The Detroit Tenants Union says members did not agree to a tentative plan to recover property of roughly 30 Leland House tenants who were abruptly evicted last December.
Steven Rimmer, director of the Detroit Tenants Union, said approval hasn’t yet been granted for a city-led process to help former tenants reclaim items they left behind. Court records from bankruptcy proceedings show the city is required to file the plan by March 3 and a hearing is scheduled for March 12.
Attorneys representing the city in a Feb. 24 hearing said tenants would be given 60 to 90 minutes to remove personal belongings. Patrick Foley, a lawyer for the tenants union, said he was presented with the city’s plan shortly before the hearing and wasn’t given the union’s approval to agree.
“I am interested in seeing it in writing and hashing out the details,” Foley said. “I will say that it’s a step in the right direction. I’m pleased to hear somebody is willing to step up to allow these people back in to gather their belongings.”
Leland House Limited Partnership plans to work with the city to restore power to the building for 30 days and ensure the elevator is working. Attorney Marc Swanson, a city representative, said the move out process could cost at least $575,000 and the city would seek full reimbursement from the sale of the building.
Swanson said tenants won’t be permitted to walk up the stairs to their former apartments if the elevator is non-functional. Remote cameras may be used to monitor the move out, he said.
“The fire marshal still has great concerns about this building,” he said. “The fire suppressant system is not going to be in place and if there’s not an elevator that’s working the ability to monitor is far more limited.”
The case is ongoing at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Eastern District of Michigan. Judge Maria Oxholm said she was surprised that a written agreement wasn’t presented during the hearing. Oxholm said the Leland House owners are “stalled in bankruptcy” while the property recovery is hashed out.
“We’re not moving forward on anything, and I’m not sure that this is the proper court for this issue to be resolved,” she said.
Attorney Ryan Heilman, who represents the Leland House owners, said the building shouldn’t be sold without removing the tenants’ belongings.
“We don’t see a good scenario where we sell the building with all of the tenants’ belongings still in place and not having been removed, and not having the money to remove those belongings does create an issue,” Heilman said. “That is why there is a holdup. We need that issue resolved.”
The tenants union is mobilizing supporters to attend the March 3 City Council meeting and advocate for the immediate public acquisition of Leland House through eminent domain.