Residents at unsafe townhomes demand time, money to move

Yahoo

3 days ago

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – The remaining residents at the Sycamore Townhomes in southwest Lansing are pushing the federally-appointed receiver to give them more time and more money to leave the property, deemed unsafe and hazardous.
'The residents need another two months to be able to safely relocate, and they need $3,500 to $5,000 in order to relocate,' says William Lawrence, secretary of Rent Is Too Damn High. 'We're in an economy where if you put down deposit and first month's rent, that's $3,000 right there. And we're talking about application fees. We're talking about the costs of moving – moving expenses. And then the lost wages that people are suffering, having to deal with the situation, child care they may have to get in order to be able to, you know, deal with the housing search, especially right when school's ending.'
The situation Lawrence references dates back months in court proceedings and years in housing safety compliance issues and concerns. City officials of the property in court seeking a receiver.
A receiver is a court-appointed official, usually an attorney, who oversees the restoration of a business.
'Based on the record before the court, including the documentary evidence and testimony presented at the evidentiary hearing, the Court finds that the conditions at Sycamore have been, are currently, and absent judicial intervention will continue to be incompatible with human health and safety,' Judge Jane Beckering of the U.S Federal District Court Western District of Michigan, Southern Division , 16-page decision and order appointing John Polderman as receiver.
Polderman sought approval from the federal court in February to initiate a $15 to $16.5 million improvement plan for the property. In her April 10 order approving Polderman's plan, Bickering concurred that relocating all the remaining residents from the approximately 350-unit property was necessary. She approved offers to residents who were current on rent to assist in relocation costs and $1000 to move, plus security deposits.
Late Thursday afternoon, Polderman told 6 News he has agreed not to pursue court evictions against residents currently on the property until June 20. He's also agreed to forgive 'back rent for anyone who voluntarily vacates.'
Lawrence tells 6 News that residents are happy with concessions from Polderman. He says they are looking forward to further conversations with the receiver in the coming weeks.
Polderman tells 6 News that 'around 50 units' remain occupied, representing between 60 and 70 people facing an imminent deadline to move in days.
Polderman's April filing and update to the court in Grand Rapids, representing the month of March, shows 60 residents owed over $218,000 in unpaid rent obligations and were facing eviction proceedings in Lansing's 54-A District Court. Those records show one tenant owed $18,784.18. The lowest amount was just over $177.
When Polderman took over operations in September, he says he was not given access to all the records from the company.
'We have some – some of those records we have, some of those we don't,' he says. 'So when I took over in September, I received some records, but I would not say they were complete or full records. So, some of the we've had to try to reconcile and it's been difficult.'
While some residents seeking an exit route from the unsafe housing at Sycamore may have provided a security deposit, Polder says he did not receive an account for the security deposits.
Michigan rental laws require landlords to put security deposits in a separate banking account and inform renters of the name and address of the financial institution where the money is being held, the reports.
In press events, activists like Lawrence from , and residents have claimed some the residents' facing eviction had put their monthly rental payments into escrow. Escrow is a legal tool for tenants to pay their rent, but withhold it until a landlord addresses concerns about the property.
Polderman says only two residents have provided evidence that they have an escrow account, and he is considering allowing those residents to use that money as part of their housing relocation funding.
Troubled Lansing housing complex tenants would be removed before renovation, Mayor Schor says
He says about half of the remaining residents are paying rent and are current with payments. That's a requirement under the court order for residents to obtain moving assistance and the $1,000.
'Some, you know, are in good standing and some are not in good standing,' Lawrence from The Rent Is Too Damn High says. 'But we're not here to play good tenant, bad tenant. The fact is, these are all human beings, and they all need the help to be able to relocate.'
Doug Fleming, executive director of the Lansing Housing Commission, tells 6 News his agency had 34 people with Housing Choice Vouchers – formerly known as Section 8 – renting at Sycamore in October. 'All but five have new housing,' he tells 6 News.
He also tells 6 News it was initially difficult to work with the receivership, specifically in obtaining references for residents to use in preparing to move to other locations.
He says his agency stopped paying subsidies on May 1, when the April 29 30-day notice to quit was mailed to residents on the voucher system and other residents.
Fleming says that for the 60 to 70 people remaining in the complex, finding housing is going to be 'extremely difficult.' The reason? A housing shortage in the city and region.
This lack of housing and difficulty in finding a place to move to is fueled by the urgency to move within the 30 days required in the notice letter from Polderman, says Lawrence, the advocate.
'So, absolutely, that was not enough–not enough notice,' says Lawrence. 'There's hearsay, there's this place may have to get shut down. There's obviously, if you look around and look out here, you can see that it hasn't been a good situation. And so people have wondered what's going to be happening. But moving is expensive. People have their families out here. People have their friends and neighbors out here. And so some people haven't wanted to leave, and other people haven't had the means to be able to leave.'
Lawrence, whose organization has been involved in 'a deep way for the last three weeks,' says there has been a communications failure by the receiver and particularly the city.
'Frankly, it should have been the city that put in place a comprehensive relocation, you know, case management plan months ago,' he says. 'If the city knew that this was going to be happening. There should have been an organized plan to with all the tenants, figure out who had which needs in which situations and prevent people from falling through the cracks. That was utterly failed. Whoever was supposed to take responsibility for that did not do so. And that's why we're here in the 11th hour trying to pick up the pieces and get people that support they deserve.'
Scott Bean, spokesman for the city of Lansing, sent this statement to 6 News responding to the criticisms.
City officials have been actively involved and onsite for the past four years. When the receiver was first appointed in September 2024, representatives from Code Enforcement, HRCS, the Mayor's Office, Refugee Development Center, and the Lansing Housing Commission knocked on all doors with the Receiver over the course of 8 days in an attempt to reach everyone there and provide information and resources.Since then, city officials have remained involved and on-site daily monitoring ongoing serious building conditions and health hazards while also engaging with residents. The Receiver has informed the city of its plans to invest up to $16 million to renovate this complex and bring back online nearly 340 rental units. The Receiver is required to provide notice to residents under the court order. We are encouraged that the Receiver is going to transform this complex and make it safe for hundreds of families once again.Polderman, the receiver, says he thinks there has been appropriate communication throughout the process.
Lansing City Spokesman Scott Bean, email May 29
'The management company posted notices on everyone's door. There's been multiple news stories about the situation at Sycamore. We've had 24-hour security that's on site at all times over the past month. We did have someone in the office a few hours as well,' Polderman tells 6 News. 'So, I do believe that there has been communication. There's been a phone number. There's been an email for residents to call.'
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