Twist in Eviction Fight: Charity as Landlord

Twist in Eviction Fight: Charity as Landlord
Robert Stolarik for The New York Times

At the Parkside, in Manhattan, many rooms are now empty, their doors marked with an X. The 17-story building was once home to hundreds of women.


By MANNY FERNANDEZ and KATE HAMMER
Published: September 16, 2007

For months, Princess Usanga, a sales assistant at a television station, has been embroiled in a particularly heated dispute with her landlord. She and other tenants took the owner of the Manhattan building where they live to State Supreme Court, hoping to block their eviction while the building is put up for sale.

In a city where landlord-tenant battles are all too common, this dispute is one of a kind, not so much because of the nature of the complaints but because of the identity of the owner: the Salvation Army.

The case has pitted a group of tenants from two of the few remaining women-only, single-room-occupancy buildings in Manhattan against one of the largest religious and charitable organizations in the world.

It has turned into an unusually public and messy battle for the Salvation Army, which has long operated the buildings, the Parkside Evangeline Residence for Young Women at 18 Gramercy Park South and the Ten Eyck-Troughton Residence at 145 East 39th Street, as safe and inexpensive havens for women.

The tenants of the two buildings, who have support from housing advocates and some city officials, started a blog at salvationfromarmy.blogspot.com and even picketed outside the Salvation Army’s Spring Gala at the New York Hilton.

“The Salvation Army feels that they’re untouchable because of their reputation and their name,” said Ms. Usanga, 23, the president of the tenants’ association at the Parkside. “It just really upsets me. I expected more from them, and I can never look at them the same.”

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http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/16/nyregion/16salvation.html?ex=1347595200&en=aa09544d482a33bc&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss

And in most other states it is about the same. Even Federal Law that covers Public Housing permit Landlords to evict tenants upon 30 days notice if the landlord can show "Good Cause", which can include converting the rental units to condominiums.

Basically this is an issue of New York City Law. I do not believe even New York STATE law applies. I am NOT familiar with New York City Law but the general rule is landlords can STOP renting to tenants at any time. That is what the Salvation Army appears to have done here, decided to stop renting out these rooms. In most of the US, Why a landlord no longer wants to lease out their property is unimportant (Except if violation of Race, age, disability status).

Now New York City is the only city in the US that kept its rent Control laws in affect after the end of WWII (Parts of Berkley CA also has Rent control but that is from the 1960s not WWII). How these rent control laws apply to this case is subject to the determination of the New York Courts. Some property are NOT subject to the Rent Control Laws (which is apparently the ruling of the Courts regarding these two properties). If the property is NOT subject to New York City's rent control laws, then the tenant can be evicted without further notice. If the properties ARE subject to those Rent Control Laws then the Property will have to be kept up. Lets see what the Appellant Division of the Supreme Court of New York Court does.

For people (like myself) who do NOT live in New York. The "Supreme Courts" of New York are the Trial courts of New York State. Called Common Pleas court in my home State of Pennsylvania, "Superior" court in California. They are "Supreme" because they are higher than Justice of the Peace Courts (Or whatever New York Calls they Justice of the Peace). What the US Government calls the "Supreme Court" and what most states calls their "Supreme Court" is the Court of Appeals in New York State. Different names for the same level of court, but I mention it to avoid confusion from people who live in State that Follows the Federal System of Naming Courts.