BLOOMFIELD -- Homeowners in Bloomfield are frustrated as a long time issue is impacting their homes.
Longtime Bloomfield resident, Joann Anderson, reached out to FOX61 after she used a program named "Community Development Block Grant Small Cities Program" which is offered through the town. The program takes a pool of federal grant money to offer no interest loans for residents to make needed home repairs.
Applicants using the program in Bloomfield were chosen based on certain income parameters and the contractor doing the work was hired by the town. Anderson used it to pay for a new roof for her home.
"I'm distraught. I am distraught. I am devastated. I just don’t know what to do anymore. I just really need some help," Anderson said describing the days since using the program.
"Water started coming through the ceiling. About a year later, I woke up and I saw this big brown stain in my ceiling over my stove,” she said. She also explained in the time since the first leak was noticed she reached out to the town for help.
Anderson said the water stain later snowballed into a series of problems, including a mold problem in her attic.
She said after a series of back and forth between her, the town, the contractor, and her homeowner’s insurance company, the source of the leak was narrowed down to where the solar panel attaches to the roof. She said a temporary fix was made, but the mold continues.
On both, the town’s and the homeowner’s side, there has been several inspections along the way, but four and a half years later, the issue continues. Anderson said through the back and forth with the town, she discovered she was not alone.
She said two other homeowners used the same program, and the same contractor and are now dealing with similar issues.
Bloomfield town attorney, Marc Needelman said the town is "going to do what needs to be done to make the situation right." He said some issues with the paper trail are part of the reason there has been a delay in getting the homeowners answers.
"Since we’ve had difficulties locating files and paper work, and this has gone on for a long period of time,” Needelman said.
He added "We’re going to hire contractors to go out and do an inspection to let us know what they feel is needed to cure any deficiencies and we’re going to go ahead and make sure that gets done.”
He also said that while the work to assess the homes goes on a fix to the paperwork, concerns is also going into place.
"The town manager authorized me to hire someone to go in and simply go through records and boxes and get them organized, that’s a starting point in terms of deciding who’s ultimately responsible,” Needelman said.
FOX61 also reached out to the contractor, Plourde Enterprises, who Bloomfield hired to do the work on the three properties now in question. They have not yet returned those phone calls.