FAX cover sheet from Battery Park City Authority

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document MAY<?- 02 FS: 52:39 PK CA??:ZLLO rAX;i-:547«S3o ■AGZ

rent in order to get out of the building that was dangerous to live in did not sound right. For most of the tenants like me it was also financially impossible. RY also offered 15% rent discount for 6 months and no | (Cleaning of the apartments. I and most other tenants were outraged by RY?5 offer. All I wanted was j (either my apartment to be cleaned or to get out of my lease. This decrease in rent did not even closely j cover the price of hiring environmental cleaning company myself. When I told RY?5 representative Ms. Teresa Tota that their offer does not meet tenants? needs, she told me that the offer was not negotiable.! Ms.Tota also said that RY Management will not do any cleaning because they do not have to and will not! release people from the teases without penalties. i After this outrageous incident I and residents of more then 60 other apartments organized together and treated South Cove Plaza Tenants Association. We decided to withhold our rents until RY agrees to clean j (the apartments and to release fron. lease tenants who wanted to leave the building. In response RY sent. ^e (and other tenants who decided to protest) a letter saying that since I did not agree with the offer (they have made, I will get nothing: no rent discount, no opportunity to get out of the lease and no clean j (up. That, in my opinion, was an outrageous act of retaliation. As a result I and my wife were forced to ■ Stay in the dirty apartment for four months until our lease ended. Through all of the winter we had to live, lin the very cold apartment because we could not turn on dirty heating units. I and my wife had to visit ! doctors because dirty air caused all kinds of respiratory problems. All *, this was accompanied by . (continuous harassment by RY Management. They were sending us j message that if you are quiet then ( you will get at least something, but if you are trying to fight for your right you will get nothing. fey December, while harassing us and demanding full rent for our dirty inhabitable apartments, RY was ; renting out empty apartments (I estimate that more then 1/3 of the apartments were emptied by people (who could afford to leave the building) at 40% discount. I calculated that with this discount I would be ! able to afford to clean the apartment myself, and this would make my life much easier: I would have ( cleaner apartment and would not have to break the lease. I went to on-site RY representative Denise jKosta to ask to move to an empty apartment in toe building at the rate they offered to a friend of mine j just a day before. Ms. Kosta told me that apartments are only available for ?not difficult tenants?. I knew' It was an illegal statement and contacted building manager Mr. Piastre, who promised to investigate the ! matter but never got back to me. [Finally after our lease expired at the end of the February, we moved to another building in Battery Park i (City. In contrast to our old building, the new building was cleaned within weeks after the attacks, and (each apartment was certified to be environmentally dean. I contacted Ms. Tota again after I moved my ' family out telling her that while I was extremely disappointed by RY?s lack of response and unlivable i conditions we were forced to live In, the stress of fighting with them was just too much and I would like I Ito pay back the rent using toeir initial offer of 15% discount. Ms.Tota told me with a smirk that ?we are ( not going to give you anything; we will get you one way or another?. She also told that if ?I would not try (to be difficult? from the beginning they would handle my situation much better. I find these facts I (alarming and outrageous and ask you to help me. I feel that behavior of RY management and especially ; Ms. Teresa Tota, Ms. Denise Kosta and Mr. John Piastre are not only Immoral considering the situation but aisc illegal. And I do not know If there are any laws that specifically state that building owners have * Ito help tenants as much as they can In case of the disaster. If not, then may be you can help me to , create one. I feel that owners like RY/Dematteis should be banned from getting government subsidized , loans and contracts. They are predators who try to hurt their tenants as much as they can. j (Please help me In this horrible situation. I am anxiously waiting for your reply. j

sincerely,

PH ly old address in RY/Dematteis building was: \

Pll J

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