Bed-Stuy Tenant Kicked Out For Speaking Up For Neighbors, He Says

BED-STUY, BROOKLYN — When a lease renewal offer landed in Jacob Gordon's inbox earlier this summer, he quickly realized it was more than a chance to sign onto another year in the Bainbridge Street apartment he's called home for eight years.

It was an opportunity to ask his less-than-responsive landlord a question that had been swirling in the neighborhood for years — when would they fix the dilapidated building they owned across the street?

"[I thought], I can’t sign this without asking if there is any progress over at Fulton Street," said Gordon, who was among a group of neighbors who wrote a letter to landlords about the Fulton Street building last year following two shootings on the block.

Gordon said he wasn't expecting much to come of his inquiry given the fact that the original letter, plus meetings with elected officials and tenants' associations, had proven to bring little change to the run-down housing complex, which neighbors say is a hotspot for violence.

But Gordon certainly didn't expect what happened next.

Within a few days, the landlord, Bushburg Properties, retracted his lease renewal altogether.

"Due to your rejection of our most recent lease renewal offer, we are no longer offering you a renewal on your lease," Bushburg wrote in a letter. "...Please be sure to complete your move-out inspection and return your keys."

The response — which came despite Gordon sending his signed lease to Bushburg in two separate emails — has kicked off a fight not only to keep Gordon in his apartment, but rally for the neighbors he was originally trying to help.

So far, six neighbors, including the tenant association president of his block, have written to Bushburg in support of Gordon's quest for answers.

"I didn’t imagine they would respond so aggressively to someone asking them about their management of this building," Gordon said. "It only sort of suggests they have more to conceal here than we even know."

The housing complex Gordon had asked about is a four-building development, once known as Fulton Park Plaza, that Bushburg took over in 2015. It sits across from the Chauncey Street entrance to his building, which is in the former Holy Rosary school.

The complex, which has addresses on both Chauncey and Fulton streets, has dealt with security problems, garbage pile-ups and other quality of life issues as far back as 20 years, according to reports. Those conditions are particularly frustrating given how well Bushburg seems to maintain its luxury property, just steps away, where Gordon lives, he said.

The conditions of the Fulton building most recently came to a head after a series of shootings on the block last fall.

The complex, where one of the shooting victims lived, is known as a hub for gang activity and other violence given little-to-no security at its multiple entrances, neighbors say.

But despite local fundraising initiatives, outreach to Fulton tenants from nonprofits and meetings with elected officials that stemmed from the shootings, there has been little change to the conditions.

"This is part of the long tail of the response to that incident," Gordon said, referring to one of the shootings. "It sent a lot of productive things in motion, but one thing that has not been productive was Bushburg Properties' response to this."

The 1711 Fulton St. building has been the source of more than 1,140 complaints to 311 in the last two years and had 93 open violations with the city as of Thursday, according to Housing Preservation and Development and 311 data.

Bushburg did not respond to a request for comment from Patch.

Sabrina Brockman, a neighbor working with the Fulton tenants, said promises for extra security and maintenance that stemmed from meetings last year have not come to fruition. Tenants at the building, fearful of retaliation and overwhelmed, have been struggling with what to do next, she said.

"You have a situation where the need for tenants to be organized to fight for their rights is so unfair," Brockman said. "When things get this bad, they aren’t in the position to tick all of the boxes that need to be ticked."

That struggle is part of the reason Gordon and Brockman said the role of neighbors has become so important. Especially in gentrifying neighborhoods, that isn't always the case, Gordon said.

"This is the kind of thing that longtime residents fear about gentrification — as the neighborhood gets more valuable, people get treated like they’re less valuable," he said. "I want a neighborhood where people are looking out for each other."

As far as his own fight, Gordon said he plans to stay in his apartment while he investigates legal options. His lease ended Aug. 31.

Bushburg has so far ignored his questions about the 90-day notice required by law for a lease non-renewal and has refused his rent payments both electronically and in-person, he said.

Though as of Thursday they hadn't served him formally, the landlord has referred him to their lawyers and said they plan to start holdover proceedings.

"I will pay my rent even if they won’t accept it and I will continue with this," Gordon said. "This is an opportunity both to retain my home and to create some visibility and accountability out of what I think is essentially tenant harassment and intimidation. This is beyond just this particular situation."