We’re facing eviction by the end of the month for raising pest problems with our landlord

A TENANT union has declared war against their landlord after he reportedly served 13 residents with eviction notices during rent negotiations.

Members of the Blake Street Tenants Union at Elizabeth Apartments in New Haven, Connecticut, have come together to petition the mass eviction.

“I think it’s disgusting that my landlord, who is not from here and who doesn’t live here, is treating people’s dignity, stability, and security like it’s a game to make money,” said vice president of the union Sarah Giovanniello, per NBC affiliate WVIT.

Giovanniello and other union leaders are standing up for a slew of people who are facing eviction at the hands of landlord Shmulik Aizenberg – the owner of Ocean Management.

The tenants were given the notice on Saturday, and have until the end of the month to leave.

“Fifteen families. It’s unacceptable, we won’t have it,” said tenant Alder Brian Wingate.

Locals gather to show support to the union members who fear the repercussions of an eviction will follow them forever.

“They’ll have it on the record that they are part of an eviction proceeding, and they will be blacklisted from trying to rent another place, which will be on everyone’s mind if they do indeed get evicted,” said Hannah Srajer, president of the Connecticut Tenants Union.

Aizenberg is embroiled in six criminal court cases with at least 60 housing violations, court records show.

He’s also been named in another lawsuit involving a $10million home improvement loan that has missing payments.

Giovanniello is involved in one of the cases, saying the company has been unresponsive to reports of rodents in the building.

She was working with the city’s Liveable Cities Initiative to file a complaint, but the management company wasn’t cooperating, leading her to start the court case.

Ocean Management met with Giovanniello and other tenants for negotiations three times. They were beginning to agree on new rent prices, but couldn’t settle on a number.

They walked away from the negotiation and were hit with eviction notices.

“I think we could all pay a little bit more,” Giovanniello said.

“But 20 percent when the service has declined, the communication is not there, there are code violations all over the apartment complex that are not getting responded to, it just seems a little hard to take.”

Others involved with the case claim that simply having a conversation with leadership is a difficult task.

“I said ‘Hey did you get our letter?’ knowing that they did,” said Jessica Stamp, steward of the Blake Street Tenants’ Union.

“Aizenberg turned around and gave me his back and refused to make eye contact with me for the entire conversation.”

With a hard battle ahead of them, members are feeling proud that a union was organized and established just last year.

“I didn’t know how powerful that law would be, but today you realize just how powerful that law is,” New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said.

“You all will have shown just how much power you have and how much power so many other people can have by organizing.”

The city’s Fair Rent Commission will schedule a retaliatory hearing.

The U.S. Sun has reached out to Ocean Management for comment.