Bush House Hotel Condemnation Lifted After At Least 61 Residents Displaced, Rehoused

QUAKERTOWN, PA — The Bush House Hotel's condemnation has now been lifted, two months after the Borough of Quakertown condemned the complex due to violations of the local health and safety code.

Sixty-one residents were displaced from their homes on Nov. 10 when the borough condemned the historic property, saying investigators found "an unprecedented infestation at the property as well as other unsafe, unsanitary conditions."

Hotel conditions had been on the local government's radar due to law enforcement and first responder observations over the years. A report by the Bucks County Courier Times also detailed resident lawsuits as far back as 2016 describing extreme infestations, moldy bathrooms, and structural issues that led to injury.

"Despite numerous warnings and notices provided to the owner of the Bush House Hotel concerning these conditions, there was no evidence that the owner had taken any significant steps to rectify these problems pointed out to him on several occasions by the Borough," officials wrote in a news release Wednesday.

But the borough said that the building owner has now remedied the most significant code violations, taking steps including fumigating the entire complex.

The heavy bed bug and roach infestations could not have been remedied with people living in the rooms, according to the release.

As part of the condemnation, the borough had also said that the owner only made minimal renovations to a portion of the hotel significantly damaged in a deadly 2018 fire. The Wednesday announcement did not detail whether action would be taken on this score, though that part of the hotel was unoccupied when the building was condemned.

"All 61 residents displaced after the condemnation who requested assistance were provided rehousing and social service assistance from Bucks County administration, the Bucks County Opportunity Council, and the YWCA," the borough wrote. "In addition, officials connected those vulnerable residents, including the elderly and those afflicted with mental illness and drug dependence, with the proper agencies for assistance and treatment."

The borough did not detail whether or not all these residents would return to the hotel.

Lawsuits filed by residents in the past point to poor conditions going back years.

“We were being eaten alive,” former resident Keirstin Sibley told the Courier Times. “It looked like I had burns up and down my arms.”

According to the report, Sibley and her roommates put up with conditions at the hotel for a few months in 2015 before finding new places to live and settling their lawsuits with owner Tom Skiffington for $12,500.

Following the condemnation in November, Skiffington had filed a 60-page petition making multiple requests about restoring access to the property. The Bucks County Courier Times reported that in this petition, he accused borough officials of condemning his property based on false allegations in order to pressure him into selling the hotel, so it could be redeveloped.

His court filing reportedly alleged that Quakertown officials demanded Skiffington stop using the properties to house low-income residents, which the borough saw as incompatible with its ongoing downtown revitalization plans.

The request was withdrawn after the borough restored utility services and site access to Skiffington.

"As always, the Borough is committed to the health, safety, and welfare of all the residents and will continue to make sure the Bush House Hotel remains suitable for occupancy," representatives wrote in Wednesday's announcement.

Related: Bush House Hotel Condemned, Residents Removed Due To Health Risks

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