Tenants of bankrupt Crown Heights buildings want repairs and a chance to buy their units

The tenants of the red brick and concrete building at 1296 Pacific St. all told similar stories at a Monday night rally: They lugged groceries up six flights of stairs when the elevator stopped working, battled regular invasions of roaches and mice, and watched the slow growth of mold in their bathrooms.

The six-story, Crown Heights building is one of 93 properties across New York City that an entity connected to local landlord Pinnacle Group is looking to sell at auction, after putting multiple companies into bankruptcy in May. Now, more than 5,000 units across Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn will likely trade hands at an auction at the start of next year, and tenants are looking at a rare chance to buy their homes.

“We want to work with the city and with preservation partners to buy our buildings,” said Zara Cadoux, a member of the Pinnacle Tenants Union, a group of tenants at 40 Pinnacle buildings impacted by the bankruptcy filing. “We’re exploring different options to potentially participate in the bidding process.”

That bidding process is just months away, and in the meantime, tenants are organizing to get repairs at the dilapidated properties, which they say Pinnacle Group failed to invest in or make much-needed fixes. And just last week, tenants gathered outside 1042 and 1048 Union St. to protest a power shutdown at the properties after ConEd briefly turned off the lights, Pix11 first reported.

Pinnacle declined to comment on the bankruptcy or conditions at its buildings, citing the ongoing legal proceedings, according to a spokesperson for the firm. But Kenneth Fisher, a lawyer working on behalf of Pinnacle Group, told The Real Deal in September that the pandemic was to blame for some of the deferred maintenance. Other attorneys also cited high interest rates, inflation, and weak rent collections, The Real Deal reported at the time. The now-bankrupt buildings generated more than $84 million in 2024, according to Bloomberg.

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“We want to work with the city and with preservation partners to buy our buildings,” said Zara Cadoux of the Pinnacle Tenants Union.

Credit

Celia Young for Brick Underground

A rally for repairs

Around 40 tenants of 1296 Pacific St. and other Pinnacle properties gathered outside the Crown Heights building on Sept. 29th to call for repairs at the property, which the Department of Housing Preservation and Development slapped with more than 100 violations for mold, roaches, a lack of heat and hot water, and the presence of lead paint. 

Jon Deliz, a public school teacher who has lived at 1296 Pacific St. for 13 years, said he’s had recurring mold in the bathroom of his studio, for which he pays around $1,450 a month. He also recalled carrying older tenants on his back up the building’s stairs when the elevator periodically stopped working. (Deliz himself has gotten trapped in that elevator twice, he told Brick Underground.) 

“Paying rent to this slumlord is like rewarding neglect,” Diaz said. “If I don’t accept bad behavior from my eighth graders I can’t accept it from this company.”

New York State Assembly member Phara Souffrant Forrest echoed his complaints. Souffrant Forrest told Brick Underground she grew up in a Pinnacle building that was frequently infested with roaches, which in part inspired her to run for office.

“Why should we pay and get a lack of service?” Souffrant Forrest asked the crowd on Sept. 29th. “It’s about time that when we pay the rent, we get a little respect with it too.”

Souffrant Forrest was hopeful that a new mayoral administration would focus on tenants rights, she told Brick Underground after the rally. When Brick Underground asked Souffrant Forrest if she had anything else to say, she added, “Fuck Pinnacle. You can quote me on that.”

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New York State Assembly member Phara Souffrant Forrest grew up in a Pinnacle building that was frequently infested with roaches, which in part inspired her to run for office.

Credit

Celia Young for Brick Underground

What tenants need to know

The bankruptcy auction could impact hundreds of tenants in the city, though some New Yorkers may not be aware of the impending sale of their building. If you’re not sure whether you’re living in one of the 93 buildings impacted by the bankruptcy, you can check your address against a list of buildings up for auction (see page 22), according to filings in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

If you live in a rent-stabilized apartment in one of these buildings, the bankruptcy and auction will not impact your rights to live in the apartment, said Ronald Languadoc, a tenant attorney at Himmelstein Gribben & Joseph. Any bidder offering to purchase or refinance the properties would have to abide by the existing tenant leases, Bloomberg reported.

Bankruptcy “does not affect rent-stabilized tenants’ rights to continue to be rent-stabilized tenants of their apartments, Languadoc said.

Still, Languadoc recommended that tenant unions get an attorney, because a bankruptcy filing can complicate certain tenant rights, such as recovering back rent from rent overcharge disputes.

“Ideally tenants would form a group and retain a bankruptcy attorney who would keep them apprised of the situation,” Languadoc said. “That would be the best solution, but that is maybe not realistic or affordable for everyone.”

According to Cardoux, the Pinnacle Tenant Union is working with the Legal Aid Society and Brooklyn Legal Services for legal assistance. She also encouraged tenants of all Pinnacle buildings to reach out to negotiate repairs collectively. (You can contact the Pinnacle Tenant Union at pinnacletenantscontact@protonmail.com.)

“The only way that we are going to get services is if we fight for them,” Cardoux said.