A battle is raging within the East Village as tenants and their landlord argue accusations of harassment and misconduct.
For years, 109 East ninth St. between third and 4th Avenues has turn into a battleground for a feud that has endured for the reason that constructing got here below new possession of MGNY Consulting in June of 2021. The five-story pre-war construction homes 14 single-room-occupancy (SRO) items.
Simply six tenants, nonetheless, reside within the constructing, renting personal rooms and sharing communal kitchens, showers, and restrooms. Nonetheless, because of ongoing development inside the constructing, most of the communal restrooms and a kitchen have been gutted. The remainder of the items are vacated and padlocked.
The Division of Buildings’ on-line database reveals 30 complaints over constructing circumstances at 109 East ninth St. filed since 2021. Final November, a partial vacate order was issued for one fourth-floor residence after inspectors discovered damaged partitions and a damaged ground that uncovered picket joists.
However these tenants struggling to stay have engaged in an all-out battle with the constructing’s landlord, Michael Geylik, who arrange his primary workplace on the bottom ground. Whereas the tenants declare he’s doing every part doable to drive them out of their properties, Geylik argues that the tenants are intentionally focusing on him for cash.
What tenants are saying
Peterson Beckwith says he has been residing at 109 East ninth St. since 1991. He instructed amNewYork that he feels Geylik is making an attempt to drive him out of his room by means of systematic abuse. He alleges that the premises are being deliberately left in disrepair to deem the constructing unsafe, forcing those that reside there to be eliminated.
“After the owner tore out the interiors of the residences under mine, my flooring turned extraordinarily chilly. After the owner eliminated the lavatory on my ground, I’ve needed to stroll down a flight upstairs simply to make use of the lavatory,” Beckwith stated. “When the owner tore out the principle bathe and loo above me, even fundamental bathing turned disagreeable. Eradicating our communal kitchen made meals extra pricey and fewer wholesome.”
Beckwith accused Geylik of mendacity to him and fellow tenants, and making a state of affairs that has made residing within the place he’s referred to as dwelling for greater than 30 years a residing hell: “We now have all skilled nervousness, concern and stress.”
Tenants claimed that Geylik is deliberately not renting out the remaining rooms and refusing to appropriate Division of Buildings (DOB) code violations as he tries to have the constructing declared uninhabitable, regardless of DOB deeming it livable.
Additionally they added that HPD rescinded the certificates of no harassment issued to Geylik, making it authorized for him to repair the bogs, after the Workplace of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) discovered him liable, which is able to drive him to make the repairs.
Zachary Corridor, one other tenant who says he has lived within the constructing for over a decade, says he was provided a buyout to go away. He refused as a result of it couldn’t cowl the additional bills of residing elsewhere within the metropolis.
“The buyout could be very small. It’s nothing that might even pay for the lease for one yr,” Corridor stated. “There needs to be extra of this housing, not much less of it. That is my dwelling. I’ve no intention of residing wherever else.”
Thomas Dukleth, one more tenant, charged that just one room within the residence had been deemed unsafe to reside in, which they are saying was because of the landlord’s personal development work.
“DOB has repeatedly discovered the constructing is at present secure for occupancy. DOB not too long ago added that one unoccupied residence for the ceilings and flooring had been demolished by the owner in November 2024 when a lot of the others have been demolished by the owner, was particularly unsafe for occupancy on account of the owner’s personal destruction,” Dukleth stated.
What the owner is saying
Geylik spoke to amNewYork throughout this paper’s go to to the constructing Tuesday, pushing again on all the tenants’ claims. He went so far as to allege that the tenants have been making an attempt to make use of the housing system to extort cash from him.
In line with Geylik, after he bought the constructing, he turned conscious of earlier DOB violations and commenced development to attempt to repair them.
“I needed to get the certificates of occupancy, however the Constructing Division stated we’re not going to present you a certificates of occupancy for the work that you simply did, until you clear outdated open violations. And there have been two or three violations for work, for work with no allow, that included hazardous fuel connection and unlawful pipes that eliminated or transformed SRO unit to a kitchen with unlawful fuel and plumbing connection,” Geylik stated. “So, to ensure that me to conform and get the certificates of occupancy, I needed to rent a licensed grasp plumber, file LAA, which stands for restricted alteration utility, get a allow, and truly file two or three separate LAA functions to take away the plumbing connections that have been in these areas.”
Geylik claimed that many of those points stemmed from circumstances that existed over twenty years earlier than he bought the constructing. He instructed amNewYork that with the certificates of no harassment from the DOB, he deliberate on fixing the communal kitchen — when a big crack appeared that, he stated, made it unsafe to carry out the development.
“I imagine on April 8, 2024, there was an earthquake that occurred, and the crack turned even greater. So, I needed to carry an engineer to take a look at the constructing, as a result of we now have a plan to put in the kitchen and the lavatory, to do every part the authorized means,” Geylik stated. “The engineer instructed me, ‘Michael, it’s a must to be loopy. The constructing is barely standing. You shouldn’t be touching or placing any further load into the constructing as a result of it’d collapse.’”
Along with his development woes, Geylik additionally charged that his renters have been making an attempt to take advantage of him by demanding a big payout with a purpose to go away the constructing.
He made claims in opposition to those that spoke out in opposition to him, stating that a lot of them have had unlawful renovations made of their rooms, even including that he has video proof that it’s not Beckwith’s major handle.
This isn’t the primary time he says he has had issues with tenants. He confirmed amNewYork a Grand Jury indictment of former tenant Remi Chlapek for intercourse trafficking all through 2025, and is at present being held on Rikers Island.
“It’s simply not a good system. There are dangerous landlords, however not all landlords are dangerous, and I genuinely attempt to adjust to all of the requests and necessities,” Geylik stated.
The battle
Each the tenants and Geylik tried to point out amNewYork across the constructing on Tuesday, after they bought right into a heated argument. This disturbed one resident who swung open her door and joined the fray.
“I’m making an attempt to sleep, it’s worthwhile to relax. Mr. Geylik, I’m making an attempt to sleep,” the girl yelled.
In the meantime, Geylik himself demanded that Thomas Dukleth open his room to the press, believing that he had unlawful work he wished to cover.
“Thomas, wish to present your unit?” Geylik requested.
“Not at this time,” replied.
“Since you are hiding stuff. I’ll disclose every part, you will note,” Geylik stated.
In line with Anna Baker-Heans, a group organizer for the Cooper Sq. Committee, this was an instance of Geylik’s harassment.
“We’d have cherished to point out you a tenant room, however they’re represented by authorized counsel. So is the owner. In order that they have a coverage that nobody enters items with out their attorneys. He has simply tried to enter tenant items with out their lawyer or his lawyer current, and has obstructed us from displaying you,” Baker-Heans stated.
