Residents of several apartment complexes in New London are facing eviction, just weeks after a corporate landlord purchased the properties.
In October, Shelton-based Alpha Capital Funds bought five apartment complexes in New London previously owned by a local landlord. In total, the buildings have 61 units, according to Connecticut Tenants Union Vice President Luke Melonakos-Harrison.
By late October, more than a dozen residents on month-to-month leases received notices to quit, marking the first step in the eviction process. The evictions are in buildings on Redden Avenue and Williams Street, Melonakos-Harrison said.
“They've issued 14 notices to quit so far, and they've told the city of New London that they plan to issue 26 total,” Melonakos-Harrison said. “So we're kind of bracing ourselves to see who else is going to get hit.”
All of the evictions qualify as “no fault,” meaning the new landlord chose not to renew the leases without stating a specified reason. It’s something housing advocates have petitioned against in the state legislature in recent years.
Connecticut’s existing Just Cause eviction law protects residents who are at least 62 years- old or have a disability, from being evicted from their home without being given a reason, such as nonpayment of rent or a violation of the lease agreement.
Alpha Capital Funds is known for purchasing apartment buildings not listed for sale and seeking evictions or rent raises, according to Melonakos-Harrison. Last year, a similar situation played out in Niantic, Connecticut, when Alpha Capital Funds purchased an apartment complex and tried to increase rents by as much as $900.
Across Connecticut, Alpha Capital Funds owns more than 400 apartments, including buildings in Middletown, Wallingford, Bridgeport and Groton.
The company’s owner, Tyler Smith, is unwilling to recognize the unions or negotiate, according to Melonakos-Harrison. Smith did not agree to an interview with Connecticut Public.
“It's not only the individual tenants being threatened with eviction who are damaged by this, but it's the social fabric of neighbors who have developed a safe environment in their long term home,” Melonakos-Harrison said.
So far, the buildings on Redden Avenue and Williams Street banded together to form tenants unions.
Michael Duffy has lived in his Redden Avenue apartment for eight years and received a notice to quit.
“On the back of the notice, it said we are here to help, and it confused the hell out of me, because if you're here to help, then why are you giving me a notice to quit?” Duffy said.
Duffy said he’s always paid his rent on time and done landscaping maintenance around the property.
Residents are now waiting on Alpha Capital Funds to recognize the unions, or for local lawmakers to try and mitigate.
