Tenant association presidents release letter to DCHA regarding approved rents for housing vouchers

The presidents of eight tenant associations in Ward 3, including the Van Ness South Tenants Association, today sent a letter to DC Housing Authority Deputy Director Victor Martinez, following up on issues raised on a recent video meeting with him concerning the agency’s extremely high approved rents for housing vouchers.

The following is an excerpt from the letter, which also appears in printer-friendly form at this link.

“As we explained during our brief meeting, these high rates have distorted the market, given housing providers incentives to prefer voucher holders over non-voucher holders, wasted money that could serve others who need housing assistance, cheated taxpayers, and created windfall profits for housing providers. In addition, the extremely high approved rents drive up rents on residents who don’t have housing vouchers, including seniors on fixed incomes, working- and middle-class renters, graduate and undergraduate students, and others. As a result, some of them will be driven out of Rock Creek West.”

“We appreciate your offer to create a working group for residents of apartment buildings like those we represent. However, we also are deeply concerned that renters, who have suffered from the extremely damaging effects of the very high approved rents, were not included in the first place. As we stated in initial communications with Mayor Bowser and with DCHA, we think it is critical that we have a seat at the table with other stakeholders to enable fair and open discussion of the issues. Both renters and non-absentee condominium owners should have equal representation with the other stakeholders. Our understanding from our meeting is that you strongly agree that these groups should have equal representation with the others.”

Van Ness South Tenants Association will host Ward 3 candidates for DC Council

There will be a special meeting of the Van Ness South Tenants Association on Tuesday, June 7th at 7:00 pm, featuring almost all of the Ward 3 candidates for the DC Council.

This will be an opportunity for residents to share their concerns about rental housing and other issues with the candidates. It will be an informal event, not a debate, with ample time for small-group conversations.

This special meeting of the Van Ness South Tenants Association will be open to residents of other rental apartment buildings in the Van Ness area. However, non-residents of 3003 Van Ness should please RSVP for planning purposes.

Residents who are willing to help out with the event should please email us. We need people to help meet attendees, help collect membership forms, and other light duties.

Those who would like to help promote the event can print this flyer and post it in the laundry room on their floor. Alternately, they can forward the URL for this news item to friends at 3003 Van Ness or other local apartment buildings.

We hope to see you there!

VNSTA asks the DC Housing Authority to reverse its rejection of FOIA request

The Van Ness South Tenants Association today sent a letter to Brenda Donald, Executive Director of the DC Housing Authority (DCHA), requesting that she override the agency’s recent rejection of a FOIA request by VNSTA.

The request, sent on April 1, ask for aggregate data on the number of housing vouchers used at 3003 Van Ness Street in the years 2015-2022, as well as the current rents paid by DCHA and the amounts received by Equity Residential for the apartments rented. The reason for the FOIA request is that there is substantial evidence that DHCA pays very high rates to landlords, driving up rents and discriminating against non-voucher holders, undermining rent stabilization, and providing huge profits to landlords.

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Dear Ms. Donald,

I am writing in response to DCHA’s recent rejection of our FOIA request for aggregate information about the number of DCHA vouchers used and the rents paid for apartments at 3003 Van Ness Street, NW. DCHA refused to provide any information whatsoever, stating “we thoroughly searched the applicable agency records and found that there were no documents responsive to this request.”

It strains the imagination to think that the DC Housing Authority has no records whatsoever of how many households it sponsors at a given address and at what cost. For this reason, we ask that you overturn the blanket rejection of our request and that take action to quickly provide the information requested.

I and many other residents of 3003 Van Ness and the surrounding community support the use of vouchers to subsidize housing for low-income individuals and families. However, the DCHA list of approved rents reveals extremely high rates – $2,648 for a one-bedroom apartment in our area. (cont.)

Read the entire letter and attachments in printer-friendly PDF format

VNSTA asks the Washington Housing Conservancy to halt efforts to circumvent TOPA

The Van Ness South Tenants Association today sent a letter to Kimberly Driggins, Executive Director of the Washington Housing Conservancy / Washington Housing Initiative, requesting that her organization halt efforts to pass an “emergency exemption” to the Tenants Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA).

Equity Residential and the Washington Housing Conservancy (WHC), along with Amazon developer RBG Smith, have been in discussions about a possible sale of 3003 Van Ness to the Conservancy, which would deny current residents their legal TOPA rights.

Last Friday, members of the Van Ness South Tenants Association spoke with WHC Executive Director Kimberly Driggins by phone, who provided general information about her organization’s plan to purchase the property. On the call, Ms. Driggins did not say that she would give up efforts to deprive residents of their rights by get the City Council to pass an “emergency exemption” to TOPA.

In a follow-up letter, VNSTA president Harry Gural asks Ms. Driggins to give up efforts to convince the City Council to pass an “emergency exception” to TOPA, while expressing a willingness to discuss the Washington Housing Conservancy’s plans to develop 3003 Van Ness and two other properties held by Equity Residential.

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Dear Ms. Driggins,

Thank you for a good introductory phone call last Friday.

Our organization share some common interests – particularly, preserving existing and providing more affordable and workforce housing in Washington, DC. For years, the Van Ness South Tenants Association has been fighting on behalf of a diverse population of seniors, students, young professionals, essential workers, families and others to preserve rent stabilization against aggressive assault, achieving important successes with more to come. The Washington Housing Conservancy, backed by Amazon developer JBG SMITH, presents a novel and interesting concept for providing more affordable and workforce housing.

We also have some differences. For example, we strongly oppose any effort to circumvent the Tenants Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), depriving the residents of 3003 Van Ness of our legal rights. TOPA provides the appropriate framework for discussing any possible sale of the building. For this reason, we request that you halt attempts to circumvent TOPA so we do not have to take public steps to oppose your efforts, including seeking an injunction if necessary.

(cont.)

Read the entire letter in printer-friendly PDF format

VNSTA asks City Council Chairman Phil Mendelson not to allow "emergency exemption" to TOPA rights

The Van Ness South Tenants Association today released a letter to City Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, requesting that he not allow an “emergency exemption” to the Tenants Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), which would deprive residents of 3003 Van Ness of their legal rights. This follows reports that the nonprofit Washington Housing Conservancy, backed by Amazon developer RBG Smith, has lobbied the City Council for an exemption to TOPA that would allow it to purchase 3003 Van Ness, circumventing existing tenants.

VNSTA and other tenant advocates oppose attempts to deny tenants of their legal rights.

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Dear Chairman Mendelson,

As the president of the Van Ness South Tenants Association, I am writing to urge you not to support any “emergency” effort to circumvent TOPA in the possible sale and purchase of 3003 Van Ness Street or other properties currently held by Equity Residential.

The apartment buildings at 3003 Van Ness Street are rent-stabilized, and they provide affordable housing opportunities for a diverse population of seniors, families, young professionals, students, and low-income voucher holders. The Van Ness South Tenants Association has fought for many years against Equity Residential for violating DC rent stabilization laws and overcharging tenants. Attorney General Karl Racine recently won a suit against Equity Residential for these violations.

When Equity purchased the building in 2013 it violated TOPA, depriving residents of their legal rights. The tenants association expects that Equity Residential soon will put the building up for sale.

A new nonprofit, the Washington Housing Conservancy, apparently is petitioning the City Council for an “emergency” exemption from TOPA in order to purchase a portfolio of apartment properties in Northwest DC, likely including 3003 Van Ness. The organization’s efforts are backed by the $3.75 billion real estate investment trust JBG SMITH, the developer Amazon HQ2 and National Landing. Such a transaction effectively could transfer control of the property from one REIT to another.

Read the entire letter in printer-friendly PDF format

VNSTA submits FOIA to the DC Housing Authority regarding rent payments

The Van Ness South Tenants Association today sent a letter to the DC Housing Authority, requesting data on the number of units at 3003 Van Ness rented using DCHA vouchers and the rents paid to Equity Residential for those units. There have been anecdotal reports that DCHA pays higher than rent-stabilized rates or higher than market rates for apartments, driving up prices and squeezing out other renters.

The letter from VNSTA president Harry Gural begins:

“I and many other residents of 3003 Van Ness support the use of vouchers to subsidize housing for lower income individuals and families. However, the Bowser administration appears to have vastly expanded such programs in our area without providing any information about them.”

”Residents are concerned about the effect these programs on rent-stabilization, which helps make housing affordable for many DC families. The DCHA website shows that it pays up to $2,648 for a one-bedroom with utilities in the Van Ness neighborhood – more than $500 per month more than a typical one-bedroom at 3003 Van Ness. If DCHA pays any amount greater than the rent-stabilized rent it undermines rent stabilization and makes housing less affordable for other residents.”

Read the entire letter in printer-friendly format

VNSTA releases new report on security failures at 3003 Van Ness

The Van Ness South Tenants Association today released a detailed new report on security failures at 3003 Van Ness. The report finds that Equity Residential for years has failed to provide adequate building security, leading to rising levels of crime and nuisance behavior.

Specifically, it finds that:

• Exterior doors and locks frequently are broken.

• Many security and safety lights often don’t work and don’t get replaced for months.

• The security camera system is practically inoperable, with broken cameras, extremely poor coverage and limited recording capacity.

• The key fob system is outmoded and fails to prevent unauthorized entry.

• There is no 24/7 security guard.

• There is poor screening of visitors, with many non-residents freely entering both through the main entrance and through other exterior doors to the outside that are not monitored.

• Equity Residential takes no responsibility for handling even simple problems, and instead simply tells residents to call 911.

The report finds that recent pressure on Equity Residential by the DC Metropolitan Police Department and DC Attorney General Karl Racine has moved the company in the right direction. Recently, Equity has repaired exterior doors and lights, although some already are broken again. It also has announced that it plans to replace the outdated and poorly functioning security camera system, without providing additional details or a timeline. However, the pace of change has been glacial and few details of concrete plans have been shared.

The report on security failures follows VNSTA’s 45-page report on maintenance problems at 3003 Van Ness.

Sept. 14, 2021 — An officer at the main entrance of 3003 Van Ness tells a resident that police and the Secret Service are pursuing an armed individual.

VNSTA asks the Bowser administration to provide a list of rent-stabilized properties

VNSTA president Harry Gural today sent a letter to Lauren Pair, Rent Administrator for the DC Department of Housing and Community Development, requesting release of a list of DC apartment properties with 50 or more apartments that are subject to rent stabilization.

The letter argues that by failing to provide prospective renters with such a list, the Bowser administration deprives them of information that would enable them to choose apartments that in the long run would be less expensive — making housing less affordable in the District of Columbia.

The letter begins:

Dear Ms. Pair,

I am writing to request a list of apartment buildings in the District of Columbia that are subject to rent stabilization, including the owners and operators of those properties.

Prospective renters in the District of Columbia should be able to search for apartments based on whether or not they are subject to rent stabilization. The failure of the city government to provide such information makes rental housing less affordable in the District.

I understand that DHCD was supposed to have created a rent database that would include such basic information, along with much more detailed information about rents. Despite the fact that rent records reside in DHCD’s Rental Accommodations Division archives, the agency failed to deliver such a database. DHCD has published some rent records in PDF format, but this is like providing access to thousands of file boxes in one’s attic. The City Council reassigned responsibility for the database to the Office of the Tenant Advocate, which also has failed to deliver.

Read the entire letter

VNSTA asks DCRA to set firm deadline for analyses of structural problems at 3003 Van Ness

VNSTA president Harry Gural today sent a letter to DCRA Director Ernest Chrappah, requesting that DCRA set a firm deadline for professional analyses of possible structural and other problems in the underground garage at 3003 Van Ness.

Dear Mr. Chrappah,

I am writing to request that DCRA set a firm deadline for Equity Residential to provide structural analyses of the massive leaks, cracked beams, and falling plaster in the underground garage at 3003 Van Ness Street. Equity missed the Feb. 15th deadline previously set by DCRA; apparently no new deadline has been set.

Read the entire letter in print-friendly format.

VNSTA demands that Equity Residential to stop spewing concrete dust into the air

The Van Ness South Tenants Association today sent a letter to Equity Residential, requesting that it stop work on the exterior façade of 3003 Van Ness until the company can implement procedures to control silica dust that video shows is being spewed into the air.

The letter from VNSTA president Harry Gural begins:

“I am writing again to express our concern about silica dust generated by the concrete work on the façade of 3003 Van Ness. Recent video shows clouds of fine concrete dust spewing into the air – clearly without the vacuum dust-mitigation system that in your letter of January 27, 2022 you claimed were in use. That letter, along with our first letter about this issue, are appended below.

Residents have reported such dust on numerous other occasions and have never seen the “dustless shrouds and HEPA vacuum systems” that you promised in your letter. We remember Equity Residential’s similar false assurances in 2013 when it did work on the concrete balconies and ended up being fined by the D.C. Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs for failing to contain the silica dust. At the time, we recorded similar video of clouds of dust spewing into the atmosphere.”

Read the entire letter here.