G-Way Management has been trying to push out long-term residents in a Crown Heights apartment building to capitalize off higher rents, dozens of protesters said Saturday.
“G-Way Management has been threatening [tenant’s] health and safety and engaging in tactics that border on criminal behavior,” said Public Advocate Letitia James, who stood with the protesters.
Assemblyman Walter Mosley was also present at the demonstration outside the building at 410 Eastern Parkway.
James and Mosley said they have been attempting to negotiate with G-Way Management for almost a year, and the management company has refused to meet with them.
Things escalated a week and a half ago, when Mosley went to G-Way's offices and, he says, was physically threatened by the company's staff. He came to the office with tenants to present documentation of all the requests for meeting, he recalled, and was met at the door of their offices by security and senior management. Mosley says the documents were grabbed from his hands and one staff member tried to push him.
“All we wanted was a simple meeting,” he told POLITICO New York.
POLITICO New York could not reach G-Way Management for comment. The assemblyman told reporters outside the building that the altercation would not deter their efforts.
“We’re from Brooklyn, we don’t scare,” he said.
Around three dozen protesters from the Crown Heights Tenants Union and other local organizers gathered outside the building on a chilly Saturday afternoon. Bundled up in winter jackets, the protesters flanked James as she made remarks to the press. Some held signs saying, “G-Way Go Away,” and “G-Way Shame on You.”
Many of the tenants present had lived in the building for decades in rent-stabilized apartments. They said G-Way refused to attend to mold and rodent infestation problems in their apartments, as well as not allowing tenants to renew their leases.
“I have mold, I have holes, I have cracks, I have leaks, you name it all,” said tenant Janice Hector, who has lived in her apartment for 16 years. “I’m sick and tired of it.”
Press was taken on a tour of some of apartments in the buildings where mold and holes were visible. In one apartment, trash was falling through a hole in the ceiling created by a rodent.
Crown Heights has become a desirable market for real estate developers, with some of the Brooklyn’s fastest growing rents. Two high-rise towers are under construction across from 410 Eastern Parkway.
The public advocate has recently made tenant harassment a front-burner issue. James recently put forward a bill at a City Council hearing to prevent landlords with multiple violations from receiving new building permits.
Rachel Phipps, who manages the 410 Eastern Parkway building for G-Way, is on the public advocate’s Worst Landlord watch list, with 420 violations in the four buildings she manages. James said G-Way has more than 630 violations on its multiple buildings across the city.
New York’s Housing and Preservations Department has the power to fix issues in the apartments and charge the landlord for the repairs. Urban Homesteading Assistance Board member Celia Weaver said they had reached out to HPD multiple times but seen no action. However, HPD sent a letter to G-Way on Friday.
“Obviously because they had seen a press release for this event,” Weaver said.
Assemblyman Wolsey said he’ll be referring this issue to the state’s Tenants Protection Union and the public advocate’s office is exploring legal options.
The Crown Heights Tenants Union will hold a meeting with tenants to decide on what action to take next.