Tenants Moan As Cobble Hill Towers Go Condo

As their buildings go condo, Cobble Hill Tower tenants are griping about the state of their homes.

Earlier this week a deal was reached between a group of tenants at the historic residences and The Hudson Companies, Inc., a real estate firm that is turning the apartment complex into condominium residences.

But tenants have expressed concern about the condition of the more than 130-year-old buildings and the handling of the condo conversion process.

The negotiations between Hudson and the Cobble Hill Towers Buyers Group over how much the apartments will cost for current residents began over two years ago, when the conversion was first announced. The current tenants can stay on as renters, take a buyout or choose to buy their apartments at an insider rate.

"Hudson has twisted every aspect of the negotiations to their advantage," said Carl Rosenstock, a 13-year-resident who just recently moved out after deciding his apartment was priced too high. "They played fast and loose."

The agreed upon deal will not go through unless 15 percent of the apartments in the Towers are bought by current residents. Hudson expects that over 30 percent of the residents will purchase their units or agree to a buyout. But according to tenants, only two apartments are known to be in contract and between 8 and 10 people have taken the buyout.

In addition to Rosenstock, interviews were conducted with three current tenants, who are staying in their apartments, but opting out of buying them. All three wished to remain anonymous.

A major concern for tenants is the condition of the nine buildings that make up the Towers. When Hudson released the condo conversion Operating Plan to tenants, an architect's inspection report was included. According to tenants, the inspection felt flimsy, and so the Tenants Group held a tag sale and fundraiser in order to hire their own engineer to study the conditions of the structures, which are adjacent to the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway trench. They raised $8,000, $6,400 of which they spent on the report.

The preliminary study, conducted by IVI Assessment Services, Inc., found that approximately $6 million dollars in repairs were needed. Some examples from the report:

- "Roofs are recommended for replacement"

- "Windows are in fair to poor condition, difficult to operate and set in original wood sashes that are rotting out"

- "Plumbing systems are a mixture of materials and have been repaired with various other incompatible metals"

Tenants were able to get Hudson to approve to many of the fixes, but tenants say the fact that before the Engineer's Report, none of the problems were even on Hudson's radar, doesn't bode well.

Debbie Bhatt, a spokesperson for Hudson, said the firm has already "done a lot of work on the buildings," including committing to replacing all the roofs.

"We agreed to extensive repairs and renovations, and timelines for those repairs, which were reviewed and we’ve committed to in an amendment to the Offering Plan," she said.

Since Hudson took over property management, they have installed new doors and intercoms, extended trash and recycling storage platforms, maintained and developed interior courtyard lawns and installed a new laundry room, Bhatt said. Hudson also held a contest asking tenants to come up with a design for the first-floor hallways, she added.

Unfortunately, according to tenants and Rosenstock, the tiles installed are already starting to crack, exemplifying, tenants say, Hudson's attitude toward the building.

"Why would I make an investment [and buy my apartment] if Hudson isn't?" Rosenstock asked.

Rosenstock wanted to stay at Cobble Hill Towers, but after a long battle didn't want to deal with it anymore, and found an affordable and recently renovated apartment in Park Slope.

"If the insiders price was low enough, I would have invested," he said. "I wanted to stay in the area, I wanted to stay in the building, I wanted to stay near my neighbors."

One tenant says the buildings are part of such a rich history, that they deserve better.

Cobble Hill Towers were built in 1879 by Alfred Treadway White as affordable yet  architectually distinctive housing for working people.

"So far we've only managed to get the bare minimum, but these are glorious landmarked treasures," the tenant said. "Because they held a contest, they say they're working with the tenants?"

Another tenant expressed concern that the economic and cultural diversity of the Towers will not remain if more residents are forced to move out, as Rosenstock was.

"There's a charm here," said the resident, who has lived here for more than 20-years. "We have a microcosm of a community that is being destroyed and it's a shame to see."