NVIC not at fault in 522 Landfair eviction

Taylor is the founder and managing director of the North Village
Improvement Committee.

By Shelley Taylor

This is in response to the poorly researched Daily Bruin
editorial regarding the shutting down of 522 Landfair
(“522
Landfair needed help, not banishment,“ Viewpoint, Feb.
8).

The Bruin makes numerous erroneous assumptions and implies that
I initiated the complaints leading to the eviction of building
tenants ““ but they have it backwards.

The so-called Sober Living Apartments were brought to my
attention by Battalion Chief Larry Schneider of Fire Station
37. Chief Schneider called a meeting with residents, the city
and UCLA, informing us that his paramedic ambulance had responded
29 times to the Sober Living facility in a nine-month period for
drug-related problems, including drug overdoses. This was
corroborated by UCPD spokesperson Nancy Greenstein.

After that meeting, I contacted the property owners and offered
the North Village Improvement Committee’s assistance. I
also put a fraternity seeking a new home in touch with the
owners.

Several neighbors ““ UCLA students, I might add ““ who
had been victims of crimes committed by residents of this facility
nicknamed it “The Crackhouse” ““ that ought to
tell you something about it. In an area where the rents are high,
students have a right to expect a community free from crime, trash
and graffiti.

Fire Department 37 answers all calls for UCLA: the campus,
dorms, co-ops, fraternities, sororities and apartments. Tying
up their ambulance to answer overdose calls to a supposedly
drug-free facility means this emergency service is unavailable for
true emergencies. This underscores the magnitude of the
failure of the Sober Living Apartments.

William and Denise Hinton, whose company, Serenity, managed this
supposedly drug-free building, are hardly philanthropists
if they earn their living by operating this property and
others like it.

The Bruin news headline, “Residents allege wrongful
eviction” suggested the eviction was improper (News, Feb.
11). The article documented the illegal behavior of tenants
and irresponsible management. It quotes residents stating
there was no 12-step program at all. Hinton was quoted as
saying, “There were some bad apples.”

This eviction was the result of a court order secured by the
city attorney’s citywide Nuisance Abatement Program after
extensive documented evidence of numerous crimes. The Hintons
were aware of serious violations for quite some time. They
were either unwilling or unable to effect a turn around. 

The Nuisance Abatement Program steps in only in the most severe
cases with a long record of criminal activity. These crimes
were documented by LAPD, UCPD and LAFD records.

The Bruin editorial reduced all the NVIC has worked for to
“the destructive actions of a vigilante neighbor.”

A thorough investigation of the facts, and reflection in
previous Bruin articles, would show the NVIC is much more than a
forum for spotlighting problem properties. The NVIC was
created to generate a sense of community and improve quality of
life for all who live in the neighborhood, the majority of whom are
students. 

The Bruin editorial suggests the NVIC should put our energy to
other efforts. 

We have cleaned up trash and graffiti and reduced the problem of
abandoned furniture (a fire hazard).

We lobbied to get our fair share of city services such as
repainting street lampposts.

We worked with UCLA Community Relations and the Intrafraternity
Council to organize Operation Clean Sweep, which has removed more
than 30,000 pounds of trash.

We provided free consultation services for ZBT’s
renovation and are available to any fraternity who would like
assistance.

Parking is perhaps the No. 1 student complaint. The NVIC is
working with the city to minimize the 40-plus on-street parking
spaces lost daily due to trash bins left in the street for
pickup. 

Not noting any of these facts seems vitriolic and reduces The
Bruin’s credibility. 

The Bruin is trying to simplistically reduce this issue to
“us against them” when the NVIC is an ally of the
students in trying to improve the living conditions for all who
make their home in the North Village.

In the future, I hope The Bruin will spend more time
investigating the facts before churning out the rhetoric.