The Place for Jersey City News
Log In / Register
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
Jersey City Times
  • News
  • Food and Fun
    • Food And Drink
    • Performing Arts
    • Visual Arts
    • Other Fun Stuff
  • Education
  • Business
  • Neighborhoods
    • Downtown
      • News
      • Guide
    • Heights
      • News
      • Guide
    • Journal Square
      • News
      • Guide
    • Bergen Lafayette
      • News
      • Guide
    • Greenville
      • News
      • Guide
    • Westside
      • News
      • Guide
  • Opinion
  • Columns
    • Eye Level
    • Mamarama
  • Obituaries
  • Event Calendar
  • Support our Mission
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
“Landlord is Freezing out Tenants for Christmas”

“Landlord is Freezing out Tenants for Christmas”

Aaron Morrill
December 23, 2021/in header, Latest News, News, Westside
by Aaron Morrill

Updated at 7:10 pm on December 4, 2021

The community organizing group Jersey City Together and the Northern New Jersey Democratic Socialists of America are condemning the owner of a West Side  building for failing to provide heat and repairs to its tenants.

According to JCT and DSA, the owner of  96 Duncan Avenue has subjected the tenants to “months of no heat and intimidation tactics.” The landlord, writes the two groups, “has failed to make needed repairs (water damage, apartments with no working refrigerators, windows boarded up, and more) and recently dismissed the building’s superintendent.”

Last summer, the rent controlled building was bought in Angela Morello Lange (operating as London Legacy LLC). Tenants were sent a letter encouraging them to give up their tenancy voluntarily in exchange for various incentives.

City inspectors from Jersey City’s Quality of Life Taskforce have, according to the groups, issued citations to the landlord because of how long they have been without heat. These citations carry the potential of $2,000 per day in fines. On December 18, the City of Jersey City offered tenants temporary housing at local hotels.

Betty Gill, a tenant at 96 Duncan

Betty Gill, a tenant at 96 Duncan Ave.

Said Betty Gill, a tenant at 96 Duncan for 30 years, “The heat in our apartments hasn’t been working for months. As tenants, we’ve done everything we could to resolve this. We tried to offer constructive solutions – bringing in contractors to suggest how the issue could be addressed. We’ve taken them to court. The city has issued violations. Still, the landlord doesn’t seem to care. Now, my neighbors and I are stuck at a hotel for Christmas. This has to stop. Fix the heat, let us go home, and no more intimidation tactics.”

Diane Maxon, a leader with Jersey City Together’s Strategy & Housing Teams & a member of the Church of St. Paul & Incarnation also located on Duncan Ave, added “We’ve been fighting against abusive landlord tactics like these for years. Freezing tenants out is literally illegal. If she had assaulted one of these tenants on the street, she’d be in jail now.  Clearly being fined is not enough punishment for this kind of cruelty. The city and the courts should be using every power they have available to get the heat turned on, including making the repairs and sending the bill to the landlord.”

Joel Brooks, a member of the Northern New Jersey Democratic Socialists of America and a former city council candidate for Ward B, said, “Temporary housing for these tenants in the midst of increasing COVID-19 infections is not a long-term solution: they deserve to be in their homes, with heat on, to enjoy the upcoming holidays.”

Morello Lange told The Jersey City Times that they only learned of the boiler problems when they turned it on for the first time at the beginning of November. She said the boiler had passed inspection when they bought the building this summer. “We’ve never ignored the issues. We’re working diligently to correct the situation…we’ve had numerous contractors there… there are all the delays due to Covid and supply chain issues…we’re cooperating with the Jersey City Authorities.”  She continued. “We have offered remedies to the tenants.” Asked if those remedies included being bought out or whether they had tried to intimidate tenants into leaving, she declined to comment on the advice of council.

The Waterfront Project is representing several tenants in a lawsuit.

Photos courtesy of Joel Brooks
Tags: Jersey City Real Estate and Development
Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
You might also like
Mystery of Boarded up Grove Street Retail Spaces Solved
Loew's Theater Jersey City Changes to Historic Loew’s Theater Tentatively Approved Despite Harsh Criticism
Governor Phil Murphy New Protections for Tenants: What You Need to Know
Jersey City Skyline Op Ed: City’s Affordable Housing Policies Aren’t Nearly Enough
Judge's Gavel Court Throws Out City’s Affordable Housing Ordinance
Board Hands Peter Mocco a Win at City Council’s Expense
272 Ogden Ave. Jersey City Editorial: Residents Deserve Answers on the Mayor’s New Home Purchase
Abandoned couch on street Courts Begin To Hear Long-Stalled Eviction Cases
Jersey City, US
10:46 am, July 5, 2022
83°F
clear sky
Wind: 14 mph
Pressure: 1018 mb

Latest Articles

Christopher Columbus Drive Jersey City
July 04, 2022 /

Downtown Streets Gridlocked by Fireworks Traffic

327 Ege Ave Jersey City
July 04, 2022 /

Report: Fireworks Suspected in West Side House Fire

Forget the Whale
July 02, 2022 /

Rogue Waves July: Six Concert Picks in Jersey City

Raisa Nosova "Uprooted"
July 01, 2022 /

Muralist Raisa Nosova Raises a Distress call for Ukraine

Dickinson High School Jersey City 16x9
July 01, 2022 /

Former Dickinson High School Teacher Pleads Guilty to Sexual Assault

CONTACT US

    ADS/INFO

    For information on advertising opportunities, please contact - ads@jcitytimes.com

    For information on writing opportunities, please contact - info@jcitytimes.com

    Download our media kit here

    ABOUT US

    About Jersey City Times

    Contact Jersey City Times

    Social

    Archives

    • July 2022
    • June 2022
    • May 2022
    • April 2022
    • March 2022
    • February 2022
    • January 2022
    • December 2021
    • November 2021
    • October 2021
    • September 2021
    • August 2021
    • July 2021
    • June 2021
    • May 2021
    • April 2021
    • March 2021
    • February 2021
    • January 2021
    • December 2020
    • November 2020
    • October 2020
    • September 2020
    • August 2020
    • July 2020
    • June 2020
    • May 2020
    • April 2020
    • March 2020
    • February 2020
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • November 2019
    • October 2019
    Copyright © 2020 JCityTimes.com. All Rights Reserved - powered by Enfold WordPress Theme
    Couple Faces Lengthy Sentences in Violent November Crime Spree Jersey City Police Car City Hall Mum as Shots Fired Downtown Continue Rash of Gunfire in Jersey Ci...
    Scroll to top