NYC tenants speak out about rats, roaches, mold in their building
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HARLEM, Manhattan (PIX11) -- Some tenants of a Harlem apartment building are fed up. They say they have been dealing with a slew of issues that their landlord has failed to address.
The building is 19-25 St. Nicholas Ave. Tenants said they are dealing with a rat infestation, mold, roaches, plumbing leaks and holes in the wall, just to name a few issues. They say the landlord is negligent and change is needed now.
Inside Hamdy Ba’s apartment, roaches take cover under cracked and peeling paint. And the ceiling above the shower is completely gone. Ba said the weight of existing like this is taking its toll.
“Very bad, so very bad," Ba said.
Ba said he’s complained to management, but nothing has happened.
“The problem is they fix nothing from the apartment. I go to the office, they say, 'We’ll come fix it,' and they fix nothing," Ba said.
Some tenants from the building gathered Tuesday to speak out against owners Sugar Hill Capital and management Choice New York. They were joined by tenants from other Sugar Hill properties in the area who are also angry and say the landlord has been negligent.
Tenants at 19-25 St. Nicholas Ave. say they have been dealing with issues such as mold, broken elevators and dryers, leaks, and rat infestations.
Monique Sullivan is the president of the Franconia Tenants Association for the building.
"The rats are big like beavers. They came into his apartment and dragged a chicken off the counter and took it behind the wall," Sullivan said.
She said that despite countless complaints, repairs are not done, or if they are, they are inadequate.
“It’s horrific," Sullivan said. "The repairs that they do do, they fall apart instantly.”
Sullivan said the city hasn’t been much help. While the health department did send an inspector recently, she says nothing has changed.
“We call in a complaint today and they close it tomorrow morning," Sullivan said.
Sullivan said that for the past eight months, some tenants have refused to pay rent, hoping it will force management to deal with the problems.
“We should feel safe in our building," Sullivan said. "Nobody should be scared to speak out."
PIX11 News reached out to the city for comment, as well as Choice management. PIX11 also reached out to Sugar Hill Capital Partners.