company should have been more sensitive to the needs of the Leisure World residents.

“They really need to make some kind of accommodations for these people: a lift on the stairway or hotel accommodations,” Bashaw said. “If they were going to be working on the elevator for two days, that’s one thing. But nearly two weeks, that’s egregious what they’re doing.”

Larry Bush, a Western region public affairs officer for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which enforces housing laws, said his agency had not received a complaint from Nicholson or her neighbors.

“I’m willing to look into this to see if the law obligates these people to any kind of protection,” he said.

Nicholson is not alone in feeling stranded. Sam Moussa, a 67-year-old cancer patient who has a pacemaker, said he huffed and puffed while negotiating the 48 steps leading down from his third-floor condo.

“It took me 20 minutes to cover three floors, and I had to wait five minutes at each floor to catch my breath,” Moussa said. “This is not a comedy. It’s a tragedy.”

On Sunday, the day before the elevator went out of service, Nicholson gave the stairs a try.

“I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it if I had to,” said Nicholson, who became disabled three years ago after a car accident. “I had to stop after one flight.”

Tony Ervolino, 87, dressed in a sweatsuit and Yankees cap, is one of the more mobile residents on the third floor, so he serves as a mail carrier for many of his neighbors. But Ervolino is recovering from a case of shingles and has slowed down lately.

“I walk and up down those steps very carefully,” he said. “Especially now that they are wet and slippery.”