Pearl River      ACORN made its public debut in Cleveland with a smashing announcement of a jointly authored and researched study between ACORN and VAPAC, the Vacant and Abandoned Properties Action Council, focused on a Baltimore-based company, Riparian Capital Partners.  Riparian had acquired 173 properties in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, with 153 located in Cleveland.  ACORN members had been complaining about the condition of the properties and their living conditions.  Door knocking all of the properties, ACORN found only 30 that were actually occupied with 79% vacancy rate, a year after Riparian had acquired the homes and promised to rehabilitate them and make them available.

In a press conference releasing the ACORN and VAPAC report, “ACORN organizers “found evidence of disrepair and neglect and few signs of active rehabilitation,” the study said. “Tenants reported living in unsafe and unhealthy conditions.”   City inspections and code violations backed up what tenants reported.

The city has issued 101 violation notices, written 191 civil tickets and brought 19 cases against the company in Cleveland Housing Court, Building and Housing Director Sally Martin O’Toole said.  Riparian has appealed nine code violations and paid 38 of the tickets, according to O’Toole. The company has hired an attorney to represent it in its code violation appeals and in the housing court cases.

The company’s response was an exercise in finger pointing.  They blamed the seller, Voyager, which has been involved in litigation and investigations for its practices in other states.  Riparian alleged that they were defrauded with little credibility, since they had not raised this issue in earlier interactions with the authorities.  The city has indicated it would take Riparian to court to seize the properties.

In a huge victory, Riparian is on the run and seems to almost want to legally abandon the properties that the company has in reality already been abandoning.  ACORN learned after the report release that the city housing director is already lining up receivers to take over these properties once they get a judge to order them taken away, Craig Robbins, ACORN’s Field Coordinator, who was at the scene reported later.

The problem of financialization of housing isn’t new, nor is out-of-town ownership by various branches of private equity and housing speculation.  Whole tranches of housing were absorbed by such companies after the 2007-8 housing meltdown in the United States.  When the housing is located in industrial cities and minority neighborhoods too often the abuses are unchecked as companies sit on the housing stock hoping for some appreciation and a quick killing with tenants taking the hindmost in maintenance and repair, regardless of the often-high rents they are paying.

ACORN – and VAPAC – just made it clear that day is coming to an end in Cleveland!