Stuyvesant Town residents at 435, 445, 447, 449, 451, 453, 455, 505, 515 and 521 East 14th
Street are still without heat and hot water tonight. Yesterday, they got several hours notice that their buildings would be without utilities for 12 hours today. Tishman Speyer distributed classy Xeroxed fliers throughout the buildings promising the heat and hot water would be back on by 10PM this evening. A resident at 449 East 14th Street still without hot water and heat sent us this email:
Another tenant recently commented:
"Well it is 10PM and I still don't have hot water or heat. Aside from not being able to do laundry on my only day off from work, my husband, kids and myself still can't take a shower. They won't have to evict us in May when our lease is up because we are more than happy to get the hell out of here!"
Another tenant recently commented:
"Well it's 10:20 and there's still hot heat/hot water. TURN THE HOT WATER BACK ON YOU ROTTEN SLUM LORDS!"
It's more than 10. Buildings on the oval are also still without hot water and heat, and it's 11:10 PM.
It seems like TS hired ex FEMA staffers who got their experience in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. I'm sorry I moved out just as all the fun was starting.
Are all those trucks and workers on 14th and A part of this deal?
In my building the hot water came on around 12, heat came on shortly afterwards. The whole of Sunday was shot to hell - couldn't shower, do laundry, wash dishes or get warm. What a way to live.
Just wondering folks - if you didn't have hot water for the last 13 days or so, what did you do about showers? Friends' apartments? Hotels?
Oval Hose.
I live in 6 Stuyvesant Oval and have not felt the heat go on at all during the past week. We filed a report with maintenance 3 times. All they did was come by at 10:15 am while we were at work and left a note saying "sorry we missed you"
Curious, when the hot water goes out in my building I use the shower at Crunch, the gym on 13th Street and University.
The heat issue--and it is a serious breach of the lease requirement to provide the means for adequate living--is but one health and safety issue that if violated by any other landlord but TS, and to the extent that it has been violated--would result in major fines, readjustments and "slum-lord" news coverage. However, we have all learned of the TS protected status: insulated by the Mayor's favoritism and cosseted by the the city power brokers' favorite PR firm: Rubenstein Associates. We are all beginning to fear a major breakdown of service or a collapse of general safety in the complex.
Curious, you fill a basin with hot water (boiled with electric kettle if you don't have any gas)and wash down as far as possible; wash up as far as possible; then wash possible. Just the way great granny used do it it with the old jug and basin in the old country. We haven't progressed much in StuyTown have we? We just need pee pots under the beds and the transportation back in time is complete.
Stuy Town was always no-frills living. They can do cosmetic cover-ups for the market rate apartments and they can keep planting and replanting the jungle to pretend they can hide the style of the buildings but it remains no-frills living, with steam pipes in each room, with 1950s air conditioners and all the realities of aging buildings. It was quite nice, it was quiet, it even had an atmosphere of community before they tried to make it something that it isn't and can never be. It is what it is but everyone's supposed to have heat, gas and hot water like they always did. And by the way, anyone who thinks Oval Concibullshit replaces doormen didn't see this building on Halloween. One elevator, outsiders holding it so tenants couldn't get home, "security" that told one caller they have two properties to watch, said they'd send a car and they didn't. And there's still shaving cream on the hallway walls. No one cleans in this building on weekends but it's Monday afternoon now. Tenants had to clean it off the elevator buttons themselves so they could take the one working elevator. And the employee in the "security" shack on Ave A & 14th at 7pm on Friday was asleep. It is what it is and there's no security and it's not luxury.
KC,
I got the "Sorry we missed you" note too, at a time when I obviously wouldn't be home. I called back to set up an appt. The gentleman in India who took my call seemed to have a hard time understanding why "no heat" wuld be a problem. He told me that I had to call back.
These people suck.
"E" Line
funny you mention the outsourced customer service in India. I have received rent bills for the past 2 months claiming that I owe double my monthly rent. Anytime I call to verify, they tell me don't worry it's fine. So I went straight to the management office (had to take a day off from work) and the woman there brought out paper saying I owed double the rent because I missed a payment in September. When I asked her why the customer service TWICE said I was fine, she said it was because they have a poorly outsourced group.
I had to bring my bank statements to show the copy of the check they deposited. The woman then said she'd send me written confirmation in the mail that the issue was resolved. $20 bucks says I get another bill claiming I owe more money