[NYtenants-online] NY Tenants Online 4/28/04

[Tenant]

NYtenants Online/TenantNet                                4/28/04
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IN THIS ISSUE ...

1. Jane Wood Memorial June 6th
2. Did DHCR change the rules midstream on your case?
3. NYC Rent guidelines Board Meetings & Hearings
4. Chinese residents evicted for Beijing 2008 Olympics
5. China kicking 1.1 million out of Beijing (Worldnet Daily)
6. Public Hearing on the Brooklyn Ratner Nets Stadium Proposal
7. City-Wide Task Force on Housing Court - Annual Conference 4/30

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JANE WOOD MEMORIAL

Many tenants remember Jane Wood of the Chelsea Housing Coalition, who 
passed away last month at the age of 96.

A memorial will be held to honor ane's life:

Sunday, June 6th from 4-7 PM
St. Columba Auditorium
343 West 25th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues).


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HAVE YOU LOST A CASE AT THE DHCR
BECAUSE THE RULES WERE CHANGED MID-STREAM?

Perhaps your lost case can be reversed or resurrected.

If you had an overcharge case, a Fair Market Rent Appeal, an MCI, a rent 
reduction or any case at all before the DHCR, and were told that you lost 
because the regulation rules or laws changed after you initially filed or 
put in an answer in the case, then please respond.

Tenant attorney Robert Katz is seeking to take DHCR into Federal Court in a 
“Class Action” or “Representative Action” proceeding, which will question 
the right of DHCR to change the rules during the pendency of a proceeding 
thereby denying or rescinding justice to tenants.

As legal counsel to the Queens League of United Tenants and being a tenant 
advocate, Katz observed that since the early 1990’s, DHCR's changing the 
rules has been used as a device for willfully or indifferently harming 
tenants to the point where Federal action may be warranted.

For this sort of action, for a tenant to hire a lawyer or even for a 
handful of tenants to do so, would be expensive and would also not be 
effective because of the limited issues upon which an individual test would 
have standing in the court. The action that Katz is considering would 
require many tenants to act as plaintiff so that the costs will be 
affordable and the range of issues will be broad enough to be able to allow 
for effective litigation.

If the action occurs, it would be primarily an advocacy action, but 
participants would be required to cover expenses and/or the costs of legal 
representation.

CONTACT BY PHONE OR FAX:
Robert A. Katz, Esq.
c/o Collins Dobkin & Miller LLP
277 Broadway, 14th Fl.
New York, NY 10013
Tele: (212) 587-2400 Ext. 13
Fax   (212) 587-2410

OR

Sondra Rutherford
Tenant Advocate
P.O. Box 411, Cooper Sta.
New York, NY 10276
Tele:  (212) 254-0270
Fax:   (212) 505-0395


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NYC RENT GUIDELINES BOARD MEETINGS & HEARINGS

The Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) is mandated to establish the lease renewal 
guidelines for the nearly one million dwelling units subject to the Rent 
Stabilization Law in New York City. The Rent Stabilization Law sets forth 
the factors that must be considered by the Board prior to the adoption of 
rent guidelines. The Board holds an annual series of public meetings and 
hearings to consider research from staff, and testimony from owners, 
tenants, advocacy groups and industry experts.

Members of the public are invited to attend meetings and hearings held by 
the RGB.

Rent Guidelines Board Schedule

Preliminary Vote
Monday, May 10, 5:30p.m.-9:30p.m.
The Great Hall at Cooper Union, 7 East 7th St., corner of 3rd Ave. (basement)

Public Meeting
Thursday, June 3, 9:30a.m.-12:30p.m.
Department of City Planning, Spector Hall

Public Testimony
Tuesday, June 15, 10:00a.m.-10:00p.m.
The Great Hall at Cooper Union

Final Vote
Thursday, June 17, 5:30p.m.-9:30p.m.
The Great Hall at Cooper Union

The Rent Guidelines Board reserves the right to cancel or reschedule public 
meetings. Call to confirm the dates: 212-385-2934.


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RESIDENTS EVICTED AHEAD OF BEIJING 2008
from www.GamesBids.com

China has evicted 300,000 people from their homes in Beijing to prepare for 
the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

The Geneva-based Centre on Housing Rights and Eviction (COHRE www.cohre.org 
) said the evictions were part of a global crisis which saw an average of 
six million people illegally thrown out of their homes every year.

Beijing’s mayor admitted on Saturday that in some cases the demolition of 
homes and evictions had been conducted illegally.

Scott Leckie, the executive director of COHRE said, “large international 
events including global conferences and sporting events like the Olympic 
Games are mostly accompanied by forced evictions”.

COHRE is calling on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to try to 
stop the evictions. The organization is also asking companies to withhold 
sponsorship to countries hosting the Games if they carried out evictions.

COHRE had reports that Roma residents in parts of Athens had been evicted 
before this summer’s Games.


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CHINA KICKING 1.1 MILLION OUT OF BEIJING
It's all part of massive relocation plan for Olympics cleanup
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=37470
March 8, 2004

When China was awarded the 2008 Olympics, it's doubtful the world community 
realized what it would mean for Beijing residents – forcible relocation for 
more than 1 million residents.

Yesterday, Mayor Wang Qishan defended the mass relocation of people for the 
Games, saying it was necessary if the capital was to realize its Olympic 
dream.

The problem is that congested Beijing just can't handle the visitors 
expected – so city residents, mostly poor, will pay the price.

Wang said the main problems were transportation and public hygiene. He also 
noted that the average man on the street would need to be re-educated not 
to walk around the city wearing only trousers.

State media reports have repeatedly questioned whether Beijing can handle 
the arrivals of tens of thousands of visitors for the Olympics, saying the 
capital could become paralyzed because of the urban layout.

Wang wants to create several new satellite towns on the outskirts of 
Beijing. But, to do this, will require the destruction of many older and 
run-down homes. He defended the need to change the capital, saying the 
remake – which will affect more than 350,000 households, or about 1.1 
million residents – was necessary because many houses were run-down.

"To have a new Beijing and Olympics, it is impossible not to demolish 
houses," Wang said.

Already some 300,000 Beijing residents have been evicted from their homes 
to make way for construction projects associated with the 2008 Olympics 
Games, according to the Geneva-based Center on Housing Rights and Evictions.

Beijing is planning to spend more than $3 billion building and renovating 
32 competition venues and a slew of related facilities, according to the 
municipal government.


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PUBLIC HEARING ON THE BROOKLYN RATNER NETS STADIUM PROPOSAL

TUESDAY, MAY 4th, 10 a.m. (arrive early and bring identification)

City Hall, 250 Broadway, Manhattan

You *need* to attend to register your NO vote!

To do this you *must* sign up to speak and publicly say "no".
We need to organize and turn out in large numbers

For more information, send an email to: NoStadium@verizon.net
or visit www.DevelopDontDestroy.org


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City-Wide Task Force on Housing Court - Annual Conference

City Wide's Annual Conference
April 30, 2004
Fordham University Law School's James B. McNally Amphitheatre
140 West 62nd Street.
(see times below)

For 20 years, the City Wide Task Force on Housing Court, Inc., has helped 
hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers get through Housing Court with free, 
accurate and practical legal information. For 30 years, the Housing Court 
has served New Yorkers -- and not always well.

The Annual Conference will feature panels on Homelessness Prevention and 
the Anniversaries of Housing Court and City Wide.

The Homelessness Prevention Panel:
Astrid Andre of the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development
Judith Milone of the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies
Martha Cruz of the Legal Aid Society
Lee Chong of the Manhattan Borough President's Office
Moderated by Larry Wood, City Wide's Board President and Family Council 
Community Organizer at Goddard Riverside Community Center.

Housing Court Anniversary Panel:
Hon. Judge Fern Fisher, Administrative Judge of the New York City Civil Court
Brent Sherman of the Community Service Society
Maria Mottola of the New York Foundation
Sandy Russo of the Legal Support Unit of Legal Services of New York
Moderated by Judith Goldiner, a member of City Wide's Board of Directors 
and attorney at the Legal Aid Society.

RSVP to 212-962-4266

Agenda
8:30 - 9:30 a.m. - Registration and Breakfast

9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. - MORNING SESSION

- Opening Remarks
   Larry Wood, Board President, and Stephanie Townsend-Bakare, Executive 
Director
- Borough Reports by City Wide Task Force Borough Coordinators
- Homelessness Prevention Panel Discussion

12:30 - 2 p.m. - LUNCH

- Borough task force groups meet

2:30 - 4:00 p.m. - AFTERNOON SESSION

- Housing Court Anniversary Panel
- Closing Remarks

All advocates, attorneys, and law students are invited. Suggested donation 
for materials and lunch: $5.

This year's Annual Conference is co-sponsored by the Fordham University 
School of Law Stein Center for Ethics and Public Interest Law, and The 
Legal Aid Society and Legal Services of New York.

Directions to the site: Take the A, B, C, D, or #1 or #9 subway trains to 
Columbus Circle. Entrance to the Law School is on 62nd Street, between 
Amsterdam and Columbus avenues.