A Billingsley Terrace tenant speaks alongside Council Member Sanchez during the announcement of the lawsuit against the landlords of 1915 Billingsley Terrace on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024.
Photo Gerardo Romo/NYC Council Media Unit
Following the partial collapse of a Morris Heights building in December that displaced more than 100 residents, the building’s tenants, along with help from the Legal Aid Society, have filed a lawsuit against the landlords of the property to repair the building and allow displaced tenants to return to their homes.
The announcement of the lawsuit, which was filed against landlords David Kleiner, Yonah Roth, Mo Doe, 1915 Realty LLC, the NYC Department of Buildings (DOB) and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, was made Monday morning at 1915 Billingsley Terrace.
Additionally, the landlords of 1915 Billingsley Terrace have also allegedly engaged in illegal behavior, harassing and endangering tenants, with their actions including forcing tenants to sign agreements that their apartments were fully repaired in exchange for receiving keys to their apartment units, despite the poor conditions, along with failing to provide adequate security for the building.
The tenants also reported that looters had gained access to their residential units and burglarized their homes, robbing them of their personal belongings following the collapse, despite the vacated units allegedly having been secured by one of the landlords.
Since the collapse, many of the displaced tenants have been living in homeless shelters for nearly two…
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