MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Memphis Housing Authority is officially taking over the troubled Serenity Towers senior apartment complex in East Memphis as of Dec. 23. This comes after years of complaints about broken elevators, no heating or air conditioning in common areas, and cracks throughout the building. "Serenity Towers has been an embarrassment to the city and the county for years, literally years," said Rep. G.A. Hardaway (D-Memphis). "We have had lives lost. People have died because of the conditions they have had to live in at Serenity Towers. It could have been prevented." Your News Leader reached out to Mayor Paul Young's administration to find out what the MHA takeover will mean. In a statement emailed to WREG on Monday, the mayor's office says, "The city is acting as owner of Serenity Towers and has contracted with MHA to manage the property and assist with the relocation process." ► Previous coverage into Serenity Towers "We've been put on notice and the precedent and these kind of transitions with HUD have taken up to a year, but the pressing issue of Serenity Towers, it's our belief a year is not an appropriate timeline," city attorney Carlissa Shaw said. Hardaway and Shelby County Assessor of Property Melvin Burgess Jr. called for an investigation into the state of Serenity Towers. They say property owner Millennia should have improvements a long time ago. "It needs to be taken care of, and remember this — these taxes were abated to run this operation. So, they need to be held accountable. We all pay our taxes in Shelby County. So, they should be held accountable," Burgess said. As for just when the senior tenants will be moving out and to where, the city says,"As of now, no timeline has been set for the relocation of tenants." Hardaway says it's also important to keep this senior community together and not spread out all over the county in what should be their golden years. "To mitigate the damage that's already occurred both physically, psychologically and emotionally to our seniors, they deserve more than they're getting now. Let's change this around," he said.