‘Anti-disabled’ eviction fury
JOHN MARZULLI NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
B’klyn landlord nixed `agency’ tenants: suit
A FEDERAL judge has issued a temporary order to stop the eviction of a mentally disabled man from his building — where the landlord in the gentrifying neighborhood allegedly no longer wants to lease apartments to tenants with disabilities.
Robert Cardona, 46, was informed that he was getting the boot when his lease expires on Nov. 30, according to a lawsuit filed in Brooklyn Federal Court by Lawyers for the Public Interest.
Cardona is a client of the nonprofit group Job Path, which has held a rent-stabilized lease on the Prospect-Lefferts Gardens apartment since 2003 and covers the $1,100-amonth tab for him by managing his government benefits.
Cardona has lived in the apartment since 2004 and is described by his lawyers as a “model tenant.”
But last summer, 1799 Bedford Associates LLC, the owner of the Bedford Ave. building — two blocks from Prospect Park — notified Job Path it was not renewing the lease because the management no longer wanted to deal with “agencies” or with “anyone in programs,” according to court papers.
The suit contends the landlord’s new policy discriminates against people with disabilities and violates the Fair Housing Act and New York City Human Rights Law.
“Mr. Cardona is terrified at the prospect of losing his home and embarrassed that defendants are singling him out on the basis of his disability,” the suit states.
“He does not know where he will live or how he will survive if defendants evict him after Thanksgiving.”
Federal Judge Margo Brodie issued an order last week barring the landlord from removing Cardona from the apartment pending a decision on his lawyer’s motion for an injunction. A hearing is scheduled for Friday.
A representative for the landlord could not be reached for comment. Job Path, which was founded in 1978, provides supported living and employment programs for people with intellectual disabilities and autism.
“If Job Path cannot secure alternative housing for Mr. Cardona, he faces the prospect of homelessness,” the suit warns.
Robert Cardona, a client of nonprofit Job Path, is being forced from this Prospect-Lefferts Gardens apartment building because of his mental disability even though he’s a “model tenant,” lawsuit charges.