ATLANTA — Editor's Note: This story may be disturbing for some viewers.
Chase Peralta has had his hands full for nearly a month trying to protect his baby son, Knox. He's lived in SkyHouse Buckhead, a luxury high-rise apartment, for about two years. Over the last several weeks, Peralta has come home to the powerful stench of trash and the headache of gnats on the elevators, in the halls and in his unit.
"It's been super tough. I have to monitor Knox at all times," Peralta said. "There's definitely been moments when we've had to re-sanitize as a result. As you can see, it's everywhere. It's damn near inhumane. I've never lived like this."
Peralta said the trash is stacked up. Signs outside the apartment complex's trash chute show that it's clogged. Peralta suspects the pile of trash brought in the bugs.
"Being a parent, I have three kids," Peralta said. "My two-year-old got one stuck in his eye. My daughter is scared to leave her room to come hang out in the living room, because she doesn't want to sit there and swallow gnats all day long."
Peralta said he has tried placing cups of vinegar to catch the gnats. He has also sprayed peppermint oil extract on the walls, stuffed a towel under his door and even kept his baby in a net-covered carriage.
"This is a place where I'm closing on $3,000 a month," Peralta said. "This is kind of beyond me. I've had to throw food away. They've gotten in my baby's bottle. We'll make fresh, hot plates of food and we're literally throwing our plates away as a result of gnats getting into our food."
Despite the apartment's conveniences and being close to a Marta station, some residents plan to move out because of mounting issues.
A spokesperson for SkyHouse said a disgruntled former resident who tried stuffing a large carpet down the 23-story trash chute caused the issues. He added this was not negligence or malfeasance and staff had been working to fix the issue since day one. Apartment management sent 11Alive the following statement in response to resident complaints:
"We apologize to our residents for the inconvenience which was caused when a former tenant clogged the trash chute with a rug and other oversized materials. Our staff and contractors have been working diligently to fix the problem from the moment it was discovered and remedy the related issues. This is a highly unusual situation, and we hope to have it fully resolved this week. The health, safety and well-being of our residents is our top priority."
Peralta said it was not enough for the apartment to just apologize. He questioned how much the apartment valued residents, and now he's questioning his future living conditions.
"At this point, I kind of feel like I have to move. What else do I do? I don't even feel comfortable enough in my own space anymore," Peralta said. "I’m wondering how they’ll look to rectify the situation.”