Queens Tenants Demand Sale of Building To Community Trust After City’s “Worst Landlords” Ignores Repairs for Decades

Queens, NY — Tenants of 89-20 161st Street in Jamaica, Queens, stood together Thursday, May 14, to demand that their rent-stabilized building be sold to a city-approved buyer as negligent landlord, Ved Parkash, fights to hold onto his buildings now in foreclosure.

“Ved Parkash is one of the worst landlords in the city. His business model is to buy rent stabilized buildings in order to evict tenants, and turn over their units for profit. Tenants deserve safe, stable, dignified homes and that’s why they are organizing to get Parkash out of their building in order to get much needed repairs, deep affordability, and tenant control over their homes.” says Maansi Shah, Tenant Organizer with Chhaya CDC. 

“We have stood alongside our neighbors at 89-20 161st Street in Jamaica, Queens, for years as they fought for basic repairs and respect from one of the city’s worst landlords. Now that the building is in foreclosure, it’s time for the bank and the courts to step up and put tenants first. We’re joining the tenants and fellow organizers in demand of a real solution so that families can finally have the safe, stable homes they deserve. With the support of our partners and the City, we know this is possible,” said Carlos Ortiz, Tenant Organizer, Catholic Migration Services

“For three years, tenants have been involved in litigation with Parkash’s company to get court-ordered repairs to malfunctioning elevators, abatement of pest infestations and long-lasting fixes to a range of other issues, from mold to crumbling floorboards,” said Sarah Hainbach, an attorney with Legal Services NYC’s Queens borough division. “Over a dozen tenants are now withholding rent to push for these critical needs. They are calling on the courts and the city to make sure that this building stays out of Parkash’s hands and comes through the foreclosure process with a plan for new ownership that takes its responsibilities to these tenants seriously.”

Parkash has topped the Public Advocate’s list of Worst Landlords in the city and is considered one of its worst evictors. In the first 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, he sued 460 families for eviction. For years, Parkash ignored tenants’ requests, city agency demands, and court orders to make critical repairs to dozens of buildings in his portfolio. Now, with 89-20 161st being controlled by a receiver while in foreclosure, nearly a quarter of this building’s tenants are on rent strike. They are urging the bank to kick out Parkash as owner and for the court to find a purchaser from a community trust or other buyers approved by NYC’s Housing and Preservation Department. 

The tenants have been protesting inhumane and dangerous conditions at this building for years, including mold, chronic leaks, lack of heat and hot water, rodent infestations, and dangerous electrical systems. The elevators consistently fail, leaving elderly and disabled tenants trapped in their apartments. Many of these issues have gone unresolved for more than a decade. 

The tenants are calling for an end to business as usual and demanding the chance to select a new building owner that will make critical repairs. They have joined with two Bronx buildings in the Parkash portfolio to urge the mortgage holder for their buildings — Community Preservation Trust — to abandon settlement talks with the landlord over his history of gross neglect — and to consider a pathway toward community ownership of the buildings. Any new owner must serve as a steward of these critically important rent-stabilized units in a neighborhood that is experiencing rapid development and growing displacement. 

About Legal Services NYC

Legal Services NYC fights poverty and seeks racial, social, and economic justice for low-income New Yorkers. Through direct legal representation, advocacy, and community partnerships, LSNYC helps New Yorkers secure the basic necessities of life, including housing, economic security, family stability, immigration protections, education, and health care, while challenging systemic injustices that perpetuate poverty.