A Year After Suing Their Landlord, Brooklyn Tenants Still Lack Heat (NY Times)

JAN. 22, 2015



Two weeks ago, a city housing inspector visited an apartment on the fourth floor of 940 Prospect Place in Brooklyn and issued a violation to the landlord for inadequate heat. The visit was nothing new — since December 2013, residents of 940 and the adjoining building at 930 Prospect Place have made more than 100 complaints about lack of heat or hot water.

One year ago, when the polar vortex brought record low temperatures to the city, I reported on conditions in the two buildings, including a frigid bedroom where a 6-year-old girl with severe respiratory problems breathed through a ventilator. At the time, the tenants had some hope for respite: They had a lawyer and a date in Housing Court the following week. Surely a resolution was at hand.

Twelve months later, the case is continuing and conditions have not improved, according to residents.





“My question is, why hasn’t anyone from H.P.D. come in and made sure we have heat?” said Vernaline McFarlane, 46, using the initials for the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. “All we are asking for is heat.”

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Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/25/nyregion/a-year-after-suing-their-landlord-brooklyn-tenants-still-lack-heat.html?partner=rss&emc=rss