Jonathan Twersky, Legal Services NYC Brooklyn Branch, is representing a group of Manhattan Beach residents who have been served with eviction notices. The group includes eight elderly residents with Section 8 subsidized units.
Read the Article in The Jewish Week
The conflict stems from the 2007 purchase of the building by the nearby Mesivta and Yeshiva Gedolah, represented by principal and trustee Rabbi Joshua Zelikovitz. In an article in The Jewish Week, Jonathan notes that the New York State Rent Stabilization Code allows not-for-profit agencies to take over residential properties and refuse to renew the leases of existing tenants if they use the building for educational or charitable purposes, but not if such properties are subsequently used for residential purposes. “We are filing a motion [for] discovery in Brooklyn Housing Court because we believe [Zelikovitz] has an ulterior motive in his plans for the building…He promised to turn 59 West End Ave. into classroom space but appears to be using it primarily as a dormitory [for some of the yeshiva’s students].” 59 West End Ave. is a building purchased 5 years ago by the same yeshiva. State Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz recently introduced a measure that would eliminate the policy allowing not-for-profits to take over residential buildings and expel their tenants, but acknowledged that even if the measure is adopted it would not be possible to apply it retroactively to protect the residents in this case.