By BOB JOHNSON PRIOR TO the Gandhi’s utility payment problems, John Elliott, state Food, Drug and Lodging surveyor, found health concerns during inspections of the motel, first on Oct. 24 and again on Nov. 10.
bob@iolaregister.com
Power was restored to Crossroads Motel Friday after its owner, Kiran Gandhi, arranged to pay an overdue utility bill.
The city disconnected electricity to most of the motel’s 61 rooms at noon Thursday, after a bill sent on Jan. 10 for service in December hadn’t been paid.
“I was behind $3,000 and paid the bill,” Gandhi told the Register shortly before 10 a.m. Friday. “They (city crew) will be here pretty soon to turn the power back on.”
When power was cut Thursday, about 30 families living at the motel full time were told to vacate their rooms. A few were allowed to remain because a handful of rooms, added after the motel was built, are served by a separate electric meter, which wasn’t involved with the delinquent bill.
Iola’s policy does not require a residence be vacated when electricity is cut off. That order came from the state agency that regulates lodging, on note that the office and laundry room were without power and inoperable.
Gandhi said he and his wife will be “happy to see residents come back if they want to return.”
The Gandhis purchased the motel in 2001 from Marvin Boyer, who built the motel and opened it in 1963.
Their concern, Gandhi said, is perceived reluctance by the city to help small businesses.
“Utility costs have skyrocketed and it’s hard to keep up,” he said. “I told them I’d make a payment plan,” an arrangement the city does accept.
Also, Gandhi said he thought it was inappropriate to shut off power during cold weather.
Kansas has a cold-weather rule that prevents private utility companies from shutting off electricity during cold weather, but the rule does not apply to municipalities, noted Corey Schinstock, assistant city administrator.
“This a small community and we’re a small business,” said Gandhi’s wife, who asked her name not be used. “The city should try to help us. This is not good.”
The specific timeline for the decision to disconnect power came after the Gandhis received a bill on Jan. 10 for service provided from Dec. 3 to 31.
The bill was due Feb. 12. When it wasn’t paid a 5 percent penalty was added and an additional 12 days were given, which actually became 14 days. The 12-day extensive ended on a Sunday and all utility procedures, by policy, occur on Tuesdays.
Also, power wasn’t shut off on Tuesday because of the snowstorm and the city further delayed the shutoff until Thursday because so many families were involved.
Elliott told City Administrator Carl Slaugh that no progress in correcting problems was made between the visits and that he thought concerns were sufficient for the motel’s closure. Legal concerns at the state level delayed action, though.
Mrs. Gandhi said there were issues in some rooms and that people living there were expected to have a role in keeping them clean. Often, she added, housekeepers were turned away when they went to rooms early in the morning and then occupants would want them to return in the afternoon, after they had left for the day.
She said occupants were told they needed to clean their rooms, but “who listens. It’s their responsibility,” when they refuse the motel’s service.
“We’re here to give service,” she said.
Slaugh did not elaborate on what concerns the state inspectors had, because of privacy issues, but said “a number had been identified,” both by the state inspector during visits by city officials.
destitute. I do odd jobs off the Trading Post,” a program on the local radio station. Monthly rent at the motel averages $400.
As for Aquino, who is a Vietnam veteran, he said he is nearly $2,000 in debt to the owner, Kiran Ghandi, for his rent.
Power to the motel was turned back on Friday morning after Ghandi made a payment to the city for his utilities.
“It’s really scary,” Wright said of the experience of facing eviction.
Brown pointed to the woman sitting on her bed.
“She has made this one room into a home,” he said.
More than 30 families make their permanent home in the motel, and Thursday afternoon was a reminder to them of how quickly it can be taken away.
Sam Ruis stood outside of his room Thursday afternoon, waiting to see if he could remain at the motel.
“We don’t have a place to stay, we have no place to go,” he said.
At a crossroads
