tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post4023795172162128298..comments2024-03-25T18:50:15.135-04:00Comments on DCmud - The Urban Real Estate Digest of Washington DC: Strong Hearts, Crumbling BrickKenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08295461340042242438noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-61625619341544923352012-04-26T13:55:32.306-04:002012-04-26T13:55:32.306-04:00The legal way for the process to happen is for the...The legal way for the process to happen is for the building owner to offer the building to the tenants for sale. The reason that things transpired the way that they did is because the original owner of the building broke the law by not informing his tenants that he was going to sell the building. This system does not reduce the quantity of housing or keep rents high. This helps to preserve the few affordable housing options that exist. If the owner had succeeded, the building would have been made into a luxury condo with high rental rates. <br /><br />Additionally, the reason that the building was empty for so long directly resulted from the owner not following the law. If he had offered to sell the tenants the building as he was legally obligated to do, they would not have had to stay there delaying construction; they could have immediately sought a developer of their own and begun the process in a timely fashion.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-32559636616452711522011-05-11T09:37:36.491-04:002011-05-11T09:37:36.491-04:00@Anonymous #3: The building will not be condos or ...@Anonymous #3: The building will not be condos or co-ops. It is owned by the National Housing Trust, and, as a condition of city funding, will remain below-market rate rental units.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-3222761778571033122011-05-09T21:55:00.701-04:002011-05-09T21:55:00.701-04:00Eva Martinez is NOT some kind of hero. The only th...Eva Martinez is NOT some kind of hero. The only thing she accomplished was to prevent this rotting dump from being made habitable for over FIVE years. By April 2008 (see http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/18/AR2008041803174.html) she and her daughters had been the only tenants of the building for 2 1/2 years, despite being offered a $100K bribe(!) to move out. So here it is mid-2011 and the building still is vacant. Under absurd DC laws tenants are granted property rights to apartments they do not own and cannot even afford to buy. This absurd system is what reduces the quantity of housing and keeps rents high.wdccruise@aol.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-23529450333942609792011-05-09T16:14:56.809-04:002011-05-09T16:14:56.809-04:00Come on. It's not as if they're going to b...Come on. It's not as if they're going to be living there for free! They paying rent. And they helped preserve an historical building. Bravo to Martinez for not being jaded with the legal system and following up to uphold her rights as a DC tenant.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-54308261429363866862011-05-09T15:16:51.411-04:002011-05-09T15:16:51.411-04:00I agree with the first comment. This city has bec...I agree with the first comment. This city has become a hallmark of poor people getting from others by muniplating the system and getting somenthing for nothing. It's amazing how tenant friendly DC has become. This does nothing but to limit investments in DC for smaller apartments. Thanks DC Gov. staff and council for upkeeping the sysytem you were raised in.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-86497241081027027032011-05-09T09:59:50.854-04:002011-05-09T09:59:50.854-04:00So is it now a co-op? Tenants purchased the buildi...So is it now a co-op? Tenants purchased the building through TOPA? The article is unclear who the owner is.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-68939250816624016482011-05-08T11:31:09.242-04:002011-05-08T11:31:09.242-04:00sorry - letting it rot into a rat infested hell ho...sorry - letting it rot into a rat infested hell hole is *NOT the right thing to doAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22305958.post-31339238352860850112011-05-08T11:29:04.360-04:002011-05-08T11:29:04.360-04:00Eva Martinez is a very strong person and did what ...Eva Martinez is a very strong person and did what was right in this situation, but I have a question about apartment conversion to condos. What is the appropriate/legal/ethical way for it to happen? If the Management company fairly buys each apartment and reduces the services over time (because of fewer tenants) - and one person holds out forever - what can the management company do? Obviously letting it rot into a rat infested hell hole is the right answer - but there has to be a way for the actual "owners" of the property to do as they wish with it. As for apartment renters, I think it is a dangerous precedence being set that makes them feel like they "own" the apartment - that is not true. If they want to live somewhere forever, they need to buy property.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com