The Case of the Missing Cabbages

There were thousands of them, all over Stuyvesant Town. Cabbages being planted either for their aesthetic value or for food for the Speyers when the economy really tanks and even the multi-millionaires will have to wait on the soup line.

A couple of weeks ago, Stuy Town workers were planting a nice cabbage patch covering the entire island area picture above, in front of the Community Center. One week they were there--all new plantings--and the next week they were gone!!!

Here today, gone tomorrow. But why?

There is no reasonable explanation for planting something one week and removing the plantings the next. Work hours, time, money, sweat wasted.

So, some "planner" screwed up, or else a new fact emerged about the cabbage patches. Perhaps it was found out that they are an excellent breeding ground and food source for vermin--like rats and mice. (I don't think we have any bunnies hopping around here in Stuy Town.)

There are still cabbage patches all around Stuy Town, but some have mysteriously disappeared after being newly planted. The people have a right to know why! At least for a good laugh at management and confirmation that these chumps have little idea what they are doing.

Tenants Association Problems

The Tenants Association message board has been down for maintenance (supposedly, that's the reason) for what seems three weeks. Initially there were promises of it being offline just for several days, but then the end day kept being progressively pushed back when the expectation never met the reality. It's still down, as of today.

I know some basics about message boards, but at this point I've no idea what is keeping that board offline for so long. It could very well be that one person is handling it all and doesn't have much time to spare to work on it. Or something else may be up.

Whatever the situation, the Tenants Association has been recently catching some flack from a small group of people over its perceived inactivity in the face of numerous concerns of the people who live in Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village. Knowing what I know about such matters, it is my educated guess that the persons doing the work at the Association are limited in their time to handle all the matters that are either placed before them or that they can see for themselves. Perhaps the Association needs something as simple as volunteers, so that the gears can move more quickly and expeditiously.

There are, however, some genuine communication and transparency problems that should be addressed. Though I belong to the Association, I don't have a grasp of how decisions in the organization are made and who makes them. When the Tenants Association has a meeting, it is usually with politicians, who listen and address tenants concerns. And nothing gets done. What the Tenants Association should have are periodic meetings (certainly once every three or four months) for just the tenants, in which problems are brought up and potential solutions and strategies discussed and some hopefully set in motion.

The idea of tenants picketing Stuy Town's leasing office is a good one, but there are no voices in a tenants group situation, or leaders, who can chart a course for something like that without there being some get-together of tenants as I've suggested above.

Some of the problems with the TA have to do with the transitory nature of a good number of tenants in Stuy Town and Peter Cooper. NYU students, for instance, could care less about what happens here in five years or in one year. I even wonder how many market rate tenants are sincere about living in this complex for its duration, or if they have a sense that they may be transitory, too, given how much they are at the mercy of the landlord regarding their rents.

TA meetings are chiefly attended by seniors, which is unfortunate. Not because these are seniors (seniors can give Tishman Speyer more fight and hell than the youngesters can), but because we need everyone at those meetings who can possibly make it. Perhaps many people don't come because they have surrendered to the feeling that nothing can be done and that no positive change can occur. Which is also unfortunate. Because I do believe that with numbers and with planning we can accomplish much to make Stuy Town and Peter Cooper a better community than it currently is and where Tishman Speyer wants to take it.

Tishman Speyer to Hit ST/PCV with Huge MCI for Plantings

No, I haven't heard anything official, but it is a certainty that Tishman Speyer will ask for a huge MCI for the plantings the company has been doing (and in many cases redoing) all year. This massive project involved at least 200,000 plants, 10,000 trees and more than 3,000 shrubs, and it is still continuing, with newer plants, trees and shrubs either replacing earlier plantings (some of which have died) or filling in areas that lack such greenery. According to MCI law, TS cannot ask for such a MCI unless it is combined with considerable repaving work--and, of course, we know that's been happening all summer, and now fall, long. While a MCI cannot raise rents of rent-stabilized tenants more by 6% per year, it can, if large enough, be spread over several years. So RS Stuy Town/Peter Cooper residents can look forward to an 18% increase in their rent, if this MCI is allowed to happen. Market-rate tenants are not safe from an increase, either, as surely Tishman Speyer will raise the rent on market-raters, justifying such an increase by the "renovations" it has done to the complex. Tishman Speyer will also use tales of property owner woe in these troubling economic times to try to rationalize even further that the huge MCI increase needs to happen to save their investment (actually, the investment of other people's money, but that's another issue).

The Tenants Association and tenants need to coalesce and fight this MCI request when it happens. These plantings were not necessary. In many cases, they were wrongly done and money was wasted (and still is) trying to correct mistakes. In other cases, older groundskeeping was purposefully let go to waste, so that an "improvement" would be mandated. (Case in point: the Oval area, which was beautiful when Met Life left, but deteriorated badly under TS management.) In many areas, pavings of roads and pathways also were not necessary, or if they were, they followed fairly recent previous pavings that were sloppily or inadequately done. Tenants should not have to pay for the bad work done by firms hired by the landlord.

The joke is that not long ago previous landlord Met Life decided to cut down trees in order to "open up the oval for a more expansive view." You can read about this project here. So continues the bizarre planning at Stuy Town/Peter Cooper. One project accomplishes one thing, the next project overrides that project, then a new project destroys that project, and on and on it goes. The only thing that is a constant is that the tenants suffer.

Democrats to Control State Senate - What We Must Do

A face you can trust? State Senator Tom Duane (D).
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The election is over. Next year the Democrats will control the State Senate. According to the frequent pronouncements from State Senator Tom Duane (who at tenant meetings would repeatedly raise his index finger--1--to state what was needed for Dem control of the Senate and salvation), this will mean that pro-tenant legislation will get passed and that we will have a tenant friendly Senate representing us. Stuy Town Reporter will try to stay positive for now, and take Duane and other Democrats at their word. But in order for them to be reminded of their promises, it's good to call or e-mail them every once in a while, beginning with now.

This is what we have been promised:

1) The repeal the Urstadt Law (which would place rent decisions back in the hands of the city, rather than the state)
2) A reversal of vacancy decontrol laws
3) The abolishment of MCIs that result in perpetual rent increases

In a Stuy Town/Peter Cooper Village tenants' meeting on October 19, this was part of the exchange between tenants and Duane and Assemblyman Brian Kavanagh:

Speaker #1: Senator Duane, how quickly will we see a repeal of the Urstadt Act?

Senator Duane: If Democrats succeed in winning the State Senate, it should happen in the first term.

Speaker #2: The law regarding MCIs (Major Capital Improvements) is flawed. There is a reverse incentive for doing things economically, because the more you spend on a project the more you can charge back to tenants. You could let a property run down completely and get an MCI to improve it and benefit from it. Also, regarding the rent exceeding $2,000 with a household income of $175,000; there have been contradictions. Please explain.

Duane: Up until now it has been slow going working with the DHCR [the Division of Housing and Community Renewal, which handles MCIs] but the Democratic Minority has been working with Senate Majority members on trying to reform the regulations on MCIs. Let me say that with Democrats in the majority, we would have more influence with the Governor’s agencies because the Majority would be controlling their budgets.

Assemblyman Kavanagh: The household income has to be $175,000 for two consecutive years. With a strong Democratic Majority in the Senate, we expect to be able to change that. The cut off rent would be increased and the household income would be raised to around $325,000. There would also be a very strong bill to change MCIs from permanent to temporary.

These are the contact e-mails:

duane@senate.state.ny.us
KavanaghB@ assembly.state.ny.us

Getting pro-tenant legislation passed is imperative. Otherwise, the middle-class will be completely driven out of the city (certainly Manhattan), neighborhoods will disappear, and all we will be left with are sliver condos dotted on the ground floors with Starbucks, banks, and mega drug stores. Don't let this happen to our city!

Next year it will be imperative to also get rid of Mayor Bloomberg. Not only did the Mayor spit with complete disregard on democracy (along with 29 city council members), but he is pals with real estate developers, including Jerry and Rob Speyer, who are running Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village (into the ground). In fact, the New York real estate website, THE REAL DEAL, reported that Jerry Speyer is a "frequent advisor to Mayor Michael Bloomberg." No wonder Bloomberg took a drop-dead Stuy Town/Peter Cooper hands-off approach to the sale of this complex. As long as Bloomberg is in office, we will continue to be screwed as middle-class tenants. Get this lying and manipulative Boston-born and bred bum out of office!

Tishman Speyer Gives Up on ST/PCV -- Will Start Knocking Down Buildings Next Week

Finding out that another city code violation fiasco is looming (ST/PCV gas lines not in accordance with city regulations), Jerry and Rob Speyer of Tishman Speyer held an emergency meeting on Sunday in Mayor Bloomberg's weekend hideaway in the Bahamas with the New York City mayor, and came to the decision that it's just not worth it anymore to keep Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village running, as is, for current tenants.

Bloomberg has called for an emergency session of the CCC (Corrupt City Council) this Friday, and the immediate passage of eminent domain to get rid of tenants is assured. Only Peter Cooper Village resident Councilman Dan Garodnick is expected to vote no. The first demolition of what is now known as Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village could come as early as next week, paving the way for a brand-new mega housing complex, the likes of which has not been seen anywhere in the world.

As everyone knows when Tishman Speyer purchased Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village in 2006 for 5.4 billion dollars, it was the land property that was of most value, not the buildings on the property. The far-thinking Tishman Speyer already has plans for the mega complex, to be named Speyer City. "These plans were drawn up with others, such as condo conversion, way back when we were considering buying the property," remarked George Hatzmann, Tishman Speyer's managing director of ST/PCV. "Now, in this emergency, we've taken these plans out of the mothballs, so to speak, and are going to proceed to implement them in a hasty and disorganized, but ultimately beneficial to us, manner."

When finished, Speyer City will have 100 massive glass towers, each shooting 70 stories into the sky. The borders of Speyer City will contain exclusive boutiques, managed by female NY students and paid for by their parents, and a Starbucks and Duane Reade on each corner. Currently, there are over 25,000 residents of ST/PCV. Speyer City is designed to have 150,000 tenants, making it the most populous housing complex in the world--and undoubtedly the most luxurious.

"We really have to advance expeditiously on this," added Hatzmann, "just in case the election gives the state senate a tenant friendly majority next year and the mayor doesn't get re-elected to his illegal third term."

Buildings along the perimeters of Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village will be the first to be torn down. As for the central area, "We are just going to blow up everything in the middle and get rid of it in one fell swoop," Hatzmann said. Vito's Construction Company, NJ, and Salvatore's Demo, Bay Ridge, will handle the demolishing, and 500 non-documented Mexican workers will do the sweeping.

What about Stuyvesant Town's renowned fountain that has been such focal point of interest and is always featured in ads for prospective market rate renters?

"We will build an even more spectacular fountain with the generous donation of the Tisch family," replies Hatzmann. The Tisches already have a fountain named after them in Washington Square Park and this one will be called Tisch Two, or, affectionately, "TT."

The current Oval area, to be renamed Oval Speyer, will also house spectacular entertainment facilities, including a 5,000 seat IMAX theater (Speyer Theatre) and a mini-circus, Le Cirque Robert, featuring year-round performances by the clown ensemble, Bozo's Billions. Access to Oval Speyer will be on a membership basis ($2,500 initiation fee/$200 per month membership fee).

Mayor Bloomberg commented to Daily News Real Estate brown-nose reporter Jason Sheftell on the forthcoming mega complex and the removal of current tenants.

"This will be a massive evacuation of the tenants," Bloomberg related to Sheftell,"who will be warehoused in the facilities of an abandoned mental asylum, Happy Pilgrim Hospital, in Staten Island until we can find proper housing for them. Current market rate tenants will get preference in Speyer City once it's finished, but of course their rents are expected to more than double, considering the true luxury living that will be put in place here."

What about the rent-stabilized tenants, who currently constitute 65% of the population of ST/PCV? "If they can't afford Manhattan, then they really have no business here," Bloomberg stated. "The city will be building affordable housing somewhere in the far reaches of Brooklyn and Queens, and I'm sure we can accommodate all rent-stabilized tenants there."

Current tenants will be driven over to the Staten Island facility, courtesy Stuyvesant Town's many fast-driving golf carts. Each tenant will be allowed one carry-on baggage per person. The evacuation process, which will run day and night, is expected to take two weeks. Any kids lost along the way are not going to be the city's problem or concern. "Just make sure you hold onto them," the Mayor remarked. "The city can't be responsible for your negligence."

In the event that the evacuation will take longer than two weeks, Stuyvesant Town's four dumpsters will be called in for extra duty, and the remaining residents thrown in and hauled away. In keeping with current policy, dumpster use will occur between 2:30AM and 4:30AM.

And what of the complex's many seniors, for whom such a move can prove particularly traumatic, if not fatal? "Well," opined Mayor Bloomberg, his face souring, according to Sheftell, "you have to die some time, so it may as well be now."

Dogs will not be allowed in the Staten Island facility. ("It's going to be too packed with humans to allow for animals," stated Hatzmann. "And, besides, we're tired of amateur photographers taking pictures of dogs and what dogs do naturally.") So under the city's new "Go Green and Waste Not Policy" dogs will be given over to restaurants in Chinatown where they can be cooked and served as "Lux Peking Duck." In an odd demonstration of Tishman Speyer's by-now legendary bizarre planning, there will be a dog run set up near the former Staten Island mental asylum, despite the absence of dogs.

All is not doom and gloom for ST/PCV residents, however. "Each tenant will get a plant of their choice to take with them to the Staten Island facility, " said Hatzmann. "Treated and watered well, these will be nice momentos for tenants to have of the time they spent with us in Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village."

When Rob Speyer was asked if he had any parting words to tenants, a beaming Speyer said:

"Yes--so long, suckers!"

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Below: Staten Island's abandoned mental ward, Happy Pilgrim Hospital, will be quickly restored to its former beauty in time for the first arrival of Stuy Town and Peter Cooper tenants. Yes, residents, I know what you are saying to yourselves: "Peace and quiet at last!"

Gas Troubles

Three buildings in Stuyvesant Town--522, 524 and 526 20th Street--have been without gas since last Monday, October 20th. It appears that a tenant in one of the buildings alerted Stuyvesant Town to a smell of gas hanging in the air. The Fire Department arrived and confirmed that there was gas leak somewhere, which caused the shutdown of gas in all three buildings. Teams of contract plumbers, each escorted by a security guard and a locksmith, had to enter all apartments to begin a phase of installation of exterior shut-off values to the kitchen gas pipes and the removal of existing gas connections to residents' stoves. If a door to a resident's apartment was locked by a top, non-Stuy Town lock, the lock was broken to allow the gas team to enter.

Based on statements from the gas teams, residents were hopeful that the problems would be fixed by Wednesday, but that turned out to be, no surprise, a false hope. As of the following Monday night, October 27th, the work doesn't appear to be any closer to being finished, though landlord Tishman Speyer has informed tenants through the screen intercom system that "the first phase of work has passed testing."

With no gas, residents have no way to cook food or boil water, and must resort to a microwave, if they have one, to heat food. In the Election Room near 1st Ave, Tishman Speyer has been providing free dinner and breakfast for residents of the affected buildings, catered by Bruno's Deli, but dispensed with the breakfast by the end of the week.* At dinner time, the better food is quickly gone, leading residents to hustle over as soon as chow time begins (6PM) in hopes of getting a full meal. Last week sodas and canned beverage teas were provided, as well as bottled water, but today, Monday, only water was available.

No gas also means that residents of the affected buildings have no way of drying laundry in their buildings.

Obviously, the patience of residents is rapidly ebbing away.

Tishman Speyer's gas troubles may be far more impacting than the trouble at these three buildings. According to a quote on the Lux Living website, one of the plumbers informed a tenant that the gas line connections to apartments in the tenant's building were "illegal." This instantly brings to mind Tishman Speyer's recent pressurized wall fiasco. If the gas line connections to all apartments in Stuy Town and Peter Cooper Village are illegal, then the complex may well see a massive plumbing project that will make the pressurized wall problems seem trivial by comparison.

* Update: Tuesday, Oct. 28th. Residents were informed after 9AM via the screen intercom that breakfast was being served today, Tuesday, from 7AM to 9AM. In reality-- "had been served." Sorry if you missed it, folks.

No More Free Electricity

As we wrote here in August, and suspected, Tishman Speyer will begin installing meters inside Stuyvesant Town and Peter Copper Village apartments, and have residents pay for their own electricity. An article in today's NY Post gave some details: "The metered system is expected to be announced to the complex's 19,000 residents in the next few days. It will be rolled out as part of a larger plan to reduce overall energy usage by 20 percent over the next three years."

Though the article doesn't mention it, there may be a possibility that Tishman Speyer will have to slightly lower rents by law, as this new metered system will take away a previous free offering. If this is so, there's a chance that residents who conserve energy may actually wind up paying a bit less rent each month, even with the additional electrical charge. But as of now, it is unclear whether a rent reduction will occur, and if it does, what that reduction will be. Rent stabilized residents who had a choice of installing air-conditioning must be particularly peeved, as when they made that choice (which raised their rent) they factored in free electricity.

While Stuy Town Reporter is not adverse to energy saving, it has to be noted that Tishman Speyer is most definitely "going green" (in more ways than one!) to put in place cost-saving elements in running this complex, even at the expense of its tenants. The recently installed Mac-Gray washing machines and dryers are a part of this greening of ST/PCV.

Oval Lounge Attack Confirmed

Today's Town & Village newspaper confirmed that there was, indeed, a violent incident at the exclusive party for brokers held at the Oval Lounge last week, October 16th. Quoting a police source: "It was a short and sweet arrest. One guy hit the other guy on the side of the head with a bottle." The victim suffered injuries to the left side of his head.

Of interest, when the possibility of violence at the Lounge was brought up on the Tenants' message board, with regard to alcohol being served (which it can be if a catered event has a server with a liquor license), a naysayer scoffed at the apprehension.

Well, it happened. Add another black mark to the Tishman Speyer ledger. An embarrassment for the company, to be sure.

Of course, should the Oval Lounge prove the attendance failure it currently is, Tishman Speyer may well want to hold Fight Clubs inside that can be safely viewed outside through the Lounge's glass windows. I'd go and see that!