Tenants of a Chinatown Single Room Occupancy building in San Francisco are suing a landlord for “unlawful intimidation” while another group in Oakland have settled their dispute.
A lawsuit in 2016 filed by tenants at 524 8th Street accused their new landlord, James Kilpatrick, and the property management company, GreenGroup, of trying to force them out in favor of wealthier tenants.
Advancing Justice, Asian Law Caucus says the settlement includes a $1 million dollar payment to 14 tenants along with a permanent injunction protecting the tenants in the future from similar action.
“This resolution is a strike against all landlords seeking to profit without regard for human cost,” said Katherine Chu, Housing Rights Staff Attorney & Program Manager at Advancing Justice – Asian Law Caucus. “It’s important for landlords to know that there are consequences for disregarding housing and tenant protections laws and for everyone to see the real impact discrimination can have on tenants.”
The San Francisco Examiner reports the Asian Law Caucus also this week filed a lawsuit on behalf of tenants at an SRO on 1350 Stockton St in San Francisco alleging the landlord is trying to force them out as well.
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Tenants in late 2016 began being fined $200 for hanging their laundry outside to dry although many have been doing the same things for years without any problems. One tenant complained the property manager threw her laundry into a dumpster.
“Regardless of what they say their intentions are, tenants are currently being hurt by their bad policies and that’s what we really need to fix right now,” Katherine Chu, a housing rights attorney with the Asian Law Caucus, told the Examiner.
The building has been owned by Valstock Ventures, LLC, since 2000. Valstock declined to comment.
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