Darlington Tenants Fight as They Face Displacement

Monday, September 17,  at the Darlington Apartment Complex in Buckhead tenants and community allies held a rally to shine a light on their inhumane treatment by landlord Trace McCreary of Varden Capital Properties who purchased the longtime affordable complex a year ago.

At the time of the purchase tenants were told they would finally receive the renovations which where decades overdue only to be told in late august that they would all be forced to vacate the property indefinitely.

Since the time of the 60 day notice tenants were given in August the AC has been shut off and there have been four fires inside the complex. “There is no peace for us , days without hot water to bathe , laundry machines that destroys our clothes , & a Owner who would allow kids in this building to have to go to sleep in puddles of sweat from no Air. This is Not Fair , This is not Right , This is not Justice !” stated Darlington tenant LeBraunte Frost.

This kind of property flipping is nothing new to Varden Capital CEO Trace McCreary who apparently left Wall Street after the financial crash to focus on building wealth off the crisis the left 11 million Americans without a home. So far Varden Capital has purchased around 20k units in the South almost all of which are occupied affordable units which he then flips mostly luxury displacing current residents.

At this point residents simply want support identifying affordable housing in the communities they live and work in which has been a major challenge.

Atlanta is experiencing a perfect storm for mass displacement. With 95% of everything built since 2012 qualifying as luxury housing and a loss of 5% of affordable housing stock every year since 2012 we may be experiencing the largest displacement of long term residents in Atlanta history.       “ For those of us who live in the few affordable housing available in the city we find ourselves displaced with the race for newer properties and affordable properties renovating to keep up”, stated Darlington tenant Raymond Bushby. 

You can take action!

CALL THESE NUMBERS

Jennifer Eid, City Council Representive, District 6: (404) 330-6049

Matt Westmoreland, Post 2 At Large City Council: (404) 330-6302

Michael Julian Bond, Post 1 At Large City Council: (404) 330-6770

Keisha Lance Bottoms, Mayor: (404) 330-6100

Script:

“I am calling to express my great concern for the forced displacement of tenants from the Darlington. What will you be doing to ensure ALL tenants are relocated to safe, decent, affordable housing? What will be doing to ensure that this mass eviction events like this are no longer acceptable in Atlanta?”

Links tosome of yesterday's press coverage: 

https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/-stand-up-fight-back-tenants-on-fixed-incomes-protest-60-day-notice-to-leave/836458452 

https://www.cbs46.com/buckhead-apartment-residents-say-they-re-being-forced-out-rally/video_5748e470-bb38-11e8-bae7-7760830797c9.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=user-share

Bold Action Brings Historic Victory!

On March 18, Mildred Obi-Garrison, joined by Occupy Our Homes Atlanta, American Friends Service Committee, as well as dozens of supporters and community members, moved back into her home in an act of civil disobedience. Mildred had been evicted from her home in Stone Mountain, Georgia by Bank of America last November, despite years of fighting in the courts.

After securing her property back from the bank, supporters set up a 24-hour eviction defense at the home to fend off any possible eviction attempts by the police, and mounted a public pressure campaign against Bank of America, the servicer who had carried out the foreclosure and eviction. After holding a sit-in at a local branch, and gathering thousands of petition signatures online, Bank of America promptly reached out to Mildred and began negotiations.

Today, Mildred can claim victory as those negotiations have finally resulted in a deal that will keep her in her home permanently. Her fight for housing justice has just begun however, as she pledged today to continue the fight alongside the millions of others who are facing housing crisis. Today's win marks a historic victory for the movement, proving that solutions can be worked out, even after eviction.

The tactic of moving homeowners back in post-eviction harkens back to the days of the Great Depression, when communities would band together to move their neighbors' possessions back in after eviction, eventually leading to a moratorium being enacted in 27 states around the country. Bold actions like the ones taken by Ms. Obi and her community are necessary to fight the current crisis, which has left millions of Americans displaced since 2007.

Next month, Mildred will face a judge in Washington DC, for charges of unlawful entry for blocking the revolving doors of Covington and Burling, the white-collar law firm with clients such as Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase. The firm, once home to Attorney General Eric Holder, has maintained a consistent revolving door policy with the Department of Justice, who five years after the start of the crisis, has yet to prosecute a single top level Wall Street executive for the financial crisis. Instead, on October 7, the US Attorney will try Mildred along with two other grandmothers who were arrested alongside her. During Mildred's trip to DC her story was covered in the Rolling Stone!

Along with Occupy Our Homes Atlanta and AFSC, today's victory would not have been possible without the help of the National Action Network, and the Rainbow Push Coalition.