Asbury Tenants Weblog

Life at the Asbury

2004-07-30T19:16:00.000-07:00

Jul 30, 2004
06:22:23 PM
LOS ANGELES CA US
RECEIVER NOT IN, 3RD DELIVERY ATTEMPT;UNABLE TO CONTACT RECEIVER

Jul 30, 2004
02:35:00 PM
LOS ANGELES CA US
RECEIVER NOT IN, 3RD DELIVERY ATTEMPT

Jul 29, 2004
12:13:00 PM
LOS ANGELES CA US
RECEIVER NOT IN ON 2ND DELIVERY ATTEMPT

Jul 28, 2004
02:18:00 PM
LOS ANGELES CA US
RECEIVER NOT IN ON 1ST DELIVERY ATTEMPT

Jul 28, 2004
05:08:00 AM
LOS ANGELES CA US
OUT FOR DELIVERY

Packages

2004-07-14T10:57:00.000-07:00

Anybody remember when you could actually get packages delivered at the Asbury?

DHL tried to deliver a package to me, apparently last Friday. Twice. But it required a signature.

I didn't get the package, nor did I receive any notice that a delivery was attempted. Where did the notice go? I don't know. I just spent a half-hour figuring out what happened and trying to get a re-delivery worked out. Who knows how much more time I'll have to put in on this quest.

I remember back when the management of the Asbury did not try to make it HARDER to live at the Asbury.

Of course, that was back when they filled vacancies primarily with tenant referrals (i.e., good word of mouth) rather than with government money. Why should HUD give a shit how easy it is to get a package at the Asbury?

And if HUD doesn't care, why should the John Stewart Company?

I miss capitalism.

Tragedy

2004-06-21T17:45:00.000-07:00

Today I have found out that the large ornate mirror that was the centerpiece of the lobby has been sold to a removals company for $200. This is tragic! What logic could be behind it I have no idea. There is no way to replace such a grand item in that lobby, No one would go to the trouble these days. I hear that the old piano is to go too. This of course is in real bad shape and I can come closer to understanding it's removal but overall I am am just made sad by it all. I of course dreamed the lobby would be restored. This is not what this great old building deserves after waiting dormant all these years.

Who owns the Asbury?

2004-05-21T10:48:00.000-07:00

From the comments on the entry below:

Has anyone complained to the Los Angeles Housing Partnership regarding how John Stewart Company has been dealing with our building issues? LAHP are the actual owners of the building and have control over the John Stewart Company.

Is this true? I have to confess, I haven't been keeping up with Asbury issues (I guess I'm fortunate not to have many). But if the actual owners are LAHP, that's pretty interesting. Anyone have confirmation on this?

We get flyers

2004-04-28T16:51:00.000-07:00

Asbury Office No Longer Signs for Packages

2004-04-27T10:29:00.000-07:00

As of a week ago, the Asbury office no longer signs for packages (UPS, Fed Ex, anything needing a signature). I do not know whether they will continue to accept and hold packages sent via regular mail which are simply too big to fit in the boxes. Presumably the details will be addressed in a forthcoming memo.

Apparently some packages were recently lost after the office staff signed for them. This new policy is intended to address that problem.

Opinions?

Rat

2004-04-27T03:46:00.000-07:00

There's a rat trying to gnaw its way into my apartment.

Not kidding.

I bang on the wall and floor and it stops for awhile, then starts again.

Call Box

2004-03-08T20:04:00.000-08:00

I lost the memo. Actually, I gave the memo away with the info on it.

What's the number we are supposed to press to let someone in?

Help.

heat and other issues

2004-02-23T19:43:00.000-08:00

do people have heat? i've been without heat for a week or so now. i spoke to brian about it today and he said that the heat is broken and that they're getting an estimate. he also said the heat was back on as of sunday night. i can assure you this was not the case in my apartment (stack 4) and is not the case -- i type this wearing a ski hat and windbreaker.

say what you want about old management vs new management. yes, the old management was spooky. and yes, the construction teams have been courteous. that said, i feel the new management has been habitually incompetent.

running water, safe electrical boards, a working elevator and call box in a 12 story building are not upgrades. they are basic services. and therefore, tenants should be compensated financially for a reduction and/or suspension of these services.

what is going on with raffle? any results? i thought it was bi-weekly?

the knob on my door has been broken since new ownership took over. i have to tape the bolt to be able to get in and out. i have been told that they are going to replace all the doorknobs, and i must wait until then. call me crazy, but i believe a fully-functioning exit to be a core service in an apartment complex.

also, i have been told that the cameras that watch over the parking lot and the front entrance are no longer operational. the old management took the equipment with them when they left. to my knowledge, asbury tenants never received notice that this security service previously offered (and included in your rent) was no longer operational. i'm curious if this is an illegal business practice.

i had no idea, until reading this blog, that mail had been stolen from the office. if it is true that brian moved the packages so that tenants would not bother him, i am outraged. perhaps this is why the door is closed even when brian is in the office? and perhaps this is why the office closes at 4 o'clock? i have no idea how someone who works long hours is ever supposed to retrieve a package from the office. all this gives the impression that the manager of the building doesn't want to be bothered by the tenants. i hope this is not the case, and that brian will prove me wrong.

A BAD EXPERIENCE AT THE ASBURY? YEAH, YOU COULD SAY THAT…

2004-02-22T16:25:00.000-08:00

Perhaps you remember the period of building-wide turmoil and unrest under the Old Management, when the elevators were constantly breaking down, causing almost unbearable inconvenience to many.

At that time a group called ARDENT was staging a guerilla flyer campaign in the elevators and elsewhere. One day I was reading one of those flyers, when I was pulled aside by the then-management and accused of being part of this group, a ringleader of some sort.

This is when my nightmare began. They took my fingerprints and photographs. I asked what was going on, and they would not answer. I asked to make a phone call, and they would not let me.

Then a team of people came and told me they wanted to ask me some questions. One man was named "Jim," and another woman called herself "Inga." She had a small dog that looked like an otter. I don’t know if these were their real names, or if it was a real dog. I was scared and did not know what was going on. (Though to be fair, that is my usual state.)

They swore at me, and insulted me. It was very humiliating. This interrogation continued until midnight. I was very, very worried, and asked for a lawyer again and again. They just ignored me. Then they put me in chains, on my wrists and ankles, and took me to a small room filled with old exercise equipment in poor condition. They would not tell me what was happening.

I had not slept or eaten since I was taken off the elevator. They brought me some cold McDonalds meal to eat. But I am vegan, and could not eat it. When I explained what a vegan was, they just laughed and also asked "But how do you get your protein?" which was very degrading, and also annoying because we vegans hear that all the time.

They strip searched me. It was humiliating. They put me in an orange suit, which does not suit my coloring (I am an Autumn) and made me sign something called NOTICE OF CHANGE OF TERMS OF TENANCY.

Then they started beating me. Every time I tried to talk they beat me. Fortunately I am used to that sort of thing from my personal life, which I won’t go into any more detail about except to say it is also hard to explain to a dominatrix why vegans don’t like leather.

I was put into a cell three feet wide and six feet deep. It was seven feet high. It had a metal door, with a small opening in the door, which did not let in light. There was a small opening in the ceiling, about one foot by two feet with iron bars. There were two blankets, two dishes and two bottles. One bottle was for water and the other one was used for urinating during the night. Nothing else. No light. On top of all this, there was only basic cable, no premium channels or Pay Per View. I spent 10 months, and 10 days inside that grave, and for that entire period I had no idea what was happening on The Sopranos. There were rats, and the rats did not speak English (or PRETENDED they couldn’t, you know how they do that).

I could hear other tenants being tortured, and screaming and screaming. One tactic they used was to question tenants for two hours, and then put them in a waiting room, so they can hear the others screaming, and then bring them back to continue the interrogation.

They wanted me to say I was a member of ARDENT. They wanted to know how I got access to a copy machine, and what made me think I was so funny? When I told them I was a professional comedy writer, it only seemed to make matters worse, so after that I didn’t say much.

I was ready to confess to anything if it would stop the torture. I told them I stole people’s socks from the laundry room. It was what I thought they wanted to hear.

Memories crowded my mind and I thought I was going to lose control. I remembered wearing one of those nylon Disco shirts when I was a kid in the 70s, and I just screamed and screamed. I could not breathe well after, and felt very dizzy.

I was not exposed to sunlight for six months. It was like holding a corporate job, or some other fate you only read about. Daily life in that place was hell. I think I lost about 40 pounds. On the up side, I am writing a book called "Prisoner of Fat! The Interrogation and Torture Diet."

Then one day I was released. I want to conclude by thanking the Jon Stewart Company for taking over the Asbury and probably saving my life. (I also used to really enjoy his late night talk show; I don’t know why they took it off the air.)

I have spent the time since then trying to learn how to live with what happened to me. Sometimes when I am awakened early by men who want to rip holes in my walls, replace my pipes, or plaster something, I have flashbacks. But I know that I have to move on and think about the future instead. I hope it will be a future full of hope and bright promise for the children of America. Thank you.

FEBRUARY 19, 2004

2004-02-19T16:01:00.000-08:00

Personally, I would like to hear from tenants who have had bad experiences at the Asbury. I have been here for two and a half years and have had nothing but positive experiences. Grumblings, complaints, and memos posted in the hallways and elevators prove there is a torrent of emotion under a seemingly placid veneer. Bearing witness and testifying are not only rights but requirements of cititzenship, so let's hear it folks.

Web site for National Housing Law Project in Oakland and D.C.

2004-01-28T10:19:00.000-08:00

Another information source is the National Housing Law Project in Oakland and D.C. Unfortunately, I don't think they'll work with individual tenants. Web site:

www.nhlp.org

They're about to issue the 3rd edition of the Hud Housing Programs Tenants Rights book -- only $350! (Ouch.)

Tons of information...

2004-01-28T08:43:00.000-08:00

A tenant I encountered in the hall recently sends this email to me, which the tenant asked me to post here:

The information below may be of help to Asbury tenants discomfited by changes in ownership here. Caveat emptor: I'm not an attorney. Use at your own risk, as the saying goes.

1. A good local lead for tenants' rights is the Coalition for Economic Survival, which now boasts one of the most difficult web sites I've ever seen: http://nkla.sppsr.ucla.edu/ces/. Their phone number is 323 656-4410. They host free weekly clinics at 7377 Santa Monica Blvd. (cross Martel) on Saturday at 10 a.m. and Wednesday at 7 p.m. (Donation requested) You can good information here on tenant organizing, but, unfortunately, are unlikely to meet an attorney who knows about HUD housing matters.

2.  I found this document on the HUD web site, which I believe applies to tenants here:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/affordablehousing/library/tenadisp.pdf

It uses the phrase "Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, as amended," which was used in several notices received by tenants here. That's why I think it applies.

3.      I spoke to the National Alliance of Hud Tenants in Boston. Web site: http://www.saveourhomes.org. Phone: (617) 267-9564. They weren't able to find the Asbury in the HUD database of projects, and thus weren't able to tell me what kind of funding was used. However, the database is (I think) Section 8 only, so maybe it's not surprising that the Asbury isn't there.

However, they did make these suggestions, listed in declining order of value (in my opinion, anyway):

a)      There will be a Project Manager at HUD for the Asbury, and the Project Manager will pretty much have to talk to us.   HUD's contact information here:

http://www.hud.gov/local/ca/working/localoffices.cfm

Los Angeles HUD Office

Dept. of Housing and Urban Development
AT&T Building
611 West Sixth Street,
Suite 800
Los Angeles, CA 90017

Phone: (213) 894-8000
Fax: (213) 894-8096
TTY: (213)894-8133
Jurisdiction: Primarily Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obisbo, Mono, and Inyo Counties

Theresa Camiling, Field Office Director

Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday

It may be better to go there in person. (Just a guess.)

b) Los Angeles County should have a Registry of Deeds with information about the purchase of the Asbury.

c) A Freedom of Information Act request could be filed with HUD, the CA state finance agency (??) and the Housing Authority requesting information on the Asbury purchase. The National Alliance has a couple of samples online:

http://www.saveourhomes.org/tenants/samples/foiasample.pdf

http://www.saveourhomes.org/tenants/samples/foiasample02.pdf

d) A local political representative may be willing to intercede on our behalf.

                                        * * * * *

The change of ownership has been a boon to some elderly tenants, who will benefit justly from reduced rent. We have heat now, which indicates that the owners aren't trying to pinch pennies. The new owners may be idealistic people, in their own way. And I, at least, think that the construction crew has done a good job. Some in the crew have been remarkably diplomatic; put yourself in their shoes and imagine what it must have been like to share a passenger elevator with angry tenants for several weeks while the freight elevator wasn't repaired.

But the freight elevator should have been repaired promptly. '05 tenants should have been given appropriate compensation for being moved out of their apartments. The intercom should have been repaired in October, when it broke. Mail should be delivered, and packages watched over, so they aren't stolen.

When Steve and Jim owned the building, broken stuff got fixed. Not everyone was happy with Steve and Jim, but "It'll get done Monday." meant Monday is when it would get done ... and not five Mondays hence.

Jim was an owner of the building? Fix-it Man Jim? I had no idea.

I feel much as this tenant does. The construction guys are amazingly courteous. I used to work construction, and, believe me, not every contractor makes sure his employees are this professional and civil. Kudos much deserved, from my point of view. (Feel free to post yours, of course.)

But also things are very different now as far as attending to the day-to-day needs of the Asbury and we Asburians. It seems to be a completely different approach. I speculate that the reason there is only one extremely over-extended employee here instead of the three or more formerly in the office is that the profit motive is disappearing along with the transformation into HUD housing. Before, the owners knew that when somebody moved out, they would have to try to attract someone else to move into that vacancy--and they wanted to get as high a rent on that apartment as possible. Thus, it behooved them to have satisfied tenants (most vacancies were filled by tenant referrals, I was told by Peter, the manager a few years ago) and attractive apartments.

Now, what's the motivation to make the Asbury as pleasant as reasonably possible? The rents on HUD apartments are fixed--they can't go any higher. There is no financial benefit, that I can see, to being as conscientous as the Asbury's former owners.

Of course, I could be wrong about this. The tenant who sent me the above info actually seemed to disagree somewhat with this analysis (and the new owners' willingness to spend money on heat would seem to contradict it). But if I had 99 apartments, all of which rented for fixed amounts no matter what I did (I assume the owners' goal is 100% HUD housing), I don't know what my motivation would be to make life at the Asbury any better than the minimum it needed to be to get people to move in at those fixed bargain rents.

I'll be trying to find out more information myself, when I get a chance. Some big-picture questions I'm interested in:

1. I was told by a John Stewart employee that "HUD housing is big business." How big a business is it? What is the size of the grant the John Stewart company is getting from the government?

2. From its perspective, how does the John Stewart company make more money? Does their bottom line increase with every tenant they get to leave the Asbury? If so, by how much?

3. What other buildings have undergone this process with this company, and what are the stories the tenants there have to tell?

Like most tenants, I would imagine, I know nothing about how the HUD housing game works. Of course, the owners know it inside and out. It would be great to make up this gap in knowledge.

If you know anything at all about these or other issues, by all means please post a comment or sign up to post to the blog.

Speaking of Luna Sol....

2004-01-20T16:05:00.000-08:00

Found this post on "The Best of Craigslist" section.
____________________________________________________

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/about/best/lax/14950010.html
___________________________________________________

from luna del sol to my bathroom floor - i needed you this morning - 27

Reply to: anon-14950010@craigslist.org
Date: Fri Aug 15 16:57:13 2003

I write this shortly after I threw four of my best towels in the trash, all because I couldn't find you... Your absence really affected me, and now I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive you. Where should I begin?

Yesterday, I was starving and really craving good Mexican and I remembered someone telling me about an excellent vegetarian Mexican restaurant in Los Angeles. So, after a few minutes of internet searching, I found it. Luna del Sol Cafe.

Looking at the menu and smelling the food... I was in heaven. I quickly ordered a tamarindo to drink, some nachos with veggie chorizo, and the tofu with mole sauce. The meal was incredible. I ate well beyond my capacity, and was in pain for hours...

Fast-forward to the next morning. This morning. I woke up with my intestines brimming with excrement. I grabbed the LA weekly from the kitchen table, and ran to the bathroom, just making it in time. I was on the toilet for a good twenty burning minutes, enough to plan my entire weekend and read some reviews from reviewers I would never take seriously. After another 5 minutes of careful and painful wiping, I flushed the toilet, only to watch the brownish water level rise while massive turds spun around. It was then I needed you most. I looked under the sink right next to the toilet where you always are, and you were gone. I quickly ran to the other bathroom to grab you. I ripped through empty bottles of detergent and liquid plumber only to find you triple-wrapped and double knotted in plastic bags from Alberton's. I frantically ripped through the bags while running to the other bathroom, but it was TOO LATE. Whole turds and liquid diarrhea were everwhere...

Why did you hide from me when I needed you most?

The Demise of Luna Sol Cafe

2004-01-20T15:45:00.000-08:00

I first heard about the Asbury from my friend April who used to live on the 11th floor.

She would talk on and on about this great apartment she lived in: how it reminded her of New York, that she had high ceilings and wood floors, how great the people were who lived there, and of course, the awesome coffee shop/cafe on the ground floor.

I didn't believe her when she talked about this "awesome" apartment. But she kept talking about it. So one day I followed her home after work...

I saw the white building with the red neon sign, the apartment, the people, Cafe Luna Sol....

I was in love.

So consequently I was very dissapointed when I heard Luna Sol Cafe was closing down. It had been one of the main reasons why I wanted to live at the Asbury.

Now, I'm no vege nor politically active protester. Actually, I always felt so bourgeoise when I was there. Maybe it was because I had a cell phone and wore leather.

But I loved the place. Good coffee, great food, and groovy music bleeding through the windows and back door.

O.B. told me that Luna Sol didn't have a lease, that the previous owners had let them go month to month in exhange for Luna Sol taking care of their own repairs.

I'm sure there's a lot of stuff that needs to be done inside the cafe electrically and plumbing and what not. As the electricians and plumbers tell me, everything has been done as two-bit repair for the last, I-don't-know-how-many-years. So, I'm sure there's quite of an overhaul with the place that needs to be done.

I'm sure management didn't get the Luna Sol vibe. Just the people who frequent Luna Sol, the people who don't live life in the middle-of-the-road, the skate shop inside and the kids skating on the sidewalk... I'm sure it freaked them out. And I'm sure it didn't help matters much that some patrons were spraypainting their boards on the sidewalk and walls of the Asbury.

I signed the petition and there was talk that Luna Sol might be able to stay until they found a new cafe to come it. I think Rick on the 7th floor had a meeting with Brian (the manager) but apparently that didn't come for Luna Sol staying.

O.B. said they were going to try to set up shop somewhere else. But even if they do go somewhere else, Luna Sol's home was at the Asbury and even though I didn't go to Luna Sol often, I fucking miss it. I really fucking miss it.

Repartee Poem

2004-01-15T23:21:00.000-08:00

Brian...
It just looks like you and me
in this blogging
repartee.

Asbury Friendsters

2004-01-15T23:17:00.000-08:00

I'm a Friendster freak. I'm wondering.... Who all else here are Friendsters -and- Asburians? Curious me would like to know.

We're famous!

2004-01-15T17:50:00.000-08:00

I have no idea how they found us, but the site L.A. Blogs linked to this blog today.

When will the tenant directory work?

2004-01-15T10:46:00.000-08:00

Has anyone heard when the directory downstairs is supposed to be up and running? There are two entries so far... Asbury office and some Tom Anderson or another....

Food delivery...

2004-01-13T23:53:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I'm just lazy and want food delivered.

I have menus to that Indian place mentioned on the other post and to the local Thai place, I forget the name. But I was wondering if you guys knew of any other food delivery places...

More members

2004-01-12T08:47:00.000-08:00

Three more Asbury residents have requested posting info in the hours since the post below. Including me, that makes six participants so far in the first two days of the blog.

Just so you know, the process works like this: You email me, then I send you a message through the Blogger interface. The rest happens between you and Blogger. I will not know your password, and you choose your own login name. The whole thing takes about two minutes.

Still waiting for the first non-BrianF original post. You could be first...

New members

2004-01-11T22:34:00.000-08:00

This weblog has been public for about 24 hours.

Stats so far:

2 new members. Welcome to Asbury residents Azalea and Jim, who are already posting comments.

Just a reminder: Anyone can post comments, anonymously or otherwise. But if you're an Asbury tenant and you email me a quick note, you can also post entries (like this one).

Tenants rights advocate inspection

2004-01-10T20:56:00.000-08:00

Posted in the elevator:

I have to admit I don't know anything about what some tenants are apparently experiencing with regard to relocation. I see the notices now and then in the elevator, but I haven't happened to talk to anyone who is going through this process.

If you have some information that might clue in the rest of us in, please post a comment here (or email me to get a login to post).

It's weird to live in this building and not really have an idea of what is going on here.

Water dragon

2004-01-10T11:34:00.000-08:00

Remember this?

There was a hilarious follow-up that talked about the dangers of Chinese water dragons, but I didn't get a picture of it.

I still don't know if this one was real. But it did make me glad that the giant hole in my wall had been sealed shut with plywood and screws.

I shot the above pic on Dec. 28. (I blurred out the info because I had also posted this picture somewhere else.)

Food

2004-01-10T01:14:00.000-08:00

Boy, do I miss Luna Sol. I don't miss waiting twenty minutes in line to order, and another half hour for the food, but I sure do miss the food. And the atmosphere. But especially the food.

That wasn't just some of the best food in the MacArthur Park area, it was some of the best food in Los Angeles. Sometimes I ate there twice a day. And I never once had a bad meal, in six years or so.

I really miss it. The sudden disappearance of Luna Sol was like losing a friend. A shaggy, Marxist, always-running-late friend.

Anyway, lately I've been ordering from an Indian place on Vermont called Halal Tandoori, which was recommended by Heather Havrilesky, a blogger from Los Feliz:

Are you sick of crappy Indian food? So am I! But I just discovered a great place that delivers to my neighborhood and, based on the conversations I've had with these guys, it seems like they could use a little business.

Halal Tandoori
401 S. Vermont Ave. LA
(they deliver to Los Feliz, probably Hollywood and SilverLake as well)
(213) 383-9976

I love the Chicken Tikka Masala and the Sag Paneer the best here. Cheese naan is also excellent. Could cheese naan really be an authentic Indian food? Do I give a sh**? Cheese and naan, together? It's too good to be true.

It's pretty good food. I've ordered from there a few times. Say hi to Mohammed for me.

I have heard totally unsubstantiated rumors that a Starbucks may replace Luna Sol. Don't get me started.