Slumlord Lee Holloway

When you're a public figure, you get perks and privileges. The trade-off: You also receive greater scrutiny.

In Lee Holloway's case, I don't think it's being unreasonable to scrutinize his record as a landlord. It's in the public's interest to shed light on his more than 150 open building code violations at his nine Milwaukee rental properties.

Daniel Bice writes of the deplorable conditions found at an apartment complex owned by Holloway and his wife, Lynda.

Nancy Wilkie, a volunteer adult tutor, was appalled when one of her students recently described the condition of her north side apartment.

Leaking pipes. A kitchen sink with no running water. A poorly covered hole in the floor of one room. A hole in the ceiling of the bathroom and another one in a wall. No handles on some doors. Problems with the heating system. Windows that wouldn't close. A mailbox in such bad shape that the letter-carrier often refused to deliver.

But the real surprise came when Wilkie identified the slumlord responsible for the student's north side apartment:

County Chairman Lee Holloway.

"It's bad enough for anybody to do this," said Wilkie, a Wauwatosa resident. "But when you're in a high-profile position and espousing the well-being of the community, you're being a hypocrite."

...This isn't an isolated incident.

City records indicate that the veteran county pol and his wife have more than 150 open building code violations at nine of his thirteen properties. The infractions range from broken doors and defective fire alarms to improper storage of combustible material and roach infestation.

Because the county official and his wife have a history of problems at their rental properties, the city recently placed them on a special enforcement list, meaning they now are dealing with a single building inspector.

...Wilkie said she, another tutor and their supervisor decided someone should speak up once they discovered who owned the apartment complex. They could not believe Holloway would own a building in which residents had to hold an umbrella to use the toilet because of a large hole in the bathroom ceiling.

"Here's a prominent politician, and he's getting away with things," Wilkie said. "He's not even taking care of his own property. Someone should hold him accountable."

This is a disgrace.

If Holloway can't take care of his properties so that they're fit for habitation, he should invest in something else.

Holloway is a horrible landlord.

He should be held accountable.

I don't understand why the city isn't taking action against Holloway. 150 open building code violations is a serious problem.

Renters should be protected from crooks like him.

Hopefully, this new round of bad press will prompt him to clean up his act -- again.

If he's not capable of keeping his properties up to code, why should Milwaukee County residents trust him to be Chairman of the Milwaukee County Board?

I don't think he's fit to serve.

Holloway's building code violations aren't an aberration. They're business as usual for slumlord Lee Holloway.