They moved in seeking a quiet, safe and clean environment at an affordable price. But dozens of senior citizens at a complex in Tarrant say their sanctuary has transformed into a den for drugs, prostitution and longstanding neglect.

“It looks good on the outside, but once you get on the inside there are a whole lot of issues going on that the management company will not address,” said Danny Threatt, a longtime resident who has become the unofficial spokesperson for disgruntled neighbors. “It’s sad that the women have to put sticks behind their doors just to feel secure.”

Residents of the Flats at Colebridge complain of problems ranging from lack of maintenance and poor response time to a need for security inside and outside the complex.

The elevators were out for more than three weeks this summer, forcing senior residents to take the stairs to access the three-story building, tenants said. The problem was especially troublesome for one woman, a double amputee. Neighbors said they had to carry her up and down the stairs.

Passions spilled over into shouting as about three dozen tenants attended a community meeting with property managers and city officials on Sept. 5. Tarrant Mayor Wayman Newton arranged the meeting after residents went to city hall for help.

Novillee Williams told AL.com that from her bedroom window, she hears the back door slam throughout the night as unauthorized visitors enter the building.

“This place needs security. We are afraid to be out,” Williams said. “At dark, most of us are locked in. This place is not going to get better until they weed out those bad tenants.”

At the meeting, residents squeezed into a community room on the second floor of the complex, moving chairs to make space for the walkers and wheelchairs that aided several residents.

Mayor Newton told AL.com that city inspectors determined the building is up to code. He said he called the meeting to allow residents a chance to raise concerns, which only the property management company, Vantage Management, can address.

Zac Plumstead, a vice president for Vantage Management Group, sat silently for much of the meeting as he and his staff listened, took notes and fielded more than a few verbal barbs from frustrated residents.

Plumstead acknowledged that communication remains a problem.

“That’s something we need to work on,” he told the crowd. “What it looks like, I can’t tell you right now.”

Plumstead did not respond to requests for comment from AL.com.

Vantage opened the 56-unit independent living complex for people 55 and older in 2016 with financial support from federal and local governments. The company received tax credits through the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program and low-interest financing through the federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program. Those government programs were created to give private companies financial incentives for providing affordable housing options to communities.

The Jefferson County Department of Community Services oversees the HOME program locally. After learning of initial complaints, county officials contacted Advantage to address issues.

Frederick Hamilton, Jefferson County’s director of community services, told AL.com that he again contacted Vantage to get answers now that he is aware of lingering resident concerns. As an administrator for the grants program, Hamilton said his office has a responsibility to investigative resident complaints from the Flats at Colebridge

Vantage Management operates complexes funded by the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit and HOME programs in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee. In all, the company has a portfolio of 63 properties, according to its website.

The company is currently the defendant in a lawsuit where tenants at a complex in Cullman complain that the company failed to address mold at Villas at Cloverdale, an affordable family complex that opened in 2012. Those residents allege children became ill because the company was negligent. Vantage in court filings denies responsibility.

Williams was among the first people to move into the Flats at Colebridge when the complex opened in Tarrant, a city of about 6,000 residents northeast of Birmingham. The Alabama Affordable Housing Association even featured her smiling face in its newsletter. Seven years later, her excitement has dissolved into frustration.

“It’s the bad tenants, and then you have the people off the streets. They would come and sleep on the sofa,” Williams said, describing the open lobby. “You just wouldn’t believe how open this place is.”

Ruby Hamilton said she called the Jefferson County Health Department to report concerns that the property manager ignored.

“It’s not like it used to be,” she told AL.com. “I lost count of how many times there was an infestation.”

As residents and officials met inside, a contractor repaired a broken entry gate outside.

Plumstead promised to address resident concerns. Still, many residents remained unconvinced until widespread action was taken.

“I’m tired,” said Threatt, a Vietnam War Army veteran who uses oxygen. “I don’t know how long I am going to be here, but I am doing it for the people who live in this building. Somebody has to speak up for these people. What do we have to do to get you to do right by us?”

One man, Tony Curtis Woods, said he’d had enough by the time the discussion turned to a coming rent hike.

“Holler at your boy, I’m out!” he said, walking away.

Residents recently received letters from Vantage saying their rent could go up by as much as $150 per month in October.

Plumstead assured residents the increases wouldn’t be that high. Rent at the Flats at Colebridge is based on a tenant’s income.

The property managers said they will return for a followup meeting with the community in October.

Threatt said the company shows contempt for its own residents by raising rates while they have ignored the needs of their tenants.

“We’re sick of what’s going on around here,” he said. “But then when it comes down to rent, you don’t refuse that.”

One woman, who moved in just a few months ago, said she could not afford a rate hike.

“I just got here,” she told Plumstead.

Plumstead noted that according to her lease, a rate increase could occur after a 30-day notice.

“These people don’t care nothing about this place, but we do,” Woods told AL.com. “This is all we’ve got at our age. This is the best we can do right now. This is our final resting place until we get called and this is what we’ve got to look to.”