Cumberland Housing - River Bend Court

Cumberland Housing - River Bend Court This is a page about River Bend Court in Cumberland Maryland

This one is a hoot..... Housing wants tenants to conserve electricity, but themselves waste enough that could literally ...
06/08/2026

This one is a hoot.....

Housing wants tenants to conserve electricity, but themselves waste enough that could literally pay my electric bill monthly. When River bend Court was being remodeled, housing stated they were going to have the front porch lights on a house meter and they'd be responsible for the lighting on the front porches. Their reasoning was, they could not trust the tenants to turn them off during the day and back on at night.

Well, apparently neither can housing be trusted to do so. When River Bend Court came online, housing had dusk to dawn sensors on each building, and that worked pretty well. Then all of a sudden they switched it and set the outside lighting to come on at a set time, and go off at a set time. Well, that isn't working too well either, because the outside lights begin coming on two hours or more prior to dusk, and stay on for an hour or more after dawn. And they say we tenants can't be trusted to turn the lights off, LOL.

06/07/2026

Part Two of the Video Recording policy:

Housing is relying on the Maryland wiretap statute for the video recording policy/rule. First off, the title "Video Recording" is misleading, because in the verbiage they do not mention video recording other than the title, they only mention audio recording. During subsequent conversations with management, they indicated they were clearly talking about audio and video recording. Maryland is a two party state, meaning you need consent from all involved to audio record a private/secret conversation. If you are in public, and several other people not party to the conversation and can be heard by the general public, it is no longer private or secret. There are other exceptions and implied consent rules. They cite Maryland wiretap statute 10-401 as the basis for the policy. I invited manage Kyra to my unit so I could demonstrate in fact if I muted my cameras while video recording they do not pick up audio. During our meeting on April 21st. 2023, manager Kyra confirmed that my cameras do not pick up audio if muted. I then asked the CEO who gave them that information and advice, she replied it came from their attorney.

The law says, you can video record inside your house in areas where there is no expectation of privacy. The way it is said in the law, is you cannot video record in areas where someone may disrobe, in other words, get naked. So I asked the CEO how many times have they sent maintenance to a tenants unit to work naked.

Government is always watching/recording us, but the moment we watch/record them, they have a problem with it.

This is going to be a two part post;Part one: Prior to the enactment of the video recording policy/rule, housing was (an...
06/07/2026

This is going to be a two part post;

Part one: Prior to the enactment of the video recording policy/rule, housing was (and may still be) recording calls made by tenants to their offices. I learned this from Krys the middle manager. There was a situation with a unit that had extensive damage caused by a tenant prior to them moving out. Maintenance was neglecting the trash can close to my unit, so I called the maintenance office to see if they were going to empty the can, and offered to empty it myself if they gave me a bag. The guy in the office went on a rant, calling tenants scum, trash and several other vile names. I brought this to Kry's attention, she encouraged me to come in and file a written complaint. I met with her, and two other managers. After filling out the form, I questioned whether or not it was really worth it, because it would be his word against mine. She then replied, they will know exactly what was said when they listen to the call. Realizing she made a slip of the tongue, she hurried up and changed the subject. I just acted like I didn't catch it and didn't mention it again to her. I had been trying to get answers to a few questions on other matters related to the recording policy and how they were developed and the process. After several attempts, I decided to send the CEO Michele Bender a certified restricted letter requesting a meeting on the matter. The CEO, and managers Krys and Kyra met with me on April 21st, 2023. During this meeting I asked if they were still recording calls, the CEO denied calls were being recorded. I mentioned that I learned about the recording of calls from Krys, to which she replied, "I was only kidding". Take note, she did not deny saying that, she merely said she was kidding. Sounds like an admission to me. The tenant that caused damage to their unit were threatened with criminal charges and jail if they did not vacate their unit right away. The manager (Krys) Knowing the damage caused did not rise to the level of criminal charges, and they would have to go through the proper eviction process, the manager (Krys) asked me if the tenant had talked to me, then she asked me not to tell them anything, because they needed to do whatever they can to get rid of these people, saying they did not want to have to go through the whole eviction process. I just figured, not my circus, not my monkey.

Part Two coming in the next posting.......

Let's talk about the Board of Commissioners for Cumberland Housing. The Board is made up of five members, one of whom is...
06/04/2026

Let's talk about the Board of Commissioners for Cumberland Housing. The Board is made up of five members, one of whom is a housing tenant. (listed below). The way they are supposed to be chosen/appointed is, the Cumberland housing Group sends a list of nominees to the City, and they are then voted on by the Mayor and Council. However, the way it is actually done is, the Cumberland housing Group decides who they want on the Board of Commissioners, then sends the list to the city, and the list is rubber stamped and approved. The function of the Board of Commissioners for housing is, when Housing want's to change something, whether that is in the lease, rules, or other things related to housing, they present them to the board, then puts it out for a 30 day public comment process, and the board meets and votes on the changes. However (again) the Board of Commissioners are merely YES members for Housing. In their existence, the Board of Commissioners have never voted down any changes Housing proposed, even with public comments in opposition to the changes.

The Board of Commissioners meet the third Wednesday of every other month at 12:30pm. If there is no business to discuss, the meeting is canceled. The meetings are open to the public and subject to the sunshine and open meetings laws. The Cumberland Housing Group is supposed to post the meeting days and times in their office on the board to make the public aware. However, they have never been posted, nor has Housing informed the public or tenants of these meetings. I discovered this by chance when I was browsing the Cumberland City website one day, then I did some research. The fact that housing fails to inform the tenants/public of this, makes transparency seem like a forbidden term.

In the next entry, we will talk about CHG's rules on Video Recording:

We're going to play a game, now you don't really have to play/respond, but feel free to do so if you wish.Looking at eac...
05/31/2026

We're going to play a game, now you don't really have to play/respond, but feel free to do so if you wish.

Looking at each picture, see if you can find the problem. See if you can find the illogical irony. I will post on each picture the problem management has with each, but I will let you point out the illogcial irony. One of these pictures defies all logic.

05/29/2026

Well, they have cut grass here at RBC more over the last three weeks than they have over the last three years.

Let's talk about the 10 page lease:On page three, section 10 it discusses maintenance. This section outlines what is un...
05/29/2026

Let's talk about the 10 page lease:
On page three, section 10 it discusses maintenance. This section outlines what is under the responsibility of CHG. Line 1 says they (CHG not tenant) are responsible for cleaning the common areas. So you could imagine why I was confused when the ticket master wrote me a door tag ticket for trash being in the common areas around/near my unit. Line 8 says they will maintain grounds and shrubs. Interesting, because they have not performed spring or fall clean up for 3-4 years now. They have dying or dead plants, shrubs and bushes in between the porches of units throughout the development. And the mulch hasn't had any attention for three years or more. The last time they spruced up the mulch, it literally smelled like s**t. Local landscape nurseries do not sell mulch that stinks like s**t. Just come and walk the grounds and see for yourself.

Now page 9, section 26, Contents of this agreement:

Most do not understand this, as they merely skim over everything or just don't care. So I will explain what this section means. It means, no matter what is in the lease, the only portions that can legally be enforced are portions that are not contradicted by local, state or federal laws. They have to include this in their lease, because they have several rules that are unconstitutional and are contracted by local, state and federal laws. One example of this is, they threaten you with a lease violation if you do not clear snow from the sidewalk leading to your porch within 24 hours after snow stops, they cite the city ordinance, but the sidewalks within the interior of the development are not covered under that ordinance. However, in the same statement, they will tell you, they will get to the sections they are responsible for when they get to it. Another example is open containers: They cite the city open container ordinance to forbid you from sitting on your porch enjoying adult beverages, or enjoying one while you cook out on your read deck. The city open container does not restrict such things.

Okay, pest control came out on May 21, 2026, accompanied by two property managers. The author of this letter stood in th...
05/27/2026

Okay, pest control came out on May 21, 2026, accompanied by two property managers. The author of this letter stood in the middle of my living room and took a picture, of which I have a MPIA request in to obtain a copy of that picture. To which they have ten days from May 22, 2026 to respond, and thirty days to provide the requested record, otherwise they risk being in violation of state and federal law.

Now, here's the rub with this situation, it's comical:
Since my post questioning whether there is/should be a cursory house keeping inspection without proper notice in conjunction with the pest control services provided every month, this carefully worded letter was placed in my box Tuesday May 26, 2026. As you can see, it does not say "house keeping inspection", but make no mistake it is a de facto inspection.

Now to address the items mentioned in this letter/notice:
The problem they have with items in front of the hot water heater closet door is, a pair of boots that are at least 14 inches from the door, leaving 5-6 inches of clearance for the door to swing open.

The problem they have with items at the bottom of the stairs is, a 14inch by 14 inch stand that I have one of those wax melt warmers sitting on. Keep in mind that space is 42 inches by 36 inches.

And the third thing they have a problem with is, a 12 inch by 12 inch by 24 inches tall drawer caddy sitting in the area of the furnace closet, that space is 40 inches by 36 inches. Granted, I do have a small lamp on that stand, but when I am properly notified they plan to gain access to the furnace area, I move the lamp, because without the lamp, the door swings open giving uninhibited access to the furnace and or filter.

It is extremely important to note, these things have been in the same spot for more than a year, but when you speak up/out on issues, they retaliate and pick on petty things.

Future topics will include, but not necessarily in this order:

Security at their developments

Cumberland Housing Board of Commissioners

RAD and the 20+ million dollar redevelopment of Fort Cumberland Homes that Became River Bend Court.

The pic with the boots and scale is a problem to them, the claim is it blocks the water heater door. And the pic of a re...
05/26/2026

The pic with the boots and scale is a problem to them, the claim is it blocks the water heater door. And the pic of a rear porch is from a previous tenant at RBC for five years. That tenant had all of that stuff on her porch and absolutely nothing was said or done, yet a pair of boots more than a foot away from a door is the big crime. One possible reason nothing was ever said/done with the tenant and her junk is, she used to date the boyfriend of a member of middle management. That manager used to talk a lot of shnit about that tenant to (myself and) other tenants, until the tenant finally grew tired of it and moved recently. More on that relationship in a future posting.

05/24/2026

The Cumberland Housing Group has been violating portions of a Maryland bill that was signed into law during a past Legislative Session.

I cannot post here what that is just yet, because they actively read this page and I don't want to tip my hand just yet. I am currently in communication with the primary sponsor and a few of the co-sponsors of that bill in the General Assembly. Typically with the Government and their bills, the text of the bills only give enough information so that you still have to ask questions. The true intent of a bill is never outlined in the bills themselves, so I am gathering clarification on a few details. I can see our overlords over on E. First Street now, sitting at their computers, trying to figure out what the hell I'm talking about. To them I say, Patience Grasshopper.

Address

50 Lamont Street
Cumberland, MD
21502

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