Councilmember Kendall Steward is facing fresh slumlord claims today, the Daily News reports. A rat problem that should have been fixed in 24 hours has lasted more like six years.
Councilman Kendall Stewart, landlord of the building at 1740-46 Nostrand Ave., was hit with a rat violation in 2001 that he has never fixed.
Under city code, landlords are required to fix such serious violations in 24 hours.
It’s not the first time Stewart has been caught catering to the rats living in his property. He’s been in trouble before:
Stewart (D-East Flatbush), who is up for reelection this year, made headlines in 2003 for having a whopping 144 violations at the building – including peeling lead paint, broken locks and a lack of heat and hot water.
In defending himself, he claimed that it was the tenants’ fault:
“It’s a cultural thing,” he said. “The Haitian folks, because of their poverty, will have five to eight people living in an apartment, and they will break the locks if one doesn’t have a key.” He later apologized for those remarks.
It’s not just rats, either:
“You name it, we’ve had it in the apartment,” said Clifford Placide, 22, who grew up in the building and still lives there with his father.
“I’ve had families of mice. It’s pretty bad, they were basically living with us…”
Kendall’s opponent in the race for City Council is tenant organizer Jumaane Williams, who reacted with outrage: ”That’s eight years to take care of a problem that’s supposed to be taken care of in 24 hours…” Williams has been endorsed by the Working Families Party.
Read the rest of the Daily News article here.
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