'The private market is failing.' Elected officials, supporters rally for Good Cause

When Oscar Brewer was a child in the late '70s and '80s, withholding rent was not common practice, so his mother paid for their uninhabitable home because she had no other option. Brewer remembers sleeping under three blankets and still feeling rats crawling on him.

Decades later, the memories are still fresh. Now, as a single father of a 6-year-old, Brewer is fighting to ensure his daughter does not have the same kind of memories.

About a dozen people gathered outside the Monroe County Hall of Justice in downtown Rochester on Tuesday morning to speak out in support of statewide Good Cause eviction protections. Attendees were also there in solidarity with Brewer, a tenant and organizer, who was in eviction court Tuesday for what advocates say is a retaliatory no-cause eviction.

"To my families in Rochester, New York, it is time we stand up and unite," Brewer said. "Everybody standing out here is not just fighting for Oscar. They're fighting for each and everyone of you."

Showdown set on 'good cause eviction' amid state budget deadline, court fights

Local elected officials City Councilmember Kim Smith and Monroe County Legislator Rachel Barnhart spoke at the rally; Emily Goldsmith, a representative for state Sen. Samra Brouk, who was in Albany, spoke on her behalf. Members of Housing Justice for All, representing the Rochester Chapters of Citizen Action of New York and VOCAL-NY and City-Wide Tenant Union of Rochester, attended in solidarity with Brewer and support of Good Cause.

“Every single day, I have constituents who are emailing me, calling me, texting me in desperation because they’re losing their homes,” Barnhart said. “They did nothing wrong. They’re just told they have to move. Sometimes because they complained about the conditions. … People with lower incomes, people with financial hardships are not there because they did anything wrong or because of their own failings.”

Barnhart said the private marketplace is failing.

"We cannot rely on private landlords to provide housing for people with lower incomes," Barnhart said. "That has created the situation we’re in now where people are exploited."

Brewer's battle

Brewer has lived in his home on Clifford Ave for five years. In that time, the property has changed ownership twice. The home has not had a Certificate of Occupancy since December 2020 because of about a dozen open code violations the landlord has not fixed, Brewer said.

Because of the ongoing code violations and lack of Certificate of Occupancy, Monroe County Department of Social Services stopped paying a portion of Brewer’s rent. Following their lead, Brewer began withholding his rent and calling code enforcement. Under state law, the county can withhold public assistance if living conditions are unsafe. Landlords are notified 30 days prior and the withheld rent is forfeited if violations are not corrected after 90 days. The Spiegel Law is a complete defense against eviction for arrears due to rent withholding.

“Again, and I will say to (Tardis Properties LLC), you need to fix your property or go back to the county and leave the tenants alone that are protected by certain laws,” Brewer said.

Brewer’s landlord attempted to file a nonpayment eviction case, which Brewer says was done out of retaliation for his efforts, but, because of the code violations, it was dismissed by a judge. Brewer worked to try and organize other tenants with his landlord, helping them advocate for themselves and ultimately unionize. His landlord, he says, was not happy with this.

“They’re notorious for harassing me,” he told a journalist prior to the rally. “I’ve been told by maintenance, which is a local company, not the actual LLC, but the local maintenance here, that I don’t have the right. I better stop advocating with other tenants, I don’t have the right to unionize other tenants. I do have the right stand up for our housing.”

No-cause eviction

Following the dismissal, Brewer’s tumultuous experience with Tardis Properties continued. He said he found out accidentally that his landlord had filed a no-cause eviction.

Documents from the landlord have not been addressed to Brewer, but to someone at his address with a similarly spelled name, he said. Because opening someone else’s mail is a federal offense, Brewer has not opened the letters.

As a tenant organizer with Citizen Action NY in Rochester, Brewer was advocating for another tenant who rents from the same landlord. While looking up court cases for that tenant, Brewer noticed there was a person from his address listed, but not with his correct name. At eviction court, Brewer planned to advocate for a dismissal because of the incorrect name and because of the violations.

Tardis Properties owns almost two dozen properties with over 200 code violations, but the owner, who lives in England, is elusive, according to Brewer and Roc City-Wide Tenant Union.

Following the dismissal, Brewer’s landlord filed a no-cause eviction. Under current New York law, a landlord does not have to have a reason for an eviction. Advocates, organizers and some lawmakers hope to change this with Good Cause. With Good Cause, landlords would still be able to evict tenants, but they would be required to show they have a “good cause” for the eviction, such as non-payment or violating the terms of the lease. Good Cause would also empower tenants, giving them the opportunity to challenge rent increases of over 3%, or 150% of the Consumer Price Index, in eviction court.

Political support for Good Cause

All of Rochester’s state representatives, including Brouk, Assemblymember Sarah Clark and Assemblymember Demond Meeks, have supported Good Cause except for Sen. Jeremy Cooney.

In December 2021, organizers with Roc City-Wide Tenant Union (CWTU) met at Parcel 5, carrying tables, children’s chairs, a mattress and other items labeled with messages including "Senator Cooney, Good Cause Now," and "8k evictions filed a year in ROC." The items were assembled in front of the red and blue "I (heart) ROC" sign, in front of Cooney's office.

Cooney previously supported Good Cause, though he withdrew his support of the bill in 2021. Cooney has said he pulled his support in fear that Good Cause would discourage landlords from staying in Rochester. But CWTU notes that Cooney has received $11,800, or the largest possible non-family campaign contribution for senators in new York state, in campaign donations from the Real Estate Board of NY, the state’s leading real estate lobby group.

"As far as landlords leaving Rochester, landlords have already left Rochester," Smith said. "Landlords have never even been here in Rochester, but are hiding behind their LLCs to avoid accountability. ... Rochester is not well. We are in trouble. We are the fourth poorest city in the nation, the only city in New York that made the top five in that list."

Monroe County was tied for the fourth-highest eviction rate in New York State, according to data from Cornell University ILR School Buffalo Co-Lab. In 2022, landlords filed 8,603 evictions in Monroe County.

Advocates of Good Cause hope the bill passes by March 31, with the state budget due April 1.

But for Brewer, that may come too late.

Following the rally, Brewer and his supporters attended his hearing for a no-cause retaliatory holdover eviction. He now faces an eviction date of May 15.

This article originally appeared on New York State Team: Elected officials, supporters rally for Good Cause in Rochester NY