Six people who were injured when a porch in the South Austin neighborhood collapsed last month have sued a property management company, alleging it knew the West Side property had structural issues and failed to address them, according to court documents.

       A city inspector and fire department official observe damage of a collapsed porch and stairwell on South Lavergne Avenue on June 15, 2021. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)

       Stairs from a second-floor porch fell onto the first-floor landing of the building on the 0-100 block of South Lavergne Avenue on June 15, injuring four adults and two children, according to Chicago police and the Department of Buildings. Several people had “severe and permanent injuries,” according to the lawsuit.

       In the lawsuit, filed July 8, lawyers for the six people alleged Matanky Realty Group, “improperly operated, managed, maintained, and controlled” the property and “negligently and carelessly” violated Chicago city codes.

       Matanky Realty Group said in a statement that the company was hired to manage the property in December of 2018 and was unaware of prior citations on the property. It said that when the porch collapsed, the company acted “immediately and responsibly” to tape off access and arrange for temporary repairs, as instructed by Building Department inspectors.

       “We have been recognized for all the other work which we continue to do and have done as responsible and contributing citizens of the City of Chicago,” the statement said. “We work to revitalize neighborhoods and serve communities to improve the lives of their residents.”

       The Department of Buildings determined in June the stairs collapsed because of “failing connections,” department spokeswoman Mimi Simon said.

       Deck stairs are anchored by a “stair stringer,” beams that attach the stairs to the deck, according to the Department of Buildings porch guidelines. The accident on South Lavergne Avenue was caused by a fault in these stringers, and the second-floor stairs “sheared away from the stringers,” the spokeswoman said.

       Additionally, most of the structure was fastened with nails rather than screws, and the wood was worn and loose, according to the inspection report. Two other porches on the property were also inspected, and all were dubbed “dangerous and hazardous,” the report said.

       NPA Monroe Street purchased the property in 2017. The Department of Buildings spokeswoman said it will require the owners to submit permits to reconstruct the collapsed porch system.

       A fire department official and city inspector observe damage of a collapsed porch and stairwell on South Lavergne Avenue on June 15, 2021. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)

       Under previous owners, the property failed an inspection and was cited for five violations in early 2017, including not allowing inspectors to check the rear porches, according to Department of Buildings records. In 2013 the property also failed an inspection and was cited for not repairing or replacing defective parts of the porch.

       The former property owner was summoned to judicial code hearings in 2008. He pled “liable” for two porch citations, according to court documents, and then was sanctioned once for failure to appear.

       Updates to the porch would have required permits from the city, and the most recent permit to fix the porch was filed in 2008, according to the Department of Buildings permit records.

       The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s most recent numbers estimate that between 2016 and 2019 there were 2,900 injuries and two deaths nationwide associated with collapses and failures of balconies, decks and porches.

       Chicago began enforcing tougher building codes for exterior structures after a porch collapse in Lincoln Park killed 13 people and injured more than 50 in 2003. In 2018, three people were injured when a porch collapsed in Highland Park; a personal injury lawsuit was filed against the landlord. That same year, in Andersonville, a porch collapsed with about 20 people on it and three were hospitalized.

       Editors’ note: This story has been edited to correct the role of Matanky Realty Group and to add comments from the company.

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