Ask Seth Levine, the owner of the Riverside Norse Apartments in Riverside, why his tenants are boiling water on their stovetops so they can have hot water to bathe and his likely response will be that they should be grateful the stoves work.

Levine has owned the 42-unit apartment complex on St. Mihiel Drive for just a few years, but by some tenants' accounts, that's a few years too many — he's never been a model landlord.

As witnessed by our own reporter, George Woolston, the complex has broken and boarded-up windows, and overflowing trash bins that have not been emptied for months. One tenant is mowing the grass himself and performing other maintenance tasks.

The worst of it happened recently when residents' gas was shut off a few weeks ago because Levine has not paid the bill. Public Service Electric & Gas has filed a lawsuit in Superior Court claiming Levine owes the utility $21,693. Consequently, the tenants are living without hot water in conditions that they call inhumane and unsanitary.

The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs is now involved because it is responsible for regulating multifamily dwellings like apartment complexes. Representatives from the state agency inspected Riverside Norse at the township’s request and have ordered Levine to restore gas service, as well as fined him. 

As one might guess, Levine isn't returning anyone's phone calls.

"It's horrible. No one should live under these conditions,” Mayor Lorraine Hatcher said.

We agree, but the question is: What is being done to help the residents? Right now, nothing.

They are rightly concerned about how long they will have to live without gas service. Friday wasn't exactly a warm summer day. If their predicament continues into the fall and winter, they say they will be forced to move, even though many are in no real position to do that.

Christopher Hankins has lived at Riverside Norse for three years. He's taking care of his sick grandmother, who uses an oxygen machine and nebulizer that have to be kept clean. Melissa Bonilla, a tenant since only May, worries about her two young kids' safety because of the constant use of the stove.

For the residents' sake, we hope Levine comes to his senses, heeds the order of the DCA, pays his bills and restores gas service. But what little we know of his history suggests that isn't going to happen. So where does that leave the tenants of these 42 apartments?

Out in the cold — perhaps literally — unless something is done. This is no way to live, especially for children. We urge the township and the state to work together to do everything in their power to help, whether that means taking their own legal and municipal action against Levine, and inquiring about temporary shelters should this situation become protracted. Also, if PSE&G is in a position to restore service to the complex while holding Levine accountable for the cost, then it should be pressed to do so.