Renters and Tenant Union present lease violations to landlord amid eviction threats

Courtesy KC Tenants

On day 46 of their rent strike, the Quality Hill Towers Tenant Union, in coordination with the Independence Towers Tenant Union, held an emergency strike picket. This action follows a Zoom meeting with the Federal Housing Finance Agency in which staff informed residents that despite their authority over Fannie Mae, the mortgage financier for the property, there was nothing they could do to meet their demands for more habitable living. 

Residents also survived a week of dangerous conditions, including flooding, extreme heat, and no heating in units. 

On Friday, striking tenants also received a letter from the landlord, Sentinel Real Estate Corporation, stating that they have violated their leases and further action will be taken if they do not pay rent by Monday, Nov. 18. 

At the picket, tenants marched to the leasing office to deliver their own lease violations to Sentinel. These included failure to maintain structural integrity, plumbing, and electrical systems, persistent pest infestations and mold, lack of timely repairs and clean common areas, retaliation against tenants, including harassment and refusal to renew leases, and failure to provide proper notice before entering units.

On Saturday, the union sent a response to Steven Nieglos, vice president of Sentinel, inviting him to a meeting to discuss next steps: 

“Yesterday’s letter implies a threat of legal action against tenants who do not pay by November 18. Please note that eviction filings will only escalate this strike. It seems in your interest and ours to stay out of court and negotiate a solution. The tenants do not plan to respond to the letters individually. We would like to schedule time for a meeting between Sentinel decision makers and the union’s bargaining team to work out an agreement that can de-escalate the strike and meet the tenants’ needs.”

Sentinel said the concerns raised by tenants are “based on misrepresentations or misunderstandings.”

They also said that most issues reported are the result of normal wear and tear, while others stem from isolated incidents of vandalism.

“For pest control efforts to be effective, all tenants need to participate in helping mitigate the problem,” they added. “There remains a meaningful number of apartments with significant housekeeping issues that are allowing infestations to thrive, grow, and spread to other units, even as we exterminate the rest of the property.”

They also said their staff has never harassed or intimidated residents. 

Hell Woods has rented at Quality Hill for two years and said they don’t want to be at risk of being priced out of their home.

“I’ve had roaches since day one, and they still, they don’t take it seriously,” Woods said. “This might sound silly to some people, but I’m being a hundred percent serious about this. The bug infestation is traumatic. I have nightmares about it. I have panic attacks about it.”

Courtesy KC Tenants

They also expressed fear of one of their neighbors dying in 10 years due to asbestos exposure.

The ceiling in their building’s common area is split open and black water has been pouring down for a week, “it’s always one thing after another.”

“The FHFA and Fannie Mae, the two people who actually have the power to foreclose on them … blowing us off?” Woods said. “The government, who gave them the money to purchase the property, then they keep the property in slum conditions and evict us all by hiking up rent like, and then the government won’t do anything about that. They won’t attach any strings, they won’t put any ifs, ands or buts, it’s like… What?”

Sentinel said it “prioritizes responsible financial management and strives to provide stable, high-quality housing for all residents.”

It clarified details of its recent refinancing of Quality Hill Towers and addressed its purpose and impact on the property.

“The $9 million refinancing we completed through Fannie Mae was to pay off the existing acquisition mortgage, and the new loan did not include any additional funds for property improvements,” they said.

“Sentinel remains committed to addressing the issues raised and fostering a welcoming environment for everyone,” they added. “This commitment includes collecting back rent due, which will help fund necessary improvements to the property. We value our role in the community and are open to discussions with tenants to help them get back on track and understand that rent delinquency cannot only lead to fees and possible eviction but also slow progress toward addressing their concerns.”

Dani Powers, another resident at Quality Hill, said she lived with a hole in her ceiling for over a year due to leaking pipes, the pipes were temporarily fixed, but not replaced, so leaking still occurs.

“Roaches are everywhere and they just don’t exterminate,” Powers said. “They don’t really care about getting rid of them, and then they want to blame us about it, like, call us dirty, when it’s really the roaches they won’t get rid of, that’s what I’m dealing with right now. It took me forever to get anything done in my apartment.”

The maintenance crew will turn the heat off to work on the boiler and won’t turn it back on until days later, she added.

“Nine to nine, they turned it off again after it was 115 degrees, blowing for a week.”

Powers is almost at the end of her lease but feels compelled to stay because she cares about her neighbors.

“There’s a lot of things wrong with the renting market in this country,” she explained. “Landlords get to keep doing what they’re doing, charging higher and higher rents while keeping the conditions the same. So that’s what keeps me here. We need to change things for people. There’s a lot of things we can get done for people, and we just have to take our collective action and our collective power to do that.”

The union’s next move is to involve Mayor Quinton Lucas and Congressman Emanuel Cleaver in their efforts for change. They also plan to file a large number of reports to the Healthy Homes Department citing current conditions of the buildings.

Cleaver previously showed support to the tenant union when he toured Independence Towers, another complex plagued by squalid conditions and an unresponsive landlord, Trigild.

“Maybe [my] motivation is the imagination of a safe and affordable home being possible with the power that we have as a group,” Woods said. “I think my motivation is having that dream that I can be safe and I can relax and be happy with where I’m at.”