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Grass Roots Venice asks owner to stop evicting tenants at Lincoln Place

The Grass Roots Venice Neighborhood Council has called for the owner of the Lincoln Place apartment complex in Venice to immediately stop eviction of tenants.

The Neighborhood Council voted unanimously Thursday, November 17th, to request that Terry Considine, chief executive officer of Lincoln Place owner Apartment Investment Management Company (AIMCO), immediately halt all evictions and negotiate a settlement that will "preserve the tenancies of our neighbors."

Neighborhood Council members also voted to request that Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and local Los Angeles Councilman Bill Rosendahl try to communicate the will of the Neighborhood Council directly to Considine and AIMCO officials.

The requests were presented in a letter that was sent to AIMCO officials and the Los Angeles City Council.

By using "coercive tactics," AIMCO will achieve nothing in Los Angeles except to severely limit any development activities in Los Angeles to only what can be built "by right," with no variances, no discretionary approvals and no increased density, Neighborhood Council members argue.

Grass Roots Neighborhood Council members said that a negotiated settlement at Lincoln Place with no evictions is a "prerequisite for any further discretionary activity on the part of our City that would benefit AIMCO."

AIMCO promised in a Vesting Tentative Tract Map that no Lincoln Place tenants would be evicted, Neighborhood Council members claim.

The Neighborhood Council has requested that city attorney Rocky Delgadillo communicate to Considine that AIMCO "keep the promise it made" in the Vesting Tentative Tract Map not to evict tenants, but rather to relocate tenants within the property.

If AIMCO persists in its attempts to evict Lincoln Place tenants and tries to build in the community, Grass Roots Venice Neighborhood Council members said they plan to represent the tenants after their eviction.

Grass Roots Neighborhood Council members also plan to communicate their position to other Neighborhood Councils throughout the city.