Rats, bugs, leaks come with apartments in two Brooklyn buildings run by affordable housing group, say tenants By Victoria Bekiempis July 13, 2018 Residents at 676 Willoughby Ave. claim they have battled rat infestations in their affordablehousing building. (Debbie Egan-Chin / New York Daily News) Brooklyn tenant Claudia Harris cowered inside her room, afraid to step into the darkness. The 32-year-old mother of a 3-year-old boy said her residence at 676 Willoughby Ave. was invaded by a massive rodent and other vermin and her landlord refused to handle the infestation.
I had to adopt a cat, because I had a rat the size of a size-13 sneaker in my apartment, she said. It came to the point I would not come out of the bedroom when it was dark. I would barricade myself in my room I was scared. Harris and fellow residents of 676 Willoughby Ave., along with tenants at 150 Tompkins Ave., are pursuing separate Brooklyn Housing Court suits over alleged squalid conditions ignored by property managers in their buildings. Hearings in the cases are scheduled for Monday and Aug. 2, with both buildings overseen by the same affordable-housing nonprofit. The targeted companies are Willoughby Tompkins LP and Aikens Apartments. But Northeast Brooklyn Housing Development Corp. which, according to its website, pushes for the preservation, development and management of affordable housing is listed as the managing agent of the two Bushwick properties in city records. Gabriel Pacheco and Jeffery Dunston, listed in city records and court papers as officers of these properties, are also being sued. Dunston is referred to as CEO and an officer of the housing corporation on the organization s website. Northeast Brooklyn is not named as a defendant in tenants petitions. The Legal Aid Society is representing the tenants of both buildings. Eight residents of 676 Willoughby say the 21-unit building is also rife with leaks, including sewage, and provides poor garbage disposal and lax security. Seven tenants of 150 Willoughby make similar allegations about conditions in their 20-unit building.
Tenants at 150 Tompkins Ave. in Brooklyn have filed Brooklyn Housing Court petitions over allegedly squalid conditions. (Debbie Egan-Chin / New York Daily News) According to Housing Preservation and Development, which monitors conditions in buildings with rent stabilized apartments, the Willoughby and Tompkins sites have 198 open violations and 99 open violations respectively. Harris recalled that when she first moved in with her father on Willoughby Ave. seven years ago, conditions were fair but have since declined. She bought the cat when her son was born to deal with the rats inside her residence. The rodents only relocated: Because the landlord fails to upkeep with the garbage, the rats now gather near the waste area, she said.
A persistent leak in the bathroom of her three-bedroom apartment, priced at $1,500 per month, smells like old urine. And there s a hole in the ceiling that has long gone without repair, said Harris. I just feel like, when we put in for things to be repaired, we shouldn t have to call 311, she said. Who wants to live like that? Attorney Seth Denenberg, who represents the properties, Pacheco, Dunston and developer Northeast Brooklyn, insisted his clients were doing the very best job they possibly can under the circumstances. Denenberg claimed tenants in these buildings weren t providing access for repairs and that Legal Aid wasn t helping by pursuing litigation. We are run by a not-for-profit whose only goal is to maintain, create and improve housing in the Northeast Brooklyn area for people on limited and fixed incomes, he said. And we would love to see Legal Aid work with us instead of fighting against us. Legal Aid lawyer Meghan Walsh, who is leading the tenants lawsuits, said the plaintiffs strongly dispute those allegations. The landlord has missed many access dates, usually with little to no response as to why, Walsh said. The tenants associations in both buildings are, understandably, very frustrated. We have been continuously working with NEBHDCO, through their attorney and the progress has been very slow. Asked for comment, a Housing Preservation and Development spokesman said the agency was actively involved at these properties, and will continue to support tenants in housing court and
use all of the tools at our disposal to hold landlords accountable to ensure that tenants live in safe and secure homes.