Residents in a North Campus apartment were relocated at the end of January due to extensive flood damage, according to property management.

The entire sixth floor of The Venue on Guadalupe, along with some units on other floors, were directed to move, according to Colton Lassinger, regional director of the property management company that owns the venue. 

In September 2023, hail damaged the roof of the building. In November, maintenance completed temporary repairs, and significant January rains damaged the repairs causing roof leakage, Lassinger said in an email.

Originally, residents were told that repairs would be completed within 30 days. However, Lassinger said the units require a complete remodel. Now, the estimated return date for the sixth floor is June 1, Lassinger said.

Jared Kolacny’s daughter was given a two-day notice to move out on Jan. 29. He said when his  daughter returned from holiday break, there was a two-by-two-foot hole in her ceiling and dehumidification equipment in the apartment. 

The week after she returned, it rained significantly in Austin, and water began pouring through the hole in his daughter’s ceiling, Kolacny said. A mold test, bought by Kolacny and sent to a lab, found two types of mold growing in his daughter’s apartment.

Nikos Warren, a third-floor Venue resident, said this situation has been difficult to navigate amid his responsibilities as a full-time student.

“I have done two operas while living in this chaos, and also doing a recital … while coming home to just pure white noise and construction,” music performance junior Warren said. “We’ve had people in and out of our apartment constantly. It’s not as much anymore, but it was almost every day — you couldn’t guarantee that someone (wouldn’t) come into our apartment and do something then leave (and) not tell us what they did.”

Lassinger said apartment management provided monetary compensation to displaced residents for January and February. The complex also suspended rental and utility payments until residents can return to their units. Those who opted to stay in the lease were offered a $500 compensation. 

Neither Warren nor Kolacny’s daughter have received compensation yet. Warren said he was offered a gift card with the amount he would have been paying for rent but is not sure when he will receive it.

All residents were additionally offered alternative housing options at another property owned by Venue’s property management company. Residents were directed to reach out to their insurance companies regarding funding for displacement housing, Lassinger said.

Kolacny’s daughter’s renters insurance did not cover new housing, so she had to find a month-to-month apartment lease. He said his daughter can no longer afford to live in Austin during the summer and will have to move home after school ends.

“We’re only less than three hours away,” Kolacny said. “Imagine if it was farther than that or somebody out of state. What the hell would they do? It would have been terrible on a kid. It would have been really bad.”