2015 NEWARK TENANT NEWS BLOG
www.newarktenantsunited.org
December 31, 2015: post on towing controversy removed on
Jan. 18, 2016
December 30, 2015: Pastors and homeless residents protest the
mass relocation of homeless from Jersey City to the Newark
YMCA in downtown Newark. Hudson County officials have a lame
excuse, saying downtown Newark is safer than the Route 9 hotel
in Jersey City. The homeless are chronically in and out of stable
housing, so once these homeless are placed in stable housing in
Essex County, and they inevitably become homeless AGAIN, then
it'll be on Essex County's dime, not Hudson's. They are just
shifting the responsibility to Newark. That is what this is all
about, don't let anyone fool you. Dec 30 Star Ledger homeless
article
December 28, 2015: Turns out that bringing in economic
development is all about affordable housing. Reposting a Dec.
11th article from the Dallas Business Journal, which
investigated why Toyota has relocated its headquarters from
California to Texas, bring 3,000 jobs. Article about Toyota and
affordable housing
“It was really about affordable housing. That’s what started the
conversation. They had focus groups with their employees. Their
people said, ‘We’re willing to move. We just want to live the
American Dream.’ Toyota did the math and found that housing
costs in Los Angeles County, where Torrance is located, are three
times per square foot the cost of a house in Dallas-Fort
Worth. “They’re paying the same salary,” Niemi said. “So in real
terms, they’re going to triple the affordability of housing they can
buy if they move to Texas."
Funny thing, the Republican Party in New Jersey loudly proclaims
themselves to be the party of economic development. They are
traditionally against affordable housing and rent control. Yet it
turns out that low housing costs is exactly what is needed to
bring jobs to New Jersey, and to keep jobs from moving out.
Texas has tremendous economic growth, low housing costs, and
way less need for rent control than New Jersey. Texas has
created more jobs during the Obama presidency than the other
49 states, combined. Somehow that model is working, while New
Jersey is stuck in the "elitist model" segregating cities versus
suburbs by income, and creating the have's and have-not's of the
NY-NJ metropolitan area. This is all too apparent in Newark, and
all the social ills of the failing neighborhoods are the result.
December 27, 2015: Landlords lose big in Wallington, New
Jersey, which is in southern Bergen County. The owners of
the massive Jasontown II complex appealed to a State agency
last year for a 17% increase, and they were awarded 2%. So
they applied again for a 98.43% increase for 2016, and all they
won was another 2%. You see, there is no end to the greed of a
landlord asking for 98.43%. 4% over 2 years is still way more
than a CPI-based increase, but it can be counted as a tenant
win.
December 27, 2015: The permitted rent increase for January is
0.4% (4/10 of 1%), and 0.6% (6/10 of 1% for February, per the
change in the Consumer Price Index, as posted on the City of
Newark Rent Control website.
The CPI is probably increasing due to a spike in food costs that is
otherwise hurting tenants' budgets. Things like eggs, milk,
orange juice, beef, and especially fresh fruits and vegetables
have been soaring far beyond inflation for 3 years and counting.
Why is this happening during a time that gasoline prices (and
therefore transportation costs) are way down ? Could it be the
California drought, or just pure greed? Boxed and canned goods
and junk food is barely increasing. Fresh green peppers were less
than $1 a pound just a few years ago, and now at $3.99 a pound
at the East Orange Shop Rite, which is known for very low prices.
Note also that the Fed has gone from 0% interest to 0.25% base
rate, and that may signal upwards pressure on the CPI in the
future. A few things that are factoring towards a lower CPI are
further projected decreases in crude oil, a mild winter, and steep
price declines in consumer electronics and computers. We can't
afford the rent, but how about that 50" flat screen TV ?
December 26, 2015: Surprise, there are 2 special city council
meetings for December. One was December 22nd, and the other
is December 29, 2015. Nothing on the agenda for Rent Control.
What was interesting is Ordinance 15-2143, which authorizes the
sale of an abandoned city-owned factory on First Street at Route
280 (and another property on South Orange Avenue) for the
combined sum of a mere $200,000. You'd think the properties
are worth millions, no ? That massive 6 +/- story graffiti-ridden
hulk of a building is highly visible, and one of the symbols of
urban blight in Newark. Location Map The buyer of the properties
is U-Haul. Someone needs to monitor our city official's campaign
contributions and see who has gotten, or who will be getting,
campaign donations from U-Haul or U-Haul connected parties.
December 23, 2015: We are in contact with Portland Tenants
United. Oregon currently prohibits rent control. We will be
advising them, and debunking the landlord's arguments. More
than likely, I'll refer them to NJTO at some point, since they are
the national experts on rent control. Also see an article about
vacancy decontrol and all the problems it has caused. vacancy
decontrol dispute in Berkeley, CA
December 22, 2015: WE HAVE CONFIRMATION It appears
that we have confirmation of the theory put forth in our
December 18, 2015 article (scroll down to see). We received an
email today from the 425 Mount Prospect Tenants Association:
"Maria called Joe Graham today and we went to her office she
said the owner has agreed to settle for the 1.6% which will result
in approximately $500 refund to the tenant". Unless the tenant
insists otherwise, it appears that there will be no Rent Control
hearing set, and certainly no fine issued to the landlord.
Maria Hernandez is doing everything possible to keep the record
clean for the landlords. She does not want an official record of
Rent Adjustment cases being scheduled, no less being heard. She
reviews the tenant's complaints, and she makes the tenants
jump through a million hoops to give "complete" information.
And when it looks like the tenant has an ironclad case, she
intervenes with the landlord instead of scheduling the hearing. By
her actions, she is removing a point of contention in the ongoing
litigation between the landlords and the City of Newark.
Specifically, what she is doing is eliminating, to the maximum
extent possible, any official record that there are many tenants
who have been given rent increases in violation of the Rent
Control Ordinance which went into effect on June 20, 2014. She
is both protecting the landlords and trying to make herself look
like the hero to the tenants. Very, very slick. This is all way
beyond her duties, or even the duties of the Rent Control Officer,
as outlined in the Ordinance. When exactly, will the Rent Control
office actually follow the ordinance.
December 21, 2015: For those thinking of getting out of New
Jersey to find cheaper housing, the good news is that rental
housing is much much cheaper across almost the entire country.
For the most part, it's the red states that have fair housing.
Housing is most unaffordable in States where there is a huge
qualify of life difference between blighted areas and "elite"
areas. National Map of Rental Costs
December 18, 2015: RENT CONTROL HEARING PROCESS AT
ISSUE. Newark Tenants United has uncovered evidence that the
Newark Rent Control office is circumventing the Rent Control
Ordinance and not properly processing tenant's applications for
Rent Adjustments.
A month ago, on November 18th, two applications from 425
Mount Prospect were accepted as complete by Maria Hernandez,
senior staff member at the Newark Rent Control office (accepted
as complete after much hoops to jump through, but that's
another whole discussion). Instead of mailing
the Defendant (landlord) a legal notice with a Hearing Date,
there is some intermediate process, as described by Hernandez
in an email to Newark Tenants United today >>> "…time is given
to all parties to resolve the matter at hand if possible. If consent
is not reached than the application is scheduled for Board
review". The tenants at 425 Mt. Prospect haven't gotten any
response from Rent Control, leaving them mystified, frustrated,
and feeling disenfranchised by City Hall.
While this process initially might sound not so bad, the reality is
that a Landlord will react much differently if they get a Legal
Notice from the City of Newark with a Hearing Date. Newark
Tenants United wants the landlords to be under the gun, with the
pressure of a scheduled hearing. And the tenant has the peace of
mind in knowing that the papers they filed have been acted on,
and that their Landlord better concede to their case or face a
hearing. This process of sending out notices right away also
creates a record of applications that can be reviewed to see how
many tenants are filing cases.
There has been a grand total of two Rent Adjustment
cases since the adoption of the 2014 Rent Control Ordinance in
which a rent dispute between landlord and tenant has made it to
an actual Hearing. But what is really going on at Rent Control:
1. how many tenants actually contacted Rent Control (by phone
or email) because they believe their rent was higher than the
ordinance allows,
2. how many submitted actual paperwork for a hearing?
3. how many applications were accepted as complete, and
4. how many applications were "resolved" before a Hearing ?
We don't know, and we'll probably never know. We do know that
a false record is being created. Any party (mayor's office,
councilperson, lawyer, media, etc) that contacts the Rent Control
Office to find out how many tenants have petitioned for rent
adjustments will not learn of #4 (above), no less #1. They'll just
hear that only two cases were heard, and the tenants won both
cases. This creates a false impression that landlords are
overwhelmingly complying with the ordinance, and there really
isn't a problem of improper rent increases. But the reality is that
THOUSANDS of tenants are probably paying a higher rent than
the ordinance allows. This mostly stems from leases signed or
renewed July - November, 2014, and perhaps more recently for
smaller buildings. We are not in touch with thousands
of tenants in smaller buildings, and many of their landlords STILL
might not know about the 2014 ordinance.
The process for Rent Adjustment Petitions at Newark's Rent
Control office should be similar to Small Claims Court. When a
Small Claims case is filed, the court's staff don't try to resolve
matters without scheduling a hearing. Not a chance, that would
be ridiculous. That's not part of their job. The Court promptly
mails a legal notice to the Defendant with a court date,
with a copy mailed to the Plaintiff. The Defendant has every
right to reach out to the Plaintiff to resolve the matter, and lots
of times that happens. The Plaintiff has the upper hand, because
there is a Hearing scheduled. This has to be the model for Rent
Control
December 16, 2015: Newark Tenants United has made contact
with the Bloomfield Tenants Association, which represents all
tenants in Bloomfield. We'll be collaborating.
Newark Tenants United has postponed a presentation to the
Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders. We seek a
Resolution in opposition to S-2951, the EVICTION FOR ANY
CAUSE Bill sponsored by NJ State Senator Ronald Rice, Sr. (DNewark)
December 15, 2015: Breaking news: A 5.2 acre property in the
ironbound, including the famed Iberia restaurant and some large
parking lots, is for sale. It is being marketed for high-rise
apartment towers or office towers. Advocates point to it's
immediate proximity to Newark Penn Station as well as other
restaurants and nightlife in The Ironbound. There could be as
many as 800 - 1000 high-rent dwelling units coming. It seems
that Newark's "terrible" Rent Control Law isn't deterring
investors, no matter how much the landlord lobby tries to spin it
that way. New construction in NJ is exempt from rent control for
30 years, the same time period as a typical mortgage. NJ.com
Iberia For Sale
Matt Shapiro of NJTO advises that the Sponsors of S-2951
(Eviction for Any Cause) legislation are up against a deadline to
get it passed. The State Legislature works in 2-year sessions,
and anything not passed in the current session dies when the
session ends in mid-January, 2016. If the sponsors want to
continue to pursue it, they would have to start from
scratch, including the State Assembly. There is one more voting
session in December, but nothing will happen by then. There is
effectively one more voting session, the January session, which is
typically the day before the new Legislature is sworn in. Now we
know why Rice and Van Drew were so adamant that the Senate
Community & Urban Affairs Committee pass it last Thursday. A
"no" vote would have left no time for it to possibly meet the
deadline. With this in mind, the most effectively lobbying would
be directly to Stephen Sweeney (D-Camden Co.), Senate
President.
December 14, 2015: Noting that there was a followup Code
Enforcement Blitz at 380 and 402 Mount Prospect, in which the
inspectors were hoping to document that management resolved
most of the complaints from the first blitz. Many problems
remain. Management has little incentive to fix things. The fine
structure in the Rent Control Ordinance is decades
outdated. It is so low that it's cheaper to absorb the fines
than to fix things. The fines just become part of doing
business. Any revision of the Rent Control Ordinance should
include updating the fines. In addition, there needs to be a sitdown meeting with Ras Baraka, Code Enforcement, tenant
leaders, and the judges that hear the cases. Newark needs to get
real serious on the fines.
December 12, 2015: MEETING OF CITY OFFICIALS, TENANT
LEADERS, and LANDLORD ADVOCATES. On Friday evening,
tenant leaders representing several tenant associations met with
Mayor Ras Baraka, and Councilpersons Chaneyfield, James, and
Ramos. Other participants included Mitch Kahn of NJTO, and
Sabur Guy of the Newark Apartment Owners Association. Several
folks who are also affiliated with Newark Tenants United were in
attendance. Nicholas Kikas, VP of the NJ Apartment Owners
Association (NJAA), was there to observe. Progress has been
made with respect to the tenant's positions on a potential
ordinance. We have been requested to withhold the details, and
observers have different takes.
December 10, 2015: Just returned from Trenton. I testified
against S-2951, the Eviction For Any Cause legislation. The
situation is much worse than we thought, the Bill will allow an
eviction for almost any reason. The only bright spot is that the
Bill's sponsor, Ronald Rice (Sr), State Senator from Newark,
agreed to meet with the many objecting organizations to discuss
amendments. For more info, see Full Report from Trenton Dec
10, 2015
The legislation is effectively a rewrite on New Jersey's Eviction for
Just Cause legislation, considered to be a landmark piece of
legislation.
December 9, 2015: Today NJTO coordinated an email and phone
call campaign against NJ Senate Bill S-2951, which changes the
tenant eviction laws. Newark Tenants United participated in this
campaign. S-2951 outwardly appears to be a good Bill because it
makes it easier to evict the criminal element, but the devil is in
the details. Objections
1. It's too broad in calling for the eviction of a tenant for ANY
criminal conviction, without specifying the crimes. No statutes
are referenced
2. Tenants can be evicted for the criminal activity of a guest
3. Tenants can be evicted for anything that meets the definition
of "criminal nuisance", which is too vague
There is a hearing of the Senate Community & Urban Affairs
Committee at the State House, Committee Room #1, at 11 AM
on Thursday. Representatives of NJTO will be in attendance
S-2951 Eviction For Any Cause legislation
December 2, 2015: The Newark City Council is scheduled to
pass a resolution today supporting $15/hr minimum wage. This
does not have the force of law, like in Seattle. $15/hour comes to
$600 per week, $2600 per month, or $31,200 per year. It's hard
to imagine how anyone can live on that little money, given
today's rents. (I pay my own carpenters $20 an hour). Minimum
wage in NJ is $8.38 an hour, which is so absurd that it should be
struck down by the courts, because you'd be much better off
living on public assistance. Newark's 12-2-15 Minimum Wage
Resolution
Recent Washington Post article Millenials Turned Cities 'Hipster'
makes a very strong case for Rent Control, without talking about
rent control. The national media still doesn't get rent control, it
seems.
December 1, 2015: Newark Tenants United now has an
operative living in the Parkwood Place complex in the North
Ward. Parkwood Place is a collection of 7 buildings totaling over
300 units, located on Clifton Ave and Mt. Prospect Ave between
the North Ward Center and 380 Mt. Prospect. The operative will
remain anonymous, and will report any news of interest to NTU,
and possibly compile a list of residents who want to form a
Tenants Association.
November 30, 2015: Rare 1957 film promoting the lure of
suburban living in northeastern New Jersey. This was the era that
cities were first outcompeted. About 15 minutes, a great
watch 1957 suburban advocacy film
November 29, 2015: University of Princeton student Kevin Lopez
is writing his college thesis on the Newark tenants
movement. He is especially interested in the relationship
between urban decline, code enforcement, and landlord/tenant
conflict. Lopez lives in the Ironbound part of Newark. He will be
contacting various tenant leaders, and we appreciate everyone's
cooperation.
November 23, 2015: Tim Dingman has harsh words for Tawanda
Mosely, Property Manager for The Colonnades, and gave
NTU authorization to quote the following: "Kettler is gone but the
manager, T. Mosely, remains. She has made a career at
Colonnade by lying, breaking local and state laws and bullying
tenants. The upside side of this is that as long as she continues
this behavior, there is still the chance that she will get caught
and go to jail (yes this satire, hyperbole and wishful thinking).",
said Dingman
November 22, 2015: On November 18th, The Colonnades
removed Kettler Management. There is a new owner and new
management The new management company kept Tawanda
Mosley, the manager who had worked for Kettler. Keeping the
property manager is a common transition move for new
management, to make the transition easier. Good chance she'll
be booted out in a few months and replaced with one of "their"
picks. Colonnades sale flyer to residents
Kettler was the management of choice for the city's top property
management law firm. Now Kettler appears to be on their way
out in Newark.
November 21, 2015: First, tenant complaints over housing code
violations lead to the city condemning this apartment building on
Johnson Ave, right next to Malcolm Shabazz High School. Now,
the Fed's make one of the largest heroin busts in Newark history
in the same building. Heroin bust Nov. 19 article
November 20, 2015: Matt Shapiro has strong words for Maria
Hernandez for making tenant leaders jump through hoops to file
rent adjustment petitions. "…her statement is in direct
contradiction to the ordinance. I vehemently disagree with her
position, and cannot understand how a person with decades of
experience in the Newark Rent Control Office could possibly take
such a position contradicting the ordinance to the detriment of
the tenants the ordinance is intended to protect."
William O'Donnell stated that they went back to Rent Control
today, and successfully filed the applications. They will be
advised of the hearing date.
November 19, 2015: Tenant leaders from 425 Mount Prospect
are getting the run-around from Maria Hernandez, senior staff
member of Newark Rent Control. "Yesterday we went to the Rent
Control Office to file two rent adjustment petitions for our
members. We spoke to Maria Hernandez . the two tenants were
given notices to raise the rent effective July 1,2014. The notices
were given on May 27, 2014. One was raised 4.76% and the
other was raised 4.57%. Maria claims that because the notices
were dated in May they fell under the old guidelines."
My observations:
1. Judge Garry Furnari was crystal clear in his ruling of June 20,
2015, that the new terms of the Rent Control Ordinance go into
effect THAT DAY. I was there in the courtroom.
2. The allowable rent increase for July, 2014 is 1.6%.
3. These are not even a June, 2014 lease renewals, that could
possibly be construed as a gray area. June renewals are 1.3%,
according to the chart published prominently on their own
website Newark Rent Control website, just scroll down a few
inches to see Permitted Rent Increase table
4. The allowable rent increase for all leases that went into effect
PRIOR TO June 20th is 4.0%, not 4.76% or 4.57%.
5. This matter was also specifically discussed in the second ruling
of Judge Furnari, which was on November 21, 2014. One of the
arguments that the landlords made was exactly what Maria
Hernandez is arguing now. The judge ruled against it. I was in
the courtroom that day, and other tenant leaders have listened
to the tapes.
Are we EVER going to be done with Maria Hernandez
manipulating the system ? And if she tries this kind of nonsense
with the officers of a Tenant Association, what is she telling the
average tenant that she deals with? That's a scary question.
Hernandez was removed as the Rent Control Officer by Ras
Baraka almost a year ago, on December 9, 2014, but she's still
working there. Evidently she's still in a position to cause trouble
for tenants. Is this development a sign that the new Rent Control
Officer, Adam Cruz, is not going to be as fair as Mark Smith was
? We have every reason to be concerned.
Reposting Powers of the Rent Control Board which was originally
created less than 6 weeks prior to the removal of Maria
Hernandez as Rent Control Officer.
Note also that the CPI is creeping up. It was 0.1% in November,
the December rate is set for 0.3%, and January will be 0.4%
(4/10 of 1%).
November 18, 2015: Kevin Lopez of the Newark Civic Trust
organization attended the Nov. 15th city council meeting, and
reports that tenants (not directly affiliated with Newark Tenants
United) attended and voiced concerns against slumlords.
Councilman Amador says that the tax abatements of these
properties can be removed if the landlords don't maintain
adequate conditions. A lot of concerns voiced about Code
Enforcement being underfunded, understaffed, and unable to
address tenant's concerns.
November 15, 2015: Nothing of interest for the Monday
11/16/2015 evening city council meeting. No relevant ordinances
being read; and no tenant speakers registered to speak.
November 14, 2015: Newark Tenants United wishes a full
recovery to Newark Councilman Carlos Gonzalez, who was
severely injured in a motorcycle accident some days ago. He will
be recovering at Kessler Institute.
November 12, 2015: Attended a phenomenal seminar last night
at Rutgers regarding reforms in the Newark Police Department.
The focus was on body-cams, which will be rolled out shortly.
New Jersey is on the cutting edge with this.
November 11, 2015: Munirah Bomani reports a disturbing move
underfoot at the November 10th Special Conference meeting of
the city council. Council President Mildred Crump wants to
change the speaker rules for the Hearing of Citizens to place
greater restricts on public comment and the ability of people to
register to speak. Supporting her were Councilmen Ramos and
Osborne. Bomani noted that Amador and McCallum were
opposed. It did not pass because key councilmen were not
present at the meeting. There is nothing in Legistar on this
special meeting.
November 10, 2015: A representative of Newark Tenants United
met with two newly hired community organizers at La Casa de
Don Pedro, Felix Moulier and Matthew Johnston. They are looking
to partner further with us to address tenant needs in Rent
Controlled and HUD-regulated properties.
November 9, 2015: THE URBAN BLIGHT THAT ISN'T REAL,
BUT HAS BECOME REAL. Appearance can be deceiving. What
appears to be the most blighted square block in the City of
Newark, if not the entire State of New Jersey, is the square block
just east of Westside High School, or whatever its called these
days. The block is bounded by South Orange Ave, S. 11th Street,
S. 12th Street, and 13th Ave to the north. On South Orange
Avenue there's an entire mini-strip mall with a large parking lot,
a Papa John's, and other once-successful retail stores, fenced off
and abandoned. It's a shocking site to see a modern building in
such condition. Almost all the houses behind the stores on both
streets, all the way to 13th Ave, are abandoned and boarded up.
Many have been vandalized. There's vacant lots interspersed,
and dumping. The whole area looks like pure hell. Passersby
from Newark and beyond are struck with the severity of decline,
when it appears that even a modern strip mall has "failed". The
conditions there totally destroy public opinion of the City of
Newark, and over 10,000 drivers pass by every day and see it.
Well, here's the real story. None of that is the direct cause of
urban blight. The entire square block was slated to be
condemned to create an athletic field for the adjacent high
school. The properties were abandoned, but never torn down,
and then the funding to complete the project didn't
materialize. So what appears to be pure hell on earth is actually
artificially created urban blight. However, at some point it
become REAL urban blight, because folks don't know the story.
They think it's real blight, so it then it becomes real blight. One
thing for sure >>> the cycle of abandonment and disinvestment
is rapidly advancing in the neighborhood because of this stalled
project. The answer: The city cannot let that square block
sit like that, it is killing half of the West Ward. I say knock it
all down, and ASAP. If the funding to create the athletic field
never comes through, a mixed-use project can be built there.
Thanks to Milton Conway for information used in this article.
November 8, 2015: Posting recent Civic Parent Article on JC tax
abatements. Something similar is happening in Newark, but not
as many developments involved.
New York City's "lease rider" form is similar conceptually to
something that tenant leaders have been talking about in
Newark, which is the need for a Uniform Standard Residential
Lease Application. The mortgage industry standardized its forms
decades ago, and for the same reason it's needed for leases >>>
without standardization the entire mortgage industry was like the
Wild West, and consumers were being taken advantage of with
unfair terms. Note that some of the terms in this document are
not pro-tenant. NYC Lease Rider
Posting article Nov 2, 2015 from NJ.com about President Obama
snubs Newark City Council in recent visit to Newark. More
importantly, Ras Baraka should have introduced President
Obama to the leaders of Newark Tenants United. We could have
advised the President about the need for national rent control
standards.
Posting Nov 5, 2015 opinion piece by Hakim Hasan on urban
blight in Jersey City. It ran in NJ.com
November 5, 2015: City of Newark condemns four apartment
buildings owned by one of the worst slumlords in Newark. All
tenants were evicted, and the city is finding new housing for
them. Newark Tenants United is supportive of this move,
designed to send a message to other landlords. NJ.com article
on 4 buildings condemned
November 4, 2015: Propublica article about Actual rents versus
preferred rents in New York City. Note that former Rent Control
Director Mark Smith put an end to the same practice in Newark,
with a simple policy statement. The ONLY rents to be reported to
Rent Control are the actual rents.
November 3, 2015: The election results in no changes to the
State legislators representing Newark and vicinity. There was no
city election; the next city election will be Spring, 2018.
November 2, 2015: President Barack Obama is flying in to
Newark at 1:00 PM today, and will be visiting Broad Street at
Lincoln Park. He will be meeting with the Directors of Integrity
House, which treats the mentality ill and offers job training and
other services for them. The President will be touting Integrity
House as an example of success for a community-based
program. Expect gridlock conditions in the downtown area.
In response to the President's visit, the People's Organization for
Progress (POP) will be organizing a large protest, at 5 PM at the
Peter Rodino Federal Building "for jobs, peace, equality, and
justice". POP has been openly critical of Obama on many issues.
POP Chairman Lawrence Hamm openly states that the President
has done very little for African-Americans other than getting
elected as a person of color. The organization has not endorsed
anyone yet in the 2016 Presidential race. Many of their members
support Bernie Sanders.
October 31, 2015: Monday's court date for the intervention of
the four tenant associations into the litigation over the Rent
Control Ordinance has been postponed one week, at the request
of legal counsel.
October 28, 2015: We received an email from The Colonnades
Residents Coalition asking to be listed under our Allies and
Supporters Section (right column)
October 27, 2015: There is a Court Date for Monday, November
2, 2015 with Superior Court Judge Garry Furnari. The Court will
hear the motion (originally filed in December, 2014, but never
heard) for the four tenant associations to intervene in the lawsuit
between the Newark Apartment Owners Associations and the City
of Newark. The landlord's delaying tactics to secure a settlement
by forcing the City of Newark to amend the Rent Control
Ordinance in their favor appear to have failed. The entire
litigation is moving forwards.
The Colonnades is in the final process of sale. A new organization
is taking over on November 1st. It is expected that they will
phase out Kettler Management within a few months. This will
leave The Pavilion and The Addison as the only remaining Kettler
buildings in Newark.
A belated congratulations to the Colonnades Residents Coalition.
They recently elected officers, including a Chair and VP's for each
building. This information is not yet posted on their own website.
The Colonnades is actually two adjacent buildings, with two
lobbies, but joined together via the luxurious underground
"colonnade" level, which has a fitness center, 2 community
rooms, a convenience store, a laundrymat and management
offices.
October 26, 2015: Mark Smith, Director of Rent Control, is
leaving Newark this week. He is moving out of State due to
family obligations. This has been "common knowledge" for quite
some time. The new Director is Mr. Cruz, who is being trained
this week. More information will be posted as it becomes
available.
Three representatives of Newark Tenants United made a 20minute presentation on Rent Control tonite to the Board of the
Unified Vailsburg Services Organization (UVSO). Major non-profit
organizations already supporting the Rent Control movement
include La Casa de Don Pedro, Ironbound Community Corp, and
People's Organization for Progress.
October 25, 2015: It has come to our attention that the landlord
of 575 Mount Prospect spent $42,000 renovating an apartment,
and that it qualifies for a 20% rent increase per the current Rent
Control Ordinance, which requires that $5,000 per room be
spent. The 20% increase will be granted. Tenants and tenant
leaders are not in opposition. The ordinance is working as
intended.
October 24, 2015: Mayor Ras Baraka has shaken up and
restructured the Newark Housing Authority. Lots of folks are out,
and the entire organization is going to be more pro-tenant. There
are 17 tenant associations in Newark Housing Authority
buildings, and most or all of them are funded with government
grants intended to encourage tenant associations in HUD
buildings. Newark Tenants United is looking forwards to
communicating with them. Some of our issues overlap, and some
are distinct to HUD or non-HUD buildings. We most certainly
want to collaborate with them on additional reforms to Newark
Code Enforcement. The Rent Control Ordinance does not affect
HUD buildings.
October 21, 2015: 7 tenant leaders in attendance at tonite's city
council meeting, representing 3 tenant houses. Richard Ariza
spoke about the audacity of a multi-national company with $1.5
Billion in assets to begin the filing process for a Hardship
Application at 380 & 402 Mt. Prospect. Eric Martindale spoke on
the massive pipe burst at 380, that we don't know what architect
or engineer signed off on the riser design, that the work was
never inspected by the city, and that fines were never levied for
doing work without building permits. Ariza and Martindale also
informed the city council that the court case is continuing on
November 2nd.
October 20, 2015: Congratulations to tenant leader Victor
Monterrosa, Jr for securing a seat on the new Civilian Complaint
Review Board. Momterrosa was nominated by Mayor Ras Baraka
to serve on the board, which will review any contested matters
between the Newark Police Department and the community.
Monterrosa is also the attorney for the four tenant associations
which are intervening into the litigation between landlords and
the City of Newark. Go Victor !!!!
Oct 20 Press Release from City of Newark
Note the organizations that were consulted to nominate
appointees. La Casa de Don Pedro, People's Organization for
Progress, and the Ironbound Community Corp are also on record
as supporting Rent Control. These are important organizations.
The entire Civilian Complaint Review Board is filled with persons
concerned with civil rights and community concerns. There are
no retired cops or nominees from police-related organizations.
The new Board is not "balanced" like the Rent Control Board.
Hopefully just the fear of community scrutiny will influence the
police to act sensitively at all times.
October 18, 2015: The five goals of Newark Tenants United are:
1.
organize new tenant associations
2. secure support from additional community organizations for
protecting rent control
3.
secure media attention to the tenants movement
4.
manage our website and it’s news blogs, and
5. influence public policy by speaking at city council meetings
and writing elected officials
October 17, 2015: Sabur Guy is now the attorney for the Newark
Apartment Owner's Association (NAOA). Guy was a staff member
for North Ward Councilman Anibal Ramos until a few months ago.
Newark's NO HEAT emergency line is not working. It rings and
rings, and nobody answers. Several vertical lines of units at The
Addison have no heat. Heat was turned on very recently, but
some of the pumps in the vertical lines are not working.
October 17, 2015: Mitch Kahn, VP of the NJ Tenants Organization
urges tenants to stay in contact with our State Legislators,
because the NJ Apartment Association (NJAA) is more powerful
than ever. Kahn requested the following to be posted:
"NJAA PAC’s annual fundraiser used to include a
two-legislator-and-moderator panel to address its
issues. This year, in a dramatic departure, the format
became a cocktail reception with legislators.
Well, last night’s event attracted nearly 30 members
of both chambers. Clearly Trenton is taking notice".
October 15, 2015: Visited Newark's new Shop Rite, which opened
9/30. There were more employees there than customers. It's
gorgeous inside and slightly upscale, but tenants are instead
encouraged to shop at the East Orange Shop Rite for the best
prices on most items. There is a reason East Orange is packed
with customers >>> low prices. For boxed and canned goods,
Walmart still reigns supreme. Some smaller local supermarkets
have excellent prices for meat and dairy, just don't buy anything
canned or boxed there. And don't step foot in a bodega for
anything.
October 12, 2015: It was announced at a general meeting of
one of the tenant associations that Superior Judge Garry Furnari
will be entertaining the motion filed way back in December, 2014
for the four Tenant Associations to intervene in the litigation
between the landlords and the City of Newark regarding the Rent
Control Ordinance. All the attorneys involved, on both sides,
know about this. Therefore, this news is not too sensitive to
publish. It is unknown if there will be an actual hearing, or if the
judge will simply convene the attorneys in his chambers.
The Motion to Intervene has been repeatedly delayed because
the landlords kept telling the judge that the Rent Control
Ordinance is going to be changed soon, and the whole case
settled out of court. However, that has not happened. Instead,
attempts to change the ordinance were thwarted by tenant
activism several times (tenants calling and emailing city
officials). No version of the ordinance ever made it to be voted
on.
October 8, 2015: The 402 Mount Prospect parking garage has
been vacated of all vehicles on the upper and lower levels. Major
structural work has begun to prevent collapse of the structure.
The 380-402 Tenants Association had been calling for this work
for five years. The 380 parking garage, which is 1 or 2 years
older, was built much stronger. It is in excellent condition with no
sign of any deterioration.
October 7, 2015: Word has reached us of a tenant who moved
to Newark in July, 2014, and the rent offered was 16.0% higher
than the prior tenant. What is most disturbing is that Mark
Smith, Director of Rent Control, has already read this landlord
the riot act, yet the landlord is blatantly in non-compliance.
Evidently, the city's fine structure for violating the Rent
Control Ordinance is not a sufficient deterrent. The local
Tenants Association is advising the tenant to file papers with
Rent Control. We are not identifying the building at this
time. (Resolved, see Jan 1, 2016 news)
October 3, 2015: Nothing in the Legistar website on Rent
Control or Bedbugs for the October 7 city council meeting
Several tenant leaders are attending the LISC community activist
seminar today.
October 2, 2015: 425 Mount Prospect Avenue, an 87-unit
building, was without water for a good part of today because the
slumlords that own the building didn't pay their water bill. This
really shows everyone just how disgusting and greedy that some
of these landlords are. The legality of the shutoff is also
questionable, as it renders the building uninhabitable. Note that
the City of Newark IS the water company, so the shutoff was
actually done BY THE CITY OF NEWARK.
The entire process of shutoffs needs to be investigated >>> a
shutoff should not be done without tenants being notified in
advance. The owners paid, tenants complained, and water was
restored.
The 380-402 Tenants Association has distributed a newsletter. As
usual, it makes no mention of the hard work of Newark Tenants
United. Reposting for documentation and informational
purposes Sept 2015 Newsletter
September 30, 2015: Hakim Hasan has another printed piece in
nj.com on housing concerns in Jersey City Hakim Hasan Sept 30
Opinion Piece
September 28, 2015: Another great article in The Gothamist
about NYC's housing crisis, rent control, and affordable housing
Gothamist article
September 27, 2015: Mayor Ras Baraka has been sued by former
Corporate Counsel Karen Brown, for firing her in February,
2015 The article outlines numerous points raised by Brown, but
does not mention the Rent Control debacle. See also our news of
Dec 13, 2014. Sept 25 Star Ledger: Karen Brown sues Ras
Baraka
September 25, 2015: Newark Tenants United has created a Rent
Reconciliation form. This is to be filled out by the tenant to
document your case that you are being overcharged for rent. It
can be used to effectively negotiate with management, or given
as evidence in a Rent Control Board case to get a rent credit or
rent reduction. This form has been added to the RESOURCES TO
HELP TENANTS COLUMN (to the right)
The CPI-based rent increase for October, 2015 is 0.0%. For
November, it is 1/10th of 1%, which is 0.1%.
Also added to the RESOURCES TO HELP TENANTS column is a
link to The Colonnade Residents Coalition website, which contains
information on Rent Control. Their database is not a full overlap
of ours, or vis versa; each website has unique items. For
example, the Colonnade site has a database specifically on
Gentrification.
September 24, 2015: Ras Baraka has launched a My Newark
software application to report things to Newark, make requests,
and attach photos or documents. The city discontinued the 7334311 phone number over a year ago, and this appears to be the
new system. Thanks to James Powell for this information. My
Newark software
September 23, 2015: James Powell, a tenant leader from The
Pavilion attends a North Ward community forum hosted by Mayor
Ras Baraka. In the question portion, he asks the mayor a
question about the Rent Control Ordinance. Observers report that
the mayor acted annoyed to be asked the question, and replied
that he was looking for balance between landlord and tenant
concerns.
Tenant leaders have not been contacted by city officials
regarding any new wording of the contested clause in the Rent
Control Ordinance. Unsure if a new ordinance will be introduced
on October 7th. The city needs tenant leaders to calculate the
Return on Investment (ROI) in the Substantial Rehabilitation
program. If it is still too high that means it is an incentive to
drive tenants out, not simply an incentive to upgrade an
apartment. Tenants also do not want another "flat" equation (any
equation that calculates a dollar amount to be reached regardless
of rental income). Such an equation is inherently biased towards
the big landlords that don't need the Substantial Rehabilitation
program. This is unfair to the small landlords that the program
was conceptually designed for. The attorneys representing the
landlord lobby care only about the big landlords. Tenants have no
trust in the city's ability to defend the interests of tenants and
small landlords. Unless the city wants another round of protests,
we should be involved.
September 22, 2015: Housing activists in Portland, OR are
fighting hard. There is a movement underway in Oregon and
Washington State, but they have no rent control Portland
Tenants United Facebook Page
And here's the Seattle Solidarity Network
September 19, 2015: NY Times article on NYC landlords
harassing tenants into moving by declaring to the city that the
building is vacant, and conducting massive work. Thanks to
Hakim Hasan for providing this information. NY Times article of
Sept 19, 2015
September 16, 2015: During tonite's Republican Presidential
candidate debate, NJ Governor Chris Christie mentioned the word
RENT as something that everyday folks have to deal with. Not
exactly an endorsal of rent control, but he did bring it up
voluntarily, and nobody else uttered the word. Some of us
tenant advocates have contacted his office on various legislation,
and that may have something to do with it.
September 15, 2015: NJTO advises that Jersey City and Newark
use different CPI formulas. Unsure exactly what JC uses, but
Newark's is specifically defined as the CPI-U for Northern New
Jersey and New York
September 14, 2015: An interesting find in the Newark Legistar
website >>> an ordinance for a redevelopment plan for 175-199
First Street, which is the crime and drug infested Garden Spires
property, arguably the worst buildings in Newark. What will be
the future use of these buildings? And if it does involve clearing
out the tenants? Sources say that a company called Omni wants
to buy the buildings and rehab the units. The current owner has
been fined, but wants to wrap payment of the fines into the sale
and push that to the new owner. The new owners are insolvent
and the property will go into receivership if all matters are not
resolved by December. Passage of the ordinance is part of the
plan to stop receivership. The first reading is set for Wed
9/16. Ordinance 15-1646 Redevelopment Plan for Garden Spires
There is nothing in Legistar for Rent Control or Bedbugs.
A concerned Jersey City tenant, Hakim Hassan, has provided
Jersey City's CPI calculations. The numbers do not match
Newark's CPI calculations. Unsure if Jersey City is using the same
chart, or if they are calculating it wrong.
September 12, 2015: An important test case of the registered
rent provisions in the Rent Control Ordinance appears to be
taking shape. A tenant at The Addison has been tremendously
overcharged for rents, and was given the 4% rent increase
months after the CPI-based formula went into effect. They have
been advised to file a formal grievance with Rent Control.
Tenant's identity is withheld for now because it needs to become
a test case to audit Kettler Management's leases and registered
rents for all their properties.
September 11, 2015: Word has reached us that "the committee"
Ras Baraka says will be rewording the Rent Control Ordinance is
persons in the administration, and that tenants and landlords will
not be consulted to keep it fair and imbalance. However, it is
NOT fair and imbalance because the landlord's attorneys will be
consulted. It's a settlement, they have to be consulted. Once
again, only one side in the debate has access.
September 10, 2015: You'd think lefty States like Oregon and
Washington would have rent control. It's actually banned
statewide. And they are having a tenant eviction crisis far worse
than ours. Oregon allows no-cause evictions with 20-day notice.
This is an amazing story of what happens where there are no
tenant rights. Article on Portland's Summer of Evictions
September 8, 2015: It's been nearly a week since Mayor Ras
Baraka said he's putting together a "task force" to finalize the
wording of the Rent Control Ordinance, and no tenant leaders
have been contacted for participation. There is widespread
belief among the tenant leaders that the city will come up with
yet another equation that is much better for the high-rent
buildings, and which will encourage landlords to harass tenants
into leaving.
September 7, 2015: Posting two articles about how landlords
force out tenants in New York City, which were emailed today to
tenant leaders by James Powell
Landlords with Tax Breaks Overcharging rents.08-27-15
Landlords Eliminate Affordable Housing in The Bronx.08-18-15
September 6, 2015: Several reports have reached us about how
furious the landlord's legal council were on Wednesday when
neither of their ordinances passed. The Rent Control and Bedbug
ordinances were both deferred for more work on them.
September 4, 2015: The Star Ledger publishes an article about
the Rent Control battle in Newark. Mayor Ras Baraka is quoted as
saying that he wants to protect the owners of multi-family
houses who live in one unit and rent out the others. Those units
are not subject to the city's rent control regulations. Sept 4 Star
Ledger article
September 3, 2015: Reposting an opinion piece written by a
Jersey City tenant activist about Rent control, and specifically
about Vacancy Decontrol. The author explained, in exact detail,
the very problem we are trying to avoid here in Newark. August
27 NJ.Com opinion piece on Jersey City
September 2, 2015: The People's Organization for Progress
(POP) sent a letter late yesterday to the Mayor & Council of
Newark reaffirming support for Rent Control in the City of Newark
and urging changes to the proposed new Rent Control Ordinance.
This group is New Jersey's largest progressive social action
organization, and they had supported our 2014 initiative to pass
a new Rent Control Ordinance. Sept, 2015 POP support letter
(posting soon).
ON BEDBUGS, Matt Shapiro has clarified that the NJ Tenants
Organization is categorically opposed to ANY language that
passes the costs of bedbug extermination over to the tenant. He
explained that it is documented that their eggs can lay dormant
for one year, especially in ventilation systems, and cause a reinfestation. Matt Shapiro bedbug email to Newark Mayor &
Council.sept 1
September 1, 2015: RENT CONTROL. There will be no vote on
the Rent Control Ordinance on Wednesday, Sept 2nd. The city
council read into the record that a communication was received
from the administration to withdraw the ordinance for further
updates. Henry Plemper of the 425 Mount Prospect Tenants
Association addressed the city council on rent control and
vacancy decontrol. Several tenant leaders are on the docket
tomorrow to speak about what needs to be changed.
Two of our supporting groups, The Ironbound Community Corp
and People's Organization for Progress, were contacted to cancel
plans to organize members to attend the September 2nd council
meeting. Independent film producer Lydia Radin, who has filmed
several Newark council meetings, was also planning to attend.
BEDBUG ORDINANCE: The city council is scheduled to pass
tomorrow, on second reading, an ordinance amending the city's
bedbug ordinance. 14-1807 bedbug ordinance This legislation is
very similar to what we defeated in Trenton earlier this year, it
passes the responsibility for repeat occurrences of bedbugs over
to the tenants. We didn't know about this one, we somehow
missed the first reading. It was a big surprise. Given the urgency
of the situation, and that the rent control ordinance was already
deferred, tenant speakers Eric Martindale and Carol Bodine
addressed the bedbug ordinance during public comment, as
follows:
1. Tenant leaders and tenant organizations were not consulted on
the wording, and it affects us
2. The ordinance gives no requirement for the exterminator to
provide their warranty to the affected tenants that are receiving
services or an adjacent unit, but the tenants are potential liable
in the future
3. There is a calendar year clause which states that whatever
calendar year the extermination services are performed, the
exterminator's warranty expires on December 31st. That might
be fine for units disinfected in January and Feburary, but not OK
for units disinfected in November.
4. The most objectionable item is the clause relieving the
landlord of responsibility in the event of repeated occurrences of
bedbugs. This passes the cost, thousands of dollars, onto the
tenants. This is problematic because bedbugs travel under the
walls specifically to flee the extermination services.
5. Even if it can be proven which unit is responsible for a repeat
occurrence, if that tenant cannot afford to hire an exterminator,
that places an unfair risk to the adjacent units, and above and
below. Why should those tenants become affected, and why
should a public health problem advance ?
6. If it is a 2-family house and the landlord is actually the source
of the infestation (one scenario: the landlord keeps visiting the
same prostitute, and her bed has bedbugs, and then he brings
them home), the proposed ordinance allows the tenant to be
blamed for a repeat occurrence, and the cost passed to the
tenant.
Councilman Ramos replied that the ordinance came from the
administration, and recommended that it be sent back to the
administration. Council President Mildred Crump was also
uncomfortable with the ordinance. Note also that the proposed
ordinance has some good features that protect tenants. It just
needs more work. Based on comments from the city council, it
looks like it will be deferred tomorrow.
Councilman Gonzalez spoke on the issue of landlord's leases
having unfair clauses such as passing the burden of bedbugs to
the tenant. He wants to review leases, noting also that the City
Council has no authority to change leases. Councilwoman Crump
also wants to "see a sample lease". (Note: The increasing
problem of long and terribly biased leases is not coming from the
landlord's law firm, or even from State landlord organizations, it's
coming from a NATIONAL landlord organization. These bad
clauses are getting boiler-plated into leases nationally)
The City of Newark passed a resolution to foreclose on 824 bankowned houses. They expect the banks to pay their back taxes
and not lose the houses.
Councilman Gonzalez sponsored Resolution 15-1617, which
supports State Senate Bill 781. The Senate Bill "proposes
changes to the Open Public Meetings Act, to provide the public
with greater access to meetings and information about meetings"
August 28, 2015: Representatives of the Ironbound Community
Corp attended last night's meeting of the People's Organization
for Progress (POP), asking for POP to take a stand against the
Rent Control Ordinance changes. They have their own flyer,
listing the objections to the proposed ordinance, and urging
supporters to call the Newark Mayor & Council. The effort by ICC
to lobby POP was done completely without our knowledge
or coordination. No problem, it's great to see our supporters
working hard and taking the smart steps.
August 27, 2015: Tenant leaders from four complexes met with
Amiri Baraka, Jr., (Chief of Staff for Mayor Ras Baraka) and Willie
Parker, Corporate Counsel. Their agreement to meet is in
response to the outpouring of concern from all across Newark.
Tenant leaders want the ordinance tabled for September 2nd so
our input can be considered. Good chance this will happen, and if
this is confirmed, we will post it. We asked them to consider the
following modifications to the Rent Control Ordinance changes:
1. Substantial Compliance. We object to the proposed
weakening of this section, which currently disqualifies buildings
from securing the annual rent increase when there are a lot of
violations on record. Landlords want to collect rents and not fix
anything.
2. Appeals of Rent Control cases to the City Council. The
city council had previously been firm that appeal rights should be
removed from the ordinance. Our long-standing counteroffer is
for the City Council to have the right to refuse or accept hearing
such an appeal. This will be considered again.
3. Substantial Rehabilitation / Vacancy Decontrol. They are
now saying that the language passed on First Reading by the City
Council on August 6th included "a miscommunication" on this
issue. Amiri Baraka, Jr. was firm that it is not going to be $2500
+ $500 per bedroom. We discussed some numbers and our
desire to tie the amount to "x" months rent, with "x" preferably
being 12, which represents a 20% Return on Investment. Willie
Parker acknowledged the severity of the impasse between tenant
and landlord positions on this matter. The equation sought by the
landlords is completely beyond any reasonable sense of social
justice. It's a pure money grab. It's becoming clear that our
tenants and our supporters need to focus specifically on this
issue when calling and emailing city officials.
August 27, 2015: Newark Tenants United has a new and strong
supporter of our Rent Control Initiative, which is the Ironbound
Community Corp. We got a copy of their letter today, which was
signed by Joseph Della Fave to the Newark City Council, and
dated 8/24/2015. ICC support letter of 8/24/2015
August 26, 2015: The Unified Vailsburg Services Organization
(UVSO) has responded to the request by Newark Tenants United
to attend their next meeting, to discuss securing their official
support on the Rent Control Initiative. They want to hear our
case.
August 24, 2015: The Colonnade Residents Coalition advises
that the Colonnades is deep in the process of sale. The city Code
Enforcement was there yesterday in "D" building and last week in
the "C" building citing all outstanding issues.
August 21, 2015: "The mayor says it’s unfair to present crime
stats without providing context. Poverty, unemployment,
education, are all complicating factors, he contended." It's great
that he sees the connection. Now I ask, shall we make the
problem worse with rising rents ??? NJTV 5 killings in 48 hours
August 20, 2015: Tenants calling the city councilpersons report
that every one of their staff is telling folks that the ordinance is
coming from "the administration", meaning Ras Baraka and Amiri
Baraka. This is a dishonest response, because every
councilperson has to vote on the ordinance. Tenants need to
ask the Council members specifically if they are going to
vote "NO" on the ordinance, and tell them not to settle the
litigation with the landlords.
We have confirmed information that Sabur Guy is no longer with
the City of Newark, and no longer works for Councilman Anibal
Ramos. Sabur Guy was a vocal advocate for the landlords of the
City of Newark.
Rafael Brito of the Hallmark House reports that the Hallmark
House sold. However, a google search turned up nothing. We
learned over at 380 & 402 that every time management says the
building was selling, it was actually a change in upper
management. And every time management denied the building
was selling, it actually was selling. When we get actual
information that it sold, this will be posted.
August 20, 2015: Last night Councilman Ramos met with 2
tenant leaders from Forest Hill Towers regarding the Rent Control
Ordinance. A representative of the 425 Mount Prospect Avenue
Tenants Association was invited to the end of the meeting, after
most of the discussion was over. He reports that Ramos referred
to the Substantial Compliance equation as a "negotiable item".
Note that the Press Release went out after this meeting.
August 19, 2015, 9:00 PM: Newark Tenants United has widely
distributed a Press Release to address the proposed changes to
the Rent Control Ordinance. Other recipients include a dozen or
so of the city's largest churches, and every State Assemblyman
and State Senator in New Jersey. Press Release of August 19,
2015
The Newark Rent Control struggle is relevant statewide because
cities and towns are being forced to build affordable housing at a
cost of millions to the taxpayers, and at the great expense of
open space, farmland, and local zoning, but the supply of
affordable housing could actually decrease because so many
units in Newark will be made non-affordable if this ordinance
passes. Why is Newark counteracting the State's affordable
housing goals ?
August 19, 2015 8:00 AM Matt Shapiro, President of NJTO, has
emailed out an action alert for Newark residents to call and email
city officials and object to the proposed changes. Shapiro's email
is a bit longer than the Press Release, and a much more
comprehensive argument for those looking to digest the
facts. Matt Shapiro email of August 19, 2015
We have 2 weeks to try and deter action on the proposed
changes to our Rent Control Ordinance.
August 15, 2015: The situation of tenants having no seat at the
table is becoming unbearable. Four tenant associations filed a
motion to intervene in the litigation months ago, but the
landlords have kept that motion from being heard (and therefore
the tenants are kept out of the litigation) by telling Judge Garry
Furnari that the case will be settled by the city granting
concessions to the landlords and amending the Rent Control
Ordinance. Meanwhile, it would appear that the tenants are
also locked out of any discussions with city officials on the
wording of the new Rent Control Ordinance. You see, the wording
of the ordinance is part of a legal settlement, and the tenants are
not (yet) a party to the litigation, so tenants have no say there
either. Well, tenants are not locked out of taking our case to the
media, and to other community organizations. They are creating
the path of action, and they won't like it.
August 14, 2015: The 425 Mount Prospect Tenants Association
has launched their website. www.425tenants.org It's in bare
bones format for now.
August 13, 2015: A representative of Newark Tenants United
attended a meeting of the Georgia King Village Resident's
Council. The two high-rise buildings are each 136 units, plus
there are 150 townhouse units. The group strongly desires a
return to 24/7 security guard coverage in each lobby, and
checking ID's. There is currently one guard stationed in an
exterior building, and there is one roving guard. This complex is
teetering on the edge of disaster, but has not reached the level
of Garden Spires. They will need 3 guards 24/7. The number of
maintenance personnel, per unit count, is also an issue. Sale of
the complex is pending, and residents are very fearful of change.
Eric Martindale attended a People's Organization for Progress
(POP) meeting tonite. The POP is a strong supporter of Rent
Control, and will be sending a letter to the Mayor & Council.
Posting the Rent Control Ordinance, version of August 5, 2015,
which just made Legistar a few days ago.
August 12, 2015 8:00 PM: The Municipal Council Tax Abatement
Committee will be discussing Garden Spires at their meeting on
Tuesday Aug 18th, at 12:00 noon in room 304 of city hall.
August 12, 2015: Newark Tenants United is developing a press
release, and it will feature examples of the extreme profit that
landlords will be making if the Rent Control Ordinance is adopted
with the same text as the most recent First Reading. In some
cases, these investors will have over 100% Return on
Investment (ROI) in just the first year. Compare this to stock
market investors, who are very happy to achieve a 12% return.
August 11, 2015 11:30 PM: Newark Tenants United meeting.
Tenant leaders from four complexes met tonite to formulate a
plan of action regarding the proposed changes to the Rent
Control Ordinance. It will be strongly opposed.
August 10, 2015 11:00 PM: Confidential sources outside of
Newark advise that HUD authorities are threatening to cancel the
HUD subsidies at Garden Spires, which would mean the complex
would become immediately abandoned just like Carmel Towers
on Elizabeth Ave in Newark. This news is on high authority, but
the timetable is completely unknown. This could be a repeat of
the 2011 housing disaster: Carmel Towers news from
2011 There are 550 units in Garden Spires, believed to be about
90% occupied. These families are very poor and they have
nowhere to go. The building is at least 95% African-American. All
options for a Receivorship need to be pursued before this
happens.
August 11, 2015 1:00 PM: Readers should be aware that
changes in the mortgage rules on January 10, 2014 have locked
an additional 20% or more of the population out of the ability to
secure a mortgage. Subprime loans are no longer offered, and
overall qualifications are higher. This means that all of these
families have to rent. By the basic principles of Supply and
Demand, rents will skyrocket. There is more need for Rent
Control than ever before, and the May 2014 ordinance was more
timely than we realized. We absolutely cannot allow the proposed
new changes for 20% rent increases. January 10, 2014
mortgage rules
August 11, 2015 10:00 AM: An update on libertarian activist
Jayson Burg of Jersey City (also see Aug 7 news). Burg refused
to show up for day #1 of his federal trial today at 50 Walnut
Street in Newark. Instead he faxed numerous federal authorities
a letter categorically denying and disputing the jurisdiction of the
Court over his person. "The Court cannot assume jurisdiction
over my person merely because someone decided to change my
status and standing as a "Defendant" without my consent". He
then declared himself to be a Native American and referred
federal authorities to a Native American organization in Ohio.
Burg is White, and has no Native ancestry. He's probably already
in jail for not showing up. Burg letter to federal authorities
August 10, 2015: Spreadsheet shows how many months are
needed for a landlord to recover their Return on Investment. This
is based on the July 29, 2015 memo from the Law Department.
The changes, if enacted into law, will provide an incentive for
landlords to drive out existing tenants and jack up the
rents. Vacancy Decontrol Spreadsheet.08-09-2015
The result of all the tenants efforts to get the Rent Control
Ordinance tabled on July 1st has been for the ordinance to be
made much worse. The vacancy decontrol language has gotten
worse, not better. Tenants have been betrayed by our elected
officials. So many of the city council made speeches on July 1st,
explaining how they are going to perk the ordinance and make it
more fair to tenants, but they did the reverse. And now each of
the three sponsors (Ramos, Chaneyfield, and James) took their
names off as sponsors at the August 5th city council meeting. By
doing this, they think all the blame will be put on the Mayor and
the Law Department, because the record doesn't show their
sponsorships. This is pure cowardice. If they are that afraid to
put their names behind it, they aren't ready to vote on it. We
need to make them even less ready to vote on it.
August 9, 2015: A new document has come to light, a memo
from the Newark Law Department dated July 29, 2015. This
memo details a change requested that makes the vacancy
decontrol language even worse for tenants. The Mayor's
Office is onboard with this request, and his staff was cc'd on
it. We reported on July 31st there was a proposed ordinance
change which caused the Secret City Council Meeting of July 30,
2015 to not be held. Now that we have it in writing, it's no longer
a rumor. In light of this new evidence, the city's explanation,
posted here on August 6th, is becoming less and less credible.
The July 29th memo necessitated that the July 30th secret
meeting be canceled. And it was canceled. Law Dept. Memo of
July 29, 2015
August 8, 2015: The changes to the proposed Rent Control
Ordinance are NOT in Newark Legistar. Multiple tenant leaders
have been unsuccessful in getting a copy. The first reading has
been voted on, but it's not being released. Transparency has
gone to zero. If the city wants us to believe their story that there
was never a secret city council meeting planned for July 30th,
they can start by becoming more transparent, not less
transparent.
August 7, 2015 5:30 PM: An article about the proposed revisions
to the Rent Control Ordinance was published in the Star Ledger
today Star Ledger article on Aug 7, 2015 The mistakes include:
1. The original ordinance is from May, 2014, not this past May
2. It took effect on June 20, 2014, not this past June 20th
3. The "Major New Improvement" clause of the ordinance has
nothing to do with the ability to secure a 20% rent increase when
the tenant moves out and repairs are made. That's another part
of the ordinance.
4. Councilman Anibal Ramos' quote that the new ordinance
"requires landlords to meet health and safety regulations" is a
distortion because the proposed ordinance dramatically weakens
those exact provisions in the May, 2014 ordinance. This is Matt
Shapiro's greatest objection to the ordinance.
5. No attempt was made to reach Newark Tenants United or any
tenant leader for either basic information, or to comment.
6. We don't need Derek Reed, attorney for the landlords, quoting
on what tenants think of the ordinance.
August 7, 2015: Jayson Burg of the National Liberty Alliance
reports that he was assaulted by federal law enforcement
officials, tackled to the ground, and arrested, because he
photographed a Homeland Security vehicle outside of the Peter
Rodino building in downtown Newark. He is charged with
assaulting the officers, and he claims that his Constitutional
Rights include resisting an assault. "This is a national tragedy",
he says, referring to his arrest. He should have obeyed the
directions of law enforcement, no matter how right he may (or
may not) be. His trial starts on Tuesday August 11th, in the very
same building. Tenant leaders may remember Burg as the man
who, in early 2014, advised tenants to convene a Common Law
Grand Jury, comprised of tenants, to indict the landlord and force
the Essex County Court System to prosecute them.
Congratulations to Armando Aviles, Executive Board member of
the Forest Hill Towers Tenants Association. Yesterday, he was
appointed to a 4-year term on the Newark Hispanic Commission.
Unsure if this came straight from the Mayor's office, or perhaps
through a Councilman?
August 6, 2015: There was a new First Reading of the revisions
to the Rent Control Ordinance at today's city council meeting.
Some changes were made. Tenant leaders are hoping to get a
copy ASAP, and we'll post it online. Public hearing and passage of
the ordinance is set for the Sept 2, 2015 city council meeting,
also a daytime meeting.
City officials are adamant that the City Council Meeting Agenda
for July 30, 2015 was a bogus document they created, and there
was NEVER any intent to hold that meeting. They say the
meeting agenda was generated as part of computer system
upgrades associated with election software, that it was a mistake
by their staff to even put it into Legistar, which is why it was
promptly removed when they learned that the posting of the
agenda was causing confusion and panic. They say it is pure
coincidence that the bogus agenda included passage of the Rent
Control Ordinance, AND that this happened only hours after
tenants learned of Rent Control Officer Mark Smith's removal
(which was later reversed). It's all an amazing coincidence, they
say. This is Newark, strange things do happen here. At this point,
we're no longer sure that there was a plan to pass the ordinance
without tenants being there to testify. We might have to accept
this explanation unless new information surfaces. One thing we
know for certain: the entire meeting of July 30th was never held,
and all of the agenda items reappeared on the August 5, 2015
agenda.
Multiple sources advise that Sabur Guy, Chief of Staff for
Councilman Anibal Ramos, is stepping down, and moving on to
new career goals in "two weeks". His departure will be a major
loss for the landlord lobby in Newark. Sabur Guy has been an
instrumental advocate for the landlords, and a major obstacle to
the tenant movement going all the way back to March, 2014.
Tenant leaders hope that his departure will allow for improved
relations with Councilman Ramos.
August 5, 2015: Regarding the August 3 allegations by Timothy
Dingman (see August 3 news), our leading theory is that
management at The Colonnades was for many years submitting a
Registered Rent to Rent Control by continually adding 4% every
year, even though they weren't actually collecting that much. In
this case, the officially recorded Registered Rent kept inflating
artificially higher and higher, in the hopes of securing the right to
actually rent for that much in the future, if national economic
trends, Newark, or the buildings changed to allow that level of
rent. And then, due to the 2014 Rent Control Ordinance and the
removal of Maria Hernandez as the Rent Control Officer, The
Colonnades gave up on that business plan. That is probably why
the Registered Rent of Dingman's apartment went down about
$300 in 2015. There is still a $47 discrepancy that Dingman
reports, which needs to be investigated further. The
abandonment of the Registered Rent Game is the
leading theory at this time to explain the change in Registered
Rents at The Colonnades.
Those buildings who have participated in the Registered Rent
Game should be fined. The amnesty resolution never passed.
Readers should note that the Registered Rent Game was
occurring all over Newark, except for the Forest Hill section
where rent were indeed hiked the full 4% every year.
August 4, 2015: Reposting Matt Shapiro's suggestions to the
Mayor & City Council on the most latest (6/17) version of the
proposed rollbacks of the current (good) Rent Control Law
The proposed rollback of Substantial Compliance terms
remains the biggest problem that the tenant leaders have with
the proposed ordinance changes. The ordinance on the books
now forces landlords to make repairs and keep their buildings
free of violations OR they don't qualify for a rent increase. As we
all know, THE BIGGEST problem that tenants (and concerned city
officials) have with landlords in Newark is that they just want to
collect the rent, and not spend money to fix anything. Every
dollar spent comes right off the bottom line profit. No surprise,
the landlord's biggest objection to the law adopted in May of
2014 is the substantial compliance clauses. The landlords don't
want to have to fix things to secure the annual (or any
special) rent increase. The problem was solved by the brilliant
wording of the May 2014 ordinance, why unsolve it in 2015? The
City Council is very seriously entertaining the landlord's proposed
change, pending adoption. This is baffling. Are these landlords
pledging huge campaign donations? What is actually going
on? Matt Shapiro's comments on 6/17 Rent Control Ordinance
August 3, 2015, 9:45 PM: Important Breaking News, and it's on
good authority: Mark Smith is back at the helm of Rent
Control. Alicia Munoz, whoever she is, is not taking over. Also, I
went back to the July 30th Breaking News and added, word for
word, the news from Maria Hernandez that Mark Smith is no
longer in command.
Matt Shapiro advises that the Rent Control Ordinance is on the
docket for Second Reading, Public Hearing, and Adoption on
Wednesday. This conflicts with information that has been emailed
around that a change will be accepted and a new First Reading
will occur on Wednesday.
August 3, 2015: Timothy Dingman, a tenant activist at The
Colonnade, claims to have uncovered proof of illegal rent
increases. He submitted 23 files to Newark Tenants United: "If
you compare this report with the 2013 report, you know
that Kettler management has been fraudulently reporting rents in
order to effectively achieve de facto rent de controle. I was
amused to see that my rent had gone down from the 2013 report
to the 2015 report by about 50%. It is still reported at
$968 instead of the $921 that is due under the current
regulations. Kettler…." said Dingman. Additional stronger quotes
against Kettler from Mr. Dingman were made, but are not being
published.
August 2, 2015: The Newark Police walked into a
major apartment building managed by Kettler on August 1st, and
there were two problems. First, Kettler's leasing agent continued
talking to a tenant instead of dropping everything to immediately
address the needs of the police. And second, when the police
wanted information on a tenant, there was not immediate
compliance. Phone calls had to be made to higher management,
and the police were again left waiting. For more information, see
the the August 1 and 2nd news on the 380 and 402 Mt. Prospect
tab, above.
July 31, 2015 @ 2 PM. By this hour, the July 30, 2015 Agenda
and all reference to the city council meeting having ever
happened, is scrubbed from the Newark Legistar website. It's as
if the secret council meeting that nobody knew about, and
nobody attended, NEVER HAPPENED. But it’s too late, the file
was downloaded while it was up on Legistar, and saved to a hard
drive. Eric Martindale emails the file to dozens of tenant and
community leaders. The City of Newark is trying to erase the
secret City Council Meeting from history. But they can't erase
it from this tenant website :) Secret City Council Meeting
Agenda for July 30, 2015
July 31, 2015 @ mid-day. Evidently city officials are concerned
about the inquiries from tenant leaders, and that tenants are
finding out that the plan was for the RCO to be passed at a
stealth city council meeting, with no tenants there to testify.
Somebody made the decision to remove all relevant
documentation from the Newark Legistar web page, and to
publish the August 5th Agenda.
Carol Bodine discovers that the August 5, 2015 city council
agenda is now posted in Legistar. It’s very unusual for the docket
to be published so many days out. City Council Agenda for
August 5, 2015
July 31, 2015, 9 AM: Tenant leaders are very concerned, and
various tenant leaders research what happened. By the end of
the day, our best understanding is that the RCO was not voted
on at the July 30th meeting because the mayor wants one more
change to the RCO. The City Council went through such a great
effort to have a secret meeting to pass the RCO without tenant
input, surely knowing that tenants would be upset about that
process, but thinking that was the path of least resistance. And
then they didn't do it. And we're still just as upset about the
process. Sources say that on August 5th, the city council will
consider a change requested by the Law Dept and Mayor Ras
Baraka. Matt Shapiro and Fidelia Odutola have different takes on
what the concession is. If the city council accepts the change on
August 5th, the ordinance will be amended and come back in
September for a vote.
Tenants are speculating that the removal of Mark Smith from
Rent Control is not a coincidence.
July 31, 2015 @ 3 AM: Eric Martindale researches Legistar based
on Matt's email, and sees that the RCO was on the docket for
public hearing and passage at the special July 30 City council
meeting. Eric sends out an email to tenant and community
leaders alerting folks that the RCO was on the docket for passage
yesterday, and we "MUST VERIFY" if it passed or not. Also
unknown when the First Reading occurred, and if the whole
process was legal, especially in terms of community
notification. RCO proposal on Legistar as of July 30, 2015
July 30, 2015 11 PM: Matt Shapiro checks Legistar this evening
and is shocked to see that there was a special city council
meeting, in Legistar, for July 30, 2015. He alerts a few tenant
leaders, and says that this is ominous.
July 30, 2015: A special unscheduled meeting of the Newark
City Council occurs. The RCO is on the agenda for Second
reading, Public Hearing and passage. We are unsure how the
public was notified of the meeting. None of the tenant leaders,
even those serving on the Rent Control Board, knew about
it. Everything was deliberately planned for the ordinance to be
passed without any scrutiny, and without any testimony from
tenant leaders. Secret City Council Agenda for July 30, 2015
July 30, 2015: Word has reached us today that Mark Smith is no
longer the city's Rent Regulation Officer. He was well-respected
by tenants and by all accounts he did an outstanding job in his 7month tenure. The new Acting Rent Regulation Officer is Ms.
Alicia Munoz. This change was made a few days ago, possibly
around July 24th. Special thanks to Billy O'Donnell, Chair of the
425 Mount Prospect Tenants Association, for uncovering this
information. The information, word-for-word, from Maria
Hernandez to Billy O'Donnell: "Please be advised that Mr. Mark
Smith is no longer with this division. The new Acting Rent
Regulation Officer is Ms. Alicia Muñoz."
July 30, 2015: An Executive Board member of the 425 Mount
Prospect Tenants Association reports that he was threatened by
one of the owners in a very objectionable way. He was told that if
the tenants give the owners any problems, the owners will
deliberately make a change to the racial balance of the building.
The exact statement was so inflammatory and so racist that I
cannot repost it. The 87-unit building is about 80-85% Asian and
White, combined.
Also, the 425 Mount Prospect Tenants Association was successful
in securing the registered rents for their building. The rents are
among the lowest in Newark, with some 2-bedroom units renting
in the 700's and 800's. The building is 87 units, not 98 as
previously reported. With rents this low, most tenants don't want
to leave. When units become available, the owners have many
qualified tenants to choose from. They can choose based on
credit scores and income stability, or perhaps other criteria.
Ironically, the building is actually more stable with lower rents. A
membership drive is imminent to commence.
July 28, 2015: Today featured a Code Enforcement Blitz at
Garden Spires, believed by many to be the very worst of the
large buildings in Newark. City officials are returning tomorrow to
complete documenting all the violations. Channel 7 Eyewitness
News was there, good chance it'll be on the evening news.
July 27, 2015: Posting the Full Report of July 22 Garden Spires
Event organized by Mayor Ras Baraka. What's interesting is that
the "men" Ras called for didn't show up. For the most part, it's
the women of the buildings that want to do something, who want
to be part of the solution.
July 23, 2015: Eric Martindale emails to city officials a document
entitled Security Upgrades for Garden Spires, which was
prepared in consultation with activist Marie Mayson. The
document is 90% her input. Recipients include Councilman Eddie
Osborne, Councilwoman Gayle Chaneyfield-Jenkins, Mayor Ras
Baraka, and Police Director Eugene Venable.
July 22, 2015: The Mayor is holding an "Occupy The Block" event
this evening for the troubled Garden Spires, 400 units on First
St. http://www.ci.newark.nj.us/occupytheblock/
Text from the Mayor's flyer:
The Mayor is challenging the MEN of this City to stand with him in
doing the following:
• Hold court on the designated blocks
• Open discussion about the City, its youth, and violence
• Engage with the community and play games (chess and cards)
• Shut down illegal activity
*Women are welcome to participate and are encouraged
to bring the men in their lives to these events.
July 21, 2015: Mayor Ras Baraka criticizes city council over
"distractions". Notice that Councilman Ramos is particularly upset
about this. Newark article of July 21 Is the Rent Control battle
considered a distraction ? How does this discontent affect the
plans to revise the Rent Control Ordinance?
July 20, 2015: Posting Science Daily article about poverty's
effect on the developing brains of babies and children article
July 18, 2015: Per the City of Newark Rent Control website, the
permitted rent increase for September is one-tenth of 1%
(0.1%). It was 0% for June, July, and August leases.
July 15, 2015: A representative of Newark Tenants United met
with Marie Mayson of Garden Spires (175 & 195 First Street) to
discuss a relaunch of their tenants association. Crime and
security issues are paramount. They visited the security guard
building. There are 3 security guards present at all times (2
armed, 1 unarmed), all chatting in the centralized guard booth.
There are only about 6 working security cameras to monitor. No
guards are stationed in the lobbies. The entry doors of both highrises are wide open 24/7, and they don't even lock. The lobbies
and hallways smell of urine, and a drunken man was seen
sleeping in the 2nd floor hallway of 195. Residents have
complained of drug dealers fornicating with underage girls who
live there. The guards described the complex as an open-air drug
flee market. Management doesn't back them up when they
arrest criminals and call the Newark Police, so they have
downscaled those efforts. A major effort will be put together
involving multiple groups to organize a community-building effort
at this complex. A volunteer has already stepped forward to print
over 500 flyers for Garden Spires Organizing Day. Possibly in
August ?
July 14, 2015: Congrat's to Wei "Abraham" Song, who was
appointed onto the Executive Board of the 425 Mount Prospect
Tenants Association. The 7 Executive Board members selected
their officers. William O'Donnell is the Chair of the Tenants
Association. They are finalizing the design for their website and
Facebook Page, and prioritizing their issues.
July 12, 2015: Introducing our allies in New York State: Tenants
And Neighbors. www.tandn.org
July 11, 2015: Matt Shapiro of NJTO has identified a missing
element to the most recent Newark Tenants United flyer urging
tenants to call and email city officials. "...you left out how the
Council mangled the definition of Substantial Compliance, so as
to make it nearly meaningless. That is the WORST aspect of the
current proposed ordinance." The ordinance on the books now
(passed 5/20/14) says that landlords are not entitled to any rent
increase, even the annual rent increase, unless they are in
substantial compliance regarding building code violations. The
landlord's legal counsel has been pushing the Newark City
Council very hard to alter the definition of substantial
compliance, so that landlords will be able to continue ignoring
building code violations, and keep increasing rents. Shapiro
wants us to focus more on the substantial compliance issue in
any future communications with city officials.
July 2, 2015: Congrat's to the new tenants association at 425
Mount Prospect Ave. They are official !!! They adopted their
bylaws this evening, and selected 6 tenants to serve on
their Executive Board. I am pleased to introduce 6 new tenant
leaders in Newark, which are William O'Donnell, Henry Plemper,
Hons Yu, Tom Schoenleber, Joseph Graham, and Tai Ma. This 98unit building has produced a strong no-nonsense Executive
Board. The 3 remaining positions on the 9-person Board will be
filled very soon. Henry Plemper is launching their website ASAP,
and Tai Ma is launching a Facebook page. Their first newsletter
will be distributed in a few days. Eric Martindale, NJTO Organizer
for Newark, has been assisting with their formation, and drafted
their by-laws. The building owners are really nervous about what
is happening; they already knocked on O'Donnell's door to meet
him, and to try and stop him from organizing. They were
unsuccessful.
July 1, 2015: TENANT VICTORY TODAY !!! An outpouring of
calls and emails from concerned tenants has resulted in
the Newark City Council DEFERRING their vote on the
ordinance today. There was no public hearing. The city council
will look at the items that tenants objected to, and tweak the
ordinance again. Councilwoman Chaneyfield said she had a
procedural objection that the first reading was done on the same
date (June 17) as the ordinance was received as a
communication from the business administration. Sounds good,
but other ordinances have been done that way, including at least
one today, and there was no objection to that. A new first
reading will be on August 5th, and possible passage Sept. 2. City
Council Agenda for July 1, 2015
Three tenant leaders spoke in the public comment session, Eric
Martindale, Victor Monterrosa, and Janise Afolo. Monterrosa, who
is the attorney for the Tenant Associations, quoted scripture and
implored the city council to stand strong and defend the people.
He resubmitted Matt Shapiro's comments on the current RCO
proposal. Janise testified that she wants to get this matter over
with, and concentrate on the Security Ordinance.
Eric talked a few minutes with Councilman Osborne before the
meeting. Osborne reassured his support for the ordinance on the
books, and he wants to meet with Newark Tenants United to
crunch down on the details of things. City Council President
Mildred Crump met with Janise Afolo after the council meeting.
Carol Bodine wants all tenant leaders to put our divisions aside
and come together for the purposes of finishing this project.
June 30, 2015: The revised Rent Control Ordinance is in Legistar
for second reading and final passage. The meeting time is set by
the city council a day or two before the meeting, and the
published time is 12:30, not 10:00 which is in the tenant action
flyer. (It was 10:00 in June). We had to get the flyer out days
before knowing the published time. However, we just received
notice that the actual time will be 12:00 noon on
Wednesday.
We cannot substantiate rumors that the ordinance will be
deferred, not voted on, due to tenants calling and emailing. Just
keep up the calls, emails. If you are planning to attend, please
attend. The city council is feeling the pressure. There's a few
flyers out there, here is the final version of the flyer. Newark
Tenants United flyer for July 1, 2015 council meeting
June 28, 2015: The first meeting of the 425 Mount Prospect
Avenue Tenants Association yesterday evening was a
resounding success. There's a strong core of volunteers who
want to serve on an Executive Board, and the decision was
already made to join NJTO and adopt bylaws. Their new landlord
is exceptionally greedy and stingy, and there's tons of issues to
address. Welcome to the fray ! The building is 98 units, and
majority Chinese. The rents there are very low for the unit size,
and it's a safe building, for now. This building has a lot vested in
Rent Control
Newark's own State Senator Ron Rice is co-prime sponsor on the
State Senate version of the state legislation we are fighting to
make it easier for landlords to evict tenants. The Bill includes
rescinding the Notice to Cease requirement before initiating an
eviction process. NJTO recommends very strong lobbying from
Newark tenants specifically to Rice. Good chance this will be a
July action item.
June 27, 2015: State Assemblyman Timothy Eustace (DMaywood), emailed Newark Tenants United to inform us that A1877 passed the State Assembly the other day. This is the Bill
that will make it much easier to evict tenants. He abstained on
the vote, said it was "too restrictive". This is a setback, but
there's still chance to stop this with the State Senate, and then
the Governor.
June 26, 2015 7:00 PM: New York has passed a controversial Bill
(in Albany) altering rent control regulations in NYC. Some of their
provisions are even worse than Newark's, including complete
vacancy decontrol simply if a unit's rent hits $2700, as well as
allowing 20% rent hikes for vacant units.
NYC Rent Control Ordinance passes
June 26, 2015, 8:00 AM: The US Supreme Court, in a 5-4
decision, ruled against racial discrimination in housing patterns,
and specifically will allow for statistical analyses to prove
disparate claims. This will have the biggest effect in states like
NY, NJ, and CT, which have the most segregated housing
patterns in America. Fair Housing Act Supreme Court decision
June 25, 2015: Newark Tenants United had a meeting
tonite. Representatives from four buildings were present. A flyer
is being emailed soon regarding the Rent Control Ordinance and
the July 1st city council meeting. And it was revealed the 425
Mount Prospect, a 98-unit building under Rent Control, has been
operating without a Superintendent for 3 months, and has never
been registered with the Rent Control Department. We're finally
seeing what kind of mess Rent Control was in prior to Mark Smith
taking command. Thank you, Ras, for appointing Smith.
June 24, 2015 5:00 PM: Newark Tenants United has made
contact with a resident of 425 Mount Prospect who wants to set
up a tenants association for his building, which he said is 98
units. There's been an ownership change, and the new owner is a
man from New York, seen wearing traditional Hasidic attire. He is
in flagrant violation of multiple ordinances. Most recently he
increased parking fees from $50 to $95 a month. The tenant
reports that Rent Control Officer Mark Smith visited the building
and met with tenants there in late May.
June 24, 2015 7:45 AM: Matt Shapiro of NJTO emailed Newark
Tenants United, requesting participation in attempting to stop Bill
A-1877 from being passed by the State Assembly on Thursday.
We emailed all of our contacts and forwarded the action alert. A1877 is the EVICTION FOR UNJUST CAUSE BILL. Shapiro
explained that the Bill contains vague language giving landlords
too much leeway to evict tenants, such as "impending damage to
the property" that is undefined. In addition, it duplicates other
landlord-tenant code regarding evictions for criminal activity, and
it now includes criminal activity unrelated to the property, such
as illegally downloading music from a computer.
June 23, 2015: Tenants are formulating a strategy to deal with
the pending amendment to the Rent Control Ordinance.
June 18, 2015: Eric Martindale of Newark Tenants United
attended a tenant-management meeting for the Newark Genesis
building, which is at 60-68 Mount Pleasant Ave. About 30
tenants were there, out of 51 units, an amazing turnout. Mr.
Jesus Casiano was there to represent Councilman Ramos, and he
spoke briefly. Ramos' office promises to help them set up
recycling and bulk pickup, a concern there. Eric spoke after Mr.
Casiano, and informed the residents that Councilman Ramos is
working against tenant interests on the Rent Control
Ordinance. Several tenants want to work with Newark Tenants
United, with the intent to form a Tenants Association.
June 17, 2015: The city council holds the first reading of the
amended RCO. There were no tenant leaders or landlords
registered to speak, but numerous tenant speakers were present
on various safety and quality of life issues. The city council
deferred the Resolution granting 6-months amnesty to the
landlords for registration. Click here to see the 2015 Rent Control
Ordinance (cannot upload, file too big) City Council Agenda for
June 17, 2015
June 16, 2015: Five representatives of Newark Tenants United
attended today's Pre-Council meeting, and three spoke during
public comment about items on tomorrow's agenda. There is a
controversial Resolution giving landlords amnesty to get their
buildings properly registered with Rent Control. And more
importantly there is the revised Rent Control Ordinance. Some
of Matt Shapiro's suggestions were incorporated, others were
not. The revisions are the least harmful that we've seen, but
tenants want more changes. Eric submitted comments by email
after the meeting:
Eric Martindale letter to city council June 16, 2015
Tenant leaders not affiliated with Newark Tenants United are
meeting with Councilman Ramos to discuss the ordinance.
June 15, 2015: Several tenant leaders attended tonite's event at
NJPAC, a Town Hall Discussion entitled "Rennaissance or
Gentrification, How do we discuss redevelopment in Newark."
About 200 people were in attendance. One tenant leader spoke in
the public portion, Richard Ariza, who discussed that rent control
offers protection against gentrification, and that the battle is
ongoing. One of the panelists, Baye Adofo-Wilson, who is
Newark's Deputy Mayor/Director of Economic & Housing
Development, side-stepped Mr. Aziza's comments. He said the
city plans to introduce an ordinance to better protect tenants on
Wednesday. Odofo-Wilson was also rude to a Sierra Club
representative who complained about litter on the streets and
on-ramps to highways.
June 13, 2015, 7:00 PM: A source advises that "the revised Rent
Control Ordinance will definitely be introduced on Wednesday.
Some of Matt Shapiro's recent comments were incorporated, but
not all of them, and the numbers are the same." (this is referring
to the $2500 per room equation, instead of basing the equation
on "x" month's rent). The agenda for the city council meeting is
posted in Legistar, but the ordinance is listed only as a
communication from the Business Administrator. It's on the very
last page of the agenda, for those who want to see it. The RCO is
not set for a first reading, but good chance it will be a "late
starter" to give as little time as possible to the tenant leaders
interested in reviewing it.
June 13, 2015: A news blog was launched for The Addison,
which is the new name for 380 & 402 Mount Prospect.
June 12, 2015: A search of Newark Legistar reveals a pending
resolution to allow amnesty for landlords to register their
buildings with Rent Control. This resolution is planned for
adoption on June 17th. See: Resolution of June 17, 2015
June 12, 2015: The tab in the Home Page header entitled
"Neighborhood Council Initiative" is no longer empty. It has
been populated with a slightly revised version of the plan
submitted to the city council in September, 2014. This is the plan
to elect five Neighborhood Councils for each of the 5 wards, a
total of 25, to create bottom-up government in Newark. 25 x 9
members each equals 225 new elected officials to address
the hands-on problems of each part of Newark. This is a
true grass-roots solution; it aims for the greatest possible
empowerment of the people.
Sorry for the lapse in blog postings, this Editor suffered a death
in the family, and it has consumed my time.
June 5, 2015: A community forum is to be held on June 15th,
regarding "Renaissance or Gentrification". Article on community
forum A strong rent control ordinance allows for economic
development, with all the needed jobs and tax revenues, but
without pushing people out.
June 2, 2015: Toi Miller of 402 Mount Prospect reports to
Newark Tenants United that there was an armed robbery at
402 Mount Prospect around 4:30 PM today. A woman was
attacked and her pocketbook stolen. The 24/7 Sterling security
guard covering both high-rise buildings (380 & 402) was at the
380 building when the crime occurred. This crime would not have
occurred if a guard was stationed in the 402 lobby. This is
considered a high-profile crime because it happened as a direct
result of management cutting back security 50% last October.
The police were summoned, and they will be looking at the
security camera footage to attempt to identify the attacker. This
is not the fault of Sterling or the individual guard; it is
management that doesn't want to pay for guards in both lobbies,
which we had until October, 2014.
June 1, 2015: Information has reached Newark Tenants United
that the city council is imminent to introduce another remake of
the Rent Control Ordinance. It will contain many changes
objectionable to tenant leaders, but will not be as objectionable
as the previous "Ramos amendment" that tenants all over
Newark lobbied heavily against in April. That one was never
officially introduced. The next council meeting is June 17th, there
is nothing this coming Wednesday.
May 31, 2015: Rafael Brito of the Hallmark House reports that
their building sold recently. Hallmark House is a market-rate
high-rise building diagonally across Broad Street from City Hall.
May 30, 2015: Matt Shapiro of the NJ Tenants Organization
reports the latest news on Bill A-1877, which has been opposed
by tenant leaders all over New Jersey. He is reporting that, on
May 14th, amendments to the Bill were introduced on the floor of
the State Assembly instead of a vote being taken. The most
objectionable element, allowing eviction of tenants for nuisances
or alleged nuisances, is removed. Thanks to everyone who
helped with this fight, but the fight isn't over. Other problems
with the Bill remain. Newark Tenants United will keep on this
issue, stay tuned.
May 21, 2015: Joannie Tirado reports the following, and has
given permission to have it posted: "I used to be a resident at
380 Mt Prospect Ave. I moved out 3-31-15. I have not recieved
my security check, and I'm getting the run around. Vonetta
promises to call me and she doesnt return my calls. Who do I
need to contact to resolve my issues."
May 18, 2015: An event from April 15th has suddenly appeared
in Newark Legistar, just within the past few days. The city council
is announcing now, a month later, that they had a closed-door
executive session to discuss the Rent Control Ordinance on April
15, 2015. Minutes were taken, but they are not available at this
time due to confidentiality. Click here to see it: Notice for April
15, 2015 Exec. Session on the RCO
May 17, 2015: Legal counsel are reviewing Bill A-1877.
May 16, 2015: Matt Shapiro of NJTO says that our lobbying has
had some impact. Thanks to everyone who participated.
May 15, 2015: Posting here the Email database for NJ State
Legislature Others have also created similar lists, but this
particular format allows you to email all 80 State
Assemblypersons and/or all 40 State Senators with one touch of
the SEND button on your computer. Also posting above in the
"RESOURCES" section.
May 14, 2015: Update on the bad legislation in Trenton. Bill A1877 was not voted on due to pressure from concerned
tenants. Matt Shapiro believes that minor changes will be made,
but it will still be a bad Bill. Berzichelli refuses to talk with
NJTO. We'll know more tomorrow.
May 13, 2015: Matt Shapiro advises that much more pressure is
needed on the state Assemblypersons. The sponsor of the Bill,
John Berzichelli (D-3), is a high-ranking Democrat who serves in
the same district as the all-powerful Senator Stephen Sweeney.
Berzichelli also has close ties with Democratic power-broker
Stephen Norcross. We have every reason to assume that this Bill
is coming from the Democratic Machine, which is increasingly
beholden to donations and influence from the landlord lobby. The
Republicans are believed to be ready to vote "yes". It's going to
be very difficult to beat A-1877.
A link to NJ State Legislators full contact information has been
provided in our "Resources". Thanks to NJ Environmental Lobby
for compiling the list.
May 12, 2015: NJTO has put out the call for all tenants to
contact NJ State Assemblymembers to vote "NO" on a the
Eviction for Unjust Cause Bill. The proposed Bill, scheduled for
vote on Thursday May 14th, will allow a tenant anywhere in New
Jersey to be evicted for disorderly conduct without a "Notice to
Cease" being first issued as a warning. The law currently on the
books requires an official "Notice to Cease" to be issued, so that
the tenant can stop whatever they are doing, before eviction
procedures can commence. The proposed change is completely
ridiculous and unjust. It will either conflict with or substantially
reverse New Jersey's "Eviction for Just Cause" legislation
currently on the books, and conflict with other legislation and
case law in New Jersey. And there are other problems with this
legislation as well. The Bill's sponsor is a Democratic State
Assemblyman from southwestern New Jersey, John J. Burzichelli.
As if we don't have enough problems with Republican legislators
in Trenton.
Newark Tenants United is creating a spreadsheet listing all State
Legislators, with their phone #s and emails, so that concerned
citizens can copy and paste all the emails and blast them all in
one shot. This will be useful for this and future state legislative
battles.
May 10, 2015: Yes, lots of retail stores are closing, and this
"retail apocalypse" is hitting NJ hard. We just lost Radio Shack.
The main reason is that housing costs have increased so much
that there's no money left to buy things. The authors of this
article haven't figured that out.
article on retail apocalypse
May 9, 2015: There are two-bedroom apartments under
construction near the train station in South Orange that will be
renting for $4,000 a month. That's still a steal compared to living
in Manhattan. The more there's a rental cost difference between
Newark and the suburbs, the more people of all backgrounds will
decide to move to Newark, as long as the neighborhood is "safe".
That's exactly the thinking of the potential tenant who decides to
move to Newark. Same for those who relocate within Newark.
May 8, 2015: Newark Tenants United publishes a statement on
it's website announcing it's purpose and the existence of a
Steering Committee. The statement has been emailed widely.
May 6, 2015: Today's city council meeting featured speeches by
the city council members positioning themselves. Central Ward
Councilwoman Gayle Chaneyfield-Jenkins introduces a motion to
name East Ward Councilman Augusto Amador as Vice-President
of the Newark City Council. The motion passed. Amador is not
part of the Baraka team, and he made particularly strong
speeches against the Baraka team at campaign events last year.
This move has far-reaching implications regarding who controls
the city council.
May 6, 2015 Star Ledger article on Amador selection
May 5, 2015: There are no tenant leaders speaking at
tomorrow's council meeting. There are no ordinances being
introduced that concern us.
April 28, 2015: We are listing our allies on the website, directly
above the Newark Tenant News Blog. Expect more additions
April 25, 2015: A representative of Newark Tenants United
manned a table last Thursday at the 3rd and final housing
seminar hosted by the South Ward Children's Alliance. This event
was at the Avon Ave Elementary school. Many tenants explained
their shocking issues. Khatim Scherrerel did an excellent job
organizing these events.
April 22, 2015: We are checking Newark Legistar every day to
see if the revised Rent Control Ordinance appears. Nothing yet.
April 21, 2015: Inspectors from the City of Newark Code
Enforcement office conduct a complete sweep of 380 Mount
Prospect Ave, looking at all common areas and inside every
apartment. 380 Mount Prospect Ave is home to several tenant
leaders. 380 and 402 Mount Prospect have been a hotbed of
tenant organizing since 2007. Tenant leaders had submitted a list
of concerns to Kettler Management last Fall. Unhappy with the
slow pace of repairs, the list was then submitted to the city Code
Enforcement office.
April 20, 2015: We wish to clarify that the links on the top of the
home page to 380 and 402 Mount Prospect, The Pavilion,
and The Colonnade do not refer to any tenant organizations in
those buildings. Those pages do not contain information about
any other tenant organizations. It's just a service to those
residents, those readers. Many persons in those buildings are
followers of Newark Tenants United. Some of the information on
those pages needs updating.
April 20, 2015: The link to the Newark Legistar system is
published here and in the above RESOURCES TO HELP TENANTS.
Simply type in a subject matter, for instance Rent Control and hit
search. Nothing comes up for 2015, but if you search for 2014,
you'll find several items, including the May 20th ordinance.
City of Newark August 6, 2014 Resolution on Rent Control is now
published here and in the RESOURCES section
April 19, 2015: The City of Newark Rent Control Dept has
documented the following annual rent increases, based on the
change in the Consumer Price Index:
January leases:
1.3%
February leases: 0.8% (8/10 of 1%)
March leases
0.3% (3/10 of 1%)
April leases
0.0%
May leases
0.1% (1/10 of 1%)
June leases
0.0%
April 14, 2015: The creation of the flyer urging tenants to call
and email the city council was a group decision of the tenant
leaders, and the flyer wording was agreed upon by the Newark
Tenants United group. The April 13th post naming Avi Richardson
as the point person for the lobbying effort is not correct. It's all
of us, all four tenant associations involved at that time.
April 13, 2015: DANGEROUS HAPPENINGS -- Word has reached
us that the Newark City Council is extremely close to finalizing a
revised Rent Control Ordinance. Tenant leaders have not been
allowed to see the document, and we have not been privately
assured that our concerns have been incorporated. Therefore the
most likely scenario is that the sponsors of the ordinance
(believed to be Anibal Ramos, Gayle Chaneyfield-Jenkins, and
John Sharpe James) have every intent to override the objections
of tenants and tenant leaders, and reverse most of the victories
we won in May, 2014. Newark Tenants United has put out the
call for every tenant call and email the city council, see March
25, 2015 Flyer against changes to RCO
April 12, 2015: New link added to "KEY DOCUMENTS AND
RESOURCES" www.howtosueyourlandlord.com
Also found information on a Stephen Crane Tenants Association
Stephen Crane Tenants Association and on the great Newark
Rent Strike of 1970-1973, considered to be the largest in
American history at that time. 2000 units withheld rent for 3
years
April 11, 2015: Forest Hill Towers Tenants Association is
launching their own website. This is a temporary link, first
announced on April 6th. Great work, Armando !!! Also, Newark
Tenants United can now be reached via email. The email
is media@newarktenantsunited.org
April 10, 2015: Victory for affordable housing in New Jersey.
Unsure if Newark has money in a trust fund, good chance it does.
Creation of affordable housing regionally is good.
Court blocks Christie's raid on affordable housing funds
April 8, 2015: A representative of Newark Tenants United made
a presentation on tenant advocacy at the Housing Resource Fair
at 600 Clinton Avenue (North Star Academy). The event was
hosted by the South Ward Children's Alliance, in conjunction with
La Casa de Don Pedro. Additional presentations will be made on
4/16 and 4/23.
April 5, 2015: Posting Structure of the Tenants Movement.
There's power in numbers. In the current political environment of
Newark, changing laws and public policy would be impossible for
one Tenants Association to achieve. However, it does become
possible with a city-wide organization. Also, Newark Tenants
United makes the act of organizing a new tenants association at
another address much easier. Individual tenants are more willing
to join a new group that is part of a well-established
movement than to join a new group that is going it alone.
April 4, 2015: Posting various documents downloaded from the
excellent Colonnades website. Some are Key Documents posted
above, others are scattered in chronological order below to
create an accurate archive. Key Documents are now divided into
Dated Key Documents and Generic Resources. Special thanks to
Elaine Ellsberry for her hard work in originally creating this
collection in the Colonnades website. Imitation is the sincerest
form of flattery :)
April 2, 2015: 8 tenant leaders spoke at the Hearing of Citizens
on April 1st to address grievances in their buildings and defend
the Rent Control Ordinance. The campaign for tenants to email
and call the city council members continues.
April 1 2015 Full Report on City Council Meeting
March 29, 2015: Article: NJ Supreme Court decision on Eminent
Domain An eminent domain taking has been upheld in a
relatively prosperous downtown. This issue has been
controversial because only one property is actually blighted on
the block designated as blighted by the City of Hackensack. This
ruling sets a precedent, and could affect tenants in areas not
truly blighted in cities across New Jersey.
March 26, 2015: Launching the news blog !! This blog is to
be factual. It is not to function as an ongoing editorial. It will
feature quick news briefs, plus links to documents, websites, and
articles. Older information will slowly be back-filled, in
chronological order, to create a record of events regarding
the Newark Tenants Movement. "Key Documents" will also be
linked directly above this news blog for easy access. Any OpEd's and Editorials will be separate documents, via a link. The
webmaster welcomes contributions, but reserves editorial
discretion.
March 25, 2015: Distribution begins for a flyer to thousands of
units throughout Newark. It encourages tenants to call and email
the Mayor and city council persons. Our elected officials are
individually being asked to come out against the proposed
ordinance. March 25, 2015 Flyer against changes to RCO
This course of action was decided on March 23rd. The flyer itself
was written by several tenant leaders and approved by joint
decision.
March 25, 2015: A hearing at city hall is held by Councilman
Eddie Osborne on possible changes to the Security Guard
Ordinance. Kettler Management was told to attend because of
multiple complaints that the company is not in full compliance
with security staffing at various buildings. Kettler was able to
postpone their appearance.
March 23, 2015: Tenant Leaders meet and agree to coordinate
strong opposition to the proposed roll-back of 3/4 of the tenant
victories won in the May 20, 2014 Rent Control Ordinance
March 19, 2015: Tenant Leader Eric Martindale submits to the
Newark Mayor & Council a detailed 4-page list of objections to
the Ramos-Chaneyfield amendment to the Rent Control
Ordinance. Special thanks to the fellow tenant leaders who
provided input, edits, and suggestions for this
document. 3/19/2015 List of Objections to the RamosChaneyfield Rent Control Amendment During the Hearing of
Citizens, Councilwoman Gayle Chaneyfield-Jenkins states that
she and Councilman John Sharpe James are co-sponsoring the
revised Rent Control Ordinance along with Councilman Anibal
Ramos. James himself says nothing.
March 18, 2015: Reasons for Affordable Housing
March 9, 2015: NJTO President Matt Shapiro meets with State
Assemblywoman Grace Spencer in Trenton to discuss changes
needed in A-1578, the Bedbug "Responsibility" Bill. Shapiro
reports that the meeting went well.
March 7, 2015: State Assemblywoman Grace Spencer pulls A1578 in response to calls and emails from upset tenants in
Newark. The Bill was set for a vote on Monday, but this will not
happen.
March 6, 2015: Tenant leaders distribute a flyer to derail A-1578,
the Bedbug "Responsibility" Bill, which was sponsored by Grace
Spencer, a Democratic State Assemblywoman representing most
of Newark in Trenton. bedbug flyer
February 28, 2015: Landlord-Tenant Law e-book by Attorney
Bruce Gudin
January 25, 2015: Results of Furnari hearing. The Motion to
Intervene has been delayed. The judge has asked both parties to
submit more information
January 23, 2015: NJ.com article on Rent Control in Newark,
dated 1/23/15
January 10, 2015: Email distribution of Rent Savings Calculator
for May 20, 2014 Newark RCO. Based on annual rent increase
averaging 2% instead of 4%. Just enter your rent in the blue
box and hit enter
January 8, 2015: Mark Smith, new Director of Rent Control
officially advises us that Maria Hernandez is no longer Director of
Rent Control, and now works as a senior staff member for Mark
Smith
January 6, 2015: Star Ledger article on Rent Control in Newark