Recurring elevator problems are back and worse than ever at one New York City high-rise, according to tenants. 

At Hunter's Point South Commons, a 38-story apartment tower near the waterfront in Long Island City, Queens, residents say they face regular malfunctions, long waits, and limited access to their homes, especially those living on higher floors.

The tenants say elevator disruptions are nothing new, detailing on-and-off issues, including skipped floors, faulty doors and a disabled call button. 

"My husband and I were caught on the elevator for over an hour," Cris Szeles said.

Another neighbor recalled an elevator lurching between floors.

"Your life, like, flashed before your eyes," Nancy Bruce said. 

"It felt like a bungee cord. The door would open and, boom, boom, boom," Szeles said. "I reported it. I cried!"

Elevator issues go back to 2024

CBS News New York first reported on the elevator issues at Hunter's Point South Commons in summer 2024, when residents were forced to wait in long lines just to reach their apartments.

Those lines returned amid new outages, as tenants on upper floors said they've been depending on a single operable elevator for over a week.  

"Any minute, we're going to be down to no elevators," Szeles said. 

"This is affecting the lives of over 1,000 people in this building," Bruce said.

Some are raising accessibility concerns.

"Human beings shouldn't have to do this. They shouldn't have to go up and down steps, whether it be somebody in a wheelchair, somebody with a cane, a stroller," Matt Aaron said.

"They're a billion-dollar landlord" 

The building is owned by Related Companies, the global real estate firm behind major projects including the $25 billion Hudson Yards.

"They're not this obscure LLC. They're Related. They're a billion-dollar landlord," Aaron said.

When CBS News New York contacted Related Companies about the tenants' complaints, a spokesperson for Hunter's Point South Commons sent the following statement:

"Earlier this Spring, we began a multi-million-dollar, complete modernization of all elevators at Hunter's Point South Commons to ensure residents have reliable elevator service for years to come. The first two newly refurbished elevators are expected to begin operating later this month, at which time, we will begin work on two more elevators until every elevator is fully updated. We will continue to provide residents weekly updates on the progress and appreciate their continued patience as we undertake this necessary renovation."

"We get complaints after complaints" 

New York City Council Member Julie Won says it's an equity issue in a building of rent-stabilized apartments. 

"Year after year, the last four years that I've been in office, we get complaints after complaints," Won said. "We have heard from the management company as well as Related, the parent company of this apartment, that they would replace them with a more reliable elevator that would not be out of service every single month, yet we still have not seen that change for almost a year after that conversation."

In the meantime, residents are left wondering whether the problem will ever be resolved for good. 

"I think it's a ticking time bomb," Aaron said. 

After being contacted by CBS News New York, the City Department of Buildings dispatched an inspector to the building, who issued a violation and ordered the owner to make repairs.

The elevator company, KONE, did not respond to requests for comment.

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