AP/Olivier Douliery This article originally appeared on ProPublica. CAIRO, Ill. — For years, residents of public housing complexes here were stuck living in aging and neglected buildings with inoperable heat, leaky ceilings, broken windows, mold, mice, roaches, and frequently clogged toilets and sinks. And for years, federal authorities failed to step in despite regular financial reviews and building inspections that should have flagged problems and prompted corrective action much sooner. But the solution once the Department of Housing and Urban Development finally faced the scope of the decay in Illinois’ most southern city has turned out to be every bit as thorny and painful. Last spring, HUD announced it would shutter two sprawling World War II-era family housing complexes in Cairo and help residents move out.