Tenants Claim Negligence at Flatbush Gardens
Tenants at the 59-building, rent-stabalized, East Flatbush housing complex called Flatbush Gardens (previously Vanderveer Estates) claim that the owner, Clipper Equity, is neglecting repairs in order to drive out tenants and drive up rents. “You call, but they never come to fix anything,” one tenant of 25 years told the Daily News. Needed repairs include…
Tenants at the 59-building, rent-stabalized, East Flatbush housing complex called Flatbush Gardens (previously Vanderveer Estates) claim that the owner, Clipper Equity, is neglecting repairs in order to drive out tenants and drive up rents. “You call, but they never come to fix anything,” one tenant of 25 years told the Daily News. Needed repairs include flooring in disrepair and exposed or non-functioning outlets. Tenants also claim that Clipper began charging $30 air-conditioner fees as part of its intimidation tactics, and raised rents in stabalized apartments beyond what is legally permissible. The owners will renovate an apartment as soon as tenants vacate, tenants say, but ignore maintenance requests for occupied units. Finally, the tenants point to television and subway ads for the complex as more evidence that the owners are trying to attract new money. A Clipper spokesperson said that the owner works through all maintenance requests, and highlights $10 million in upgrades such as new elevators, intercom systems, and playgrounds. Tenants say these are simply cosmetic upgrades, and a lawyer representing them told the News, “It’s clear the landlord wants to bring in new business.” GMAP P*Shark
Landlords Letting Flatbush Gardens Rot to Flush Us Out [Daily News]
Rent Wars: Flatbush Gardens Achieves Stuy Town Dream [Curbed]
Image by Nicholas Strini/PropertyShark
It does not take away from the fact that Clipper Equity owners are slum lords
I worked at the new & improved Vandeveer aka Flatbush Gardens for a day showing the rehab apartments. I must say the rehab apartments are nice. However, I had friends & family that lived in Vandeveer, and boy-o-boy. Nothing got done. Nothing.
I’m all for housing for low-to-middle incomers. But, there needs to be a balance. Tenants can’t bring their guests to the buildings only to urinate in the hallways; write gang signs all over the property; sell crack out of their apartments; have sex in the hallways; & expect their landlord to make reasonable repairs when need be. Oh, the elevator. Fuggedaboutit it never worked.
Now for Clippers Equity, at the end of the day, that’s still their building so they should fix whatever needs to be fixed. But, I can’t put all the blame on Clippers. I’ve been to Vandeveer & my goodness. I would never live in that place. Not all the tenants & their guest abuse the building. But, jeez louise, when a 10-year-old throw a bike from the roof of Vandeveer & kills a cop-you know the complex has much bigger problems than repairs.
Benson is completely right, and most of these comments are absurd.
Flatbush Gardens (formerly known as Vandeveer Estates) was HORRIBLE. One of the most dangerous complexes in the city.
The new owners have completely renovated the complex and it looks quite nice now (from the outside, at least; I have not been inside).
The old complex was literally a hellhole. Grafitti, garbage, and muggings. Now it’s manicured lawns, security and middle class tenants.
I bet you some of the old-school rent-controlled tenants don’t like the new rules (like pay your rent on time, and don’t litter) so they complain to the press.
If you think that Clipper Equity is neglecting Flatbush Gardens you should see what they are doing at Belltel in Downtown Brooklyn! The building is falling apart at the seams and Clipper Equity does not want to finish it and owes suppliers a fortune, even Con Ed. Rumor has it that they are going to the Attorney General!!! The lobby is beautiful but just look under the covers!!! Very sad, such a beautiful building going to pot!!
Mikela;
OK, I’ll soften my statement in one regard. Here is my modified statement: it was one of the worst private developments in the history of Brooklyn. Not as bad as the Red Hook projects, I agree, but nevertheless it has been a troubled complex for a long, long time.
Mikela;
I’ll stand by my statement. I know many folks who grew up in East Flatbush, and virtually all of them point to Vanderveer Estates as the source of its troubles. You are not correct that this complex was still a haven for middle class families in the 70’s. By the 70’s folks who had the means were fleeing this complex. One doesn’t go from doctors to section 8 tennants overnight, as you imply above. Ten years after this complex opened, it was clear that it was in trouble. Its trouble are similiar to that other red-brick-tower monstrosity in Queens, Lefrak City.
Having said all that, I agree with your conclusion. I shed no tears for SOME of the residents there – those who are not respectful of their home and neighbors.
Vanderveer Gardens was one of the WORST developments in the history of Brooklyn: cheaply built,and then poorly run. This story gives no perspective on what this development was like BEFORE Clipper Equities bought them: an absolute hellhole that brought down the surrounding area.
One of the worst? A bit of an exaggeration. It was no Red Hook, and never was meant to be public housing. Vanderveer was middle class housing in the 60s and 70s. I’ve heard older people say it was actually nice to live there back then, that doctors lived there.
What changed was the admittance of section 8 tenants, whenever there is concentration of those tenants in an area, crime usually follows. I think majority of section 8 tenants are gone now. I have family living there still, and not everyone who can’t afford to pay $2000 for a 2 bedroom apt are lowlifes and dirty. There are teachers, and health care employees living there, security guards, those who for transit, regular working class and low middle class families.
But at the same time, I think there are some people there that needs to be “pushed out”, who lived there for years and bring nothing but crime and dysfunction to the community. I know that is harsh – where will they go is the cry – but I don’t know. Why should a community tolerate dysfunctional families and people with no thought on busting locks and drug dealing, and peeing in hallways.
absolutely Benson, if the capital improvements are legit, and they have to go thru a process with DHCR the tenants should shut up, pay the increase and be happy that building is improving. That increase encourages owners to update the housing.
If they are harassed to move out – that is another matter. I didn’t read the article so don’t know if that is a charge.
“And the bigger issue is while there is a huge market for apartments with reasonable rents, there aren’t a lot of them out there for lower middle and working class poor.”
Indeed.
“As City Adds Housing for Poor, Market Subtracts It”
http://bit.ly/2PQ97V