Residents in Village Square senior housing in Gorham have been served notice by their landlord: If they open a window, they can be hit with a $50 fine.

“They’ll be telling us what to eat for breakfast next,” said Mary Emmans, 85, a resident of the School Street housing.

Village Square’s landlord is Avesta Housing, which is

concerned about conserving heat and possible building damage caused by open windows. Residents are concerned about fluctuating apartment temperatures – and their right to open a window.

Barbara Soloway, regional property manager for Portland-based Avesta, said Wednesday a card was mailed last week to residents in 1,200 units in all 48 buildings managed by Avesta, a nonprofit agency that provides affordable housing. It said:

“It is essential that you keep windows closed in very cold weather. Please be aware that if we find your window open, we will be entering your apartment to close your window and you will be charged $50. Please consider this your 24 hour notice if we must enter. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Soloway said Avesta wants to save on heat and prevent damage to its property. She said leaving windows open could freeze pipes.

“It’s fine to open windows for 15 minutes for fresh air,” she said.

Soloway said within the last two weeks windows were seen open with no one home at Village Square and other properties. She said the card was sent so residents would take it seriously.

Village Square, which has 48 apartments for the elderly and disabled, is subsidized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development. Some residents are complaining that the warning exacerbates a situation in which they are coping with fluctuating temperatures in their apartments.

Carmen Ellis, 54, said her Village Square apartment has been too hot. She set her thermostat at 62, but the temperature was 70 Wednesday morning.

“I have asthma and if I can’t open the window, I can’t breathe,” said Ellis. “I don’t want to get charged $50.”

Susan Rappold, 62, a resident at Village Square and a refugee from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, said every apartment has a thermostat, but they don’t work.

“Some elderly people here need to be warmer. Others open windows because they need it cooler,” said Rappold.

Soloway said a heating contractor repaired a few malfunctioning thermostats that Avesta was aware of at Village Square. She said residents need to call Avesta if thermostats didn’t work. “We’ll absolutely correct the problem,” she said.

But, Rappold was told by a former maintenance man that the heat is controlled from a meter utility area on the ground floor of the three-story building. Heat, electricity and water utilities are covered in the rent, which is one-third of each resident’s income.

Rappold said she has no control over the temperature in her apartment. “Sometimes it’s a little chilly,” Rappold said, who added she’s happy to be there. “If it’s cold, I put another comforter on the bed.”

Rappold said she thinks some residents are opening electric oven doors to help warm apartments.

The building, built in 1999, has a hot water heating system, according to town records. “No one should be using their oven for heat,” Soloway said. “That’s a dangerous thing to do.”

Gorham Fire Chief Robert Lefebvre said electric stoves aren’t designed for that use. “No question, it’s dangerous,” Lefebvre said. “I would have concerns if people are using any supplementary heaters.”

Ralph Strout, who has been living at Village Square for a decade, said most of the time the temperature in his apartment is comfortable, but he opens the oven door for more heat early in the morning. Strout said the temperature in his apartment dips into the 60s by 7 a.m.

“It doesn’t stay hot all night, that’s for sure,” said Strout, who keeps the thermostat in his apartment on 75.

According to Rappold, “Village Square residents are scared. They want to open their windows but are afraid of being asked to leave,” Rappold said. “They don’t have money for fines.”

Andrea Whitehouse, 29, said she thought the $50 charge is ridiculous. “If they come in my apartment without permission, they’re getting arrested,” she said.

Another resident, Dan Cressey, who has been at Village Square 10 years, is advocating a residents’ petition about the card.

“I think it stinks,” Cressey said. “This is stupid. I can’t control the weather.”

Cressey and Ira Eastman, 71, a longtime resident, both want a meeting of the building’s residents in the community room about the card.

“I think there was no need of it,” Eastman said.

Residents at Village Square in Gorham, housing for elderly and disabled, are upset after they received a notice from landlord Avesta Housing threatening $50 fines if they open their windows.