Francis Roberts has endured a renter's worst nightmare: unidentifiable green liquid seeping into his apartment, loud music playing all day everyday, and two portable toilets placed directly outside his bedroom window. All of this tumult, for what? To raise the cost of rent on a rent-stabilized apartment, according to the elderly NYC resident.
Sign now to demand that the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development correct the violations that are making Mr. Roberts' home unlivable!
Roberts has lived in his apartment in Crown Heights for over 20 years. He calls this apartment complex and this neighborhood home, and has no intention to leave. But now, the 77-year old man is filing a lawsuit against his landlord, asserting that the landlord is using horrific tactics to push him out so that the rent can be raised.
Roberts' rent is only $450 per month, a rarity in a rapidly gentrifying Crown Heights and wildly overpriced New York rental market overall.
Neighbor testimonies back up his case. One neighbor claimed that an associate of the landlord called Mr. Roberts a racial slur, saying he was literally there for the explicit purpose of harassing Mr. Roberts.
Despite these horrific conditions, Francis Roberts has decided to stay and fight. He will not be pushed out of his home – and it is time the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development take these claims seriously! All of these housing violations must be corrected so that he can live in peace again! Sign the petition if you agree!