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Web www.startsandfits.com

City Limits reported last November that a judge had "appointed an independent administrator" to manage the building after years of neglect. In December 2003, City Limits had noted that the building, though relatively new, was in bad shape. "Apartment walls are stained with mold, ceilings are leaking, water bugs and mice lurk beneath radiators," the article said. It continues on to quote a tenant leader, Kim Smith, who said, "We lived through the slum era. We ought to be able to live through the renaissance."
The real issue is that when landlords let a federally financed building deterioriate, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development takes it over and gives Section 8 rent vouchers to the tenants. Meanwhile, HUD auctions the building off or gives it to a more qualified landlord. So the signs seem to be posted because the tenants at Ennis Francis want the Abyssinian Development Corporation, a highly esteemed community-based development organization, to manage their building instead of a speculative landlord who could try to profit by keeping maintenance at a minimum, as seems to be what happened before. In 2003, City Limits evaluated HUD's policies for disposing of poorly maintained property, and concluded, "tenants like those at Ennis Francis are going to have to fight for the future of their homes." That seems to be exactly what is happening.

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