I attended a great meeting this evening regarding trash, rats and other student housing related issues Georgetown University, local leaders and concerned neighbors are trying admirably to try to solve along a two block area just off campus.
As we went around the room, a lot of people were recommending “reminder” signs students could tape to their doors to remember to take out the trash, harsher penalties from the university, tougher fines on landlords, and other enforcement/oversight type remedies.
But no one, no one mentioned actually talking with students. In fact, no students were even present [although they did make that recommendation near the end of the meeting].
The truth is none of these young adults have ever paid a mortgage, most have never purchased appliances or spent an afternoon manicuring their lawns, never paid a utility bill or been worried about their property values because of their neighbor’s messy front yard. So rather then craft new penalties, why not at least try to have a conversation.
This was the idea behind this blog and the social tools linked here. Have a conversation. If people wanted to join in, they could. If they wanted to listen, they could. If they wanted to pull down a few items and never come back again they could. And we hope it’s working.
There are real legal and financial penalties for real issues that put people in danger, don’t get us wrong. And we can, will and should cite housing code violations as often as we see them. Call 202-442-9557 today and we’ll come. But the problems discussed this evening can be solved more easily and will never be solved permanently unless we stop thinking less in terms of penalties. Why not offer rewards? Instead of posting warnings, hand them reminders. Instead of sending threatening letters, stand on the corner or knock on the door and say hello. Students aren’t unreasonable. If they realize that tossing trash outside, unsealed is the reason there are rat droppings all over their living room floor, they’ll get it.
And then if these efforts fail. If they refuse to acknowledge the problem and are cavalier, then let’s throw the book at them. But first we should try to convince rather than intimidate. It hasn’t worked for decades, and probably won’t work now.
Chances are that if you don’t have an off-campus apartment in DC for this fall, you are scrambling, freaking out and willing to take just about anything near campus. You’re scouring Craigslist and other apartment listing services. These sites are great, but what they don’t do is filter. Anyone and everyone can post whatever they want without much recourse. You get what you get. This is crunch time and you might settle for something that is ugly. That’s fine. You might settle for something small. Chances are that’s fine too. But what you don’t want is something that’s unsafe.
Part of the reason the District of Columbia requires landlords to get licensed isn’t because we get just get a check – in fact, the licensing is not a money-raising venture for DCRA. The key reason is that for the license to be approved, the landlord needs to have an inspection of the property. Are there two exits in case there’s a fire? Is there smoke alarms? Does the plumbing leak? Here is a list of just the simple items we look for. You can print and take that list with you when you check out the place.
We know you’re in a rush to get into something. But please, please at least ask your landlord if he is licensed by DCRA. Or you can look up all licensed rental properties through our main Website here. There is a guide that shows you what type of rental license you need to be looking for. If your potential apartment isn’t listing, ask the landlord why. Ask him the last time it was inspected. Show him the checklist. This sounds annoying, we know. But you are going to sleep in someone’s house you don’t know and if he can’t answer simple questions, then how he will respond later. Just something to think about. Most of the landlords in DC are great and most have licenses from DCRA. Now is the time that those who just want to make a quick buck prey upon the thousands students who arrive every fall.
So look up the apartment and ask some questions. This will at least offer a little filtering of the places you’ll see online. If you have any questions, email us, tweet us or chat with us on Facebook. We’re here 24 hours a day to answer any questions or help give you some guidance on your search. Good luck. The Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs can help.
And to those landlords who are not licensed. It’s not too late, you won’t be penalized and it is a simple and quick process. Here is a fact sheet. And you too can email us, tweet us or chat with us on Facebook. We want students and all residents to be safe. We are inspecting all rental units in the District over the next few years so you might as well do the right thing and get licensed and inspected now and keep the students you’re renting safe. Keep your property safe.
There has been a lot of discussion in recent days regarding the fate of 1841 16th Street NW – a beautiful home on the corner of 16th and T Street. While the current discussion focuses on whether the building will be razed or stabilized (and eventually renovated), an important point is being missed. One of the reasons the home was allowed to crumble was that tenants said they were too scared to call the city.
Yet, the most recent complaint received by the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs was in 2004. When owners failed to make exterior repairs, DCRA stepped in and spent $9,000 to fix the exterior. At the same time, the city revoked the owners’ rental license.
The owners then illegally allowed tenants back into the building. Because the rent rates were low and the location was good – no one wanted to complain to the city, according to former tenants.
Stephanie Larsen, a third-floor tenant at the time of the collapse, told the Examiner that they complained to the owners about the conditions to no avail, but they feared a backlash, including eviction, if they blabbed to the government.
While details of the legitimacy of tenants and other details are unclear and are being investigated, it is very clear that these students should have called the city and reported the conditions. There would have been an immediate inspection and a lot of the current controversy may have been able to be avoided.
Since the collapse, DCRA has instituted a new Proactive Inspections program that will inspect all multi-unit buildings in the District of Columbia over a three-year period whether a tenant complains or not. We hope this eliminates many of these situations.
But if you know there are issues as serious as Corcoran and Larsen implied, call 202-442-9557 immediately or email dcra.housingcomplaints@dc.gov, DO NOT WAIT and be sure you are safe. And no matter how great of a deal the rent and location may be, always ask if the potential landlord is licensed. You can check for yourself here.
via Lara King (Guess where the map is from)
Thisshouldbeillegal.com was lucky enough to be mentioned as a blog of note by Georgetown University Public Relations professor and social media evangelist Mark Story in his rapidly growing #BlogMonday effort via his blog The Intersection of Online and Offline. Mark mentioned we were doing a good job using this blog for “local grassroots efforts.” Thanks, Mark. Disclosure: Mark was DCRA’s Communications Manager Mike Rupert’s (ME, the Author) professor.
So in honor of #blogmonday, even though yes we know its random on a Wednesday, we decided to share a few other DC hyperlocal blogs that we watch on a regular basis.
Bread for the City’s Beyond Bread
BFC’s Greg Bloom writes this blog that focuses not just on the important, essential activities of this non-profit, but shares link love and ideas with bloggers across the District. We met with him a few weeks ago and he has some real powerful ideas on how government, non-profits, private sector and residents can work together to improve the District. They just held several blogger meet-ups over the past few weeks as well. Follow them on Twitter too.
While this isn’t really a blog, this non-profit has definitely embraced social media and is doing great things to spread word of the issues, challenges and opportunities to help the District’s homeless. Non-profits in DC should definitely check out their site. Check them out on Twitter and Facebook. Their main site is linked in the title above. Ahh, we’ll put it here too.
For coders, journos and/or those just interested in local DC development, this blog run by Jacqueline Dupree is an essential read. She has taken social media, mash-ups and straight journalism to new levels. She won the Knight-Batten Citizen Media Award last fall. Check it out. We honestly don’t understand how she does this alone. Also, follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
Several commenters on our Facebook pages said they submitted lists of alleged illegal rental units in condominium buildings several months ago and still see that the units are unlicensed. We can appreciate your frustration. However, the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs cannot enter a building or an individual unit without the consent of the property owner and the tenant unless there is an extremely dangerous c0ndition. Several lists provided to us included addresses for secured buildings with both condo owners and alleged illegal renters. We have attempted to contact and investigate dozens of these units, but have had minimal success in gaining entry. For other buildings where everyone is a tenant, it is clear and easy for us to determine if the entire building is licensed. For single family homes with basement apartments, it is easy to determine externally whether the seperate unit is being rented without a license. However, for condo buildings this is nearly impossible without the consent of the owner and/or tenants. We send letters to the units and owners, but for the past few attempts we have had minimal luck. Please continue to send us lists and tips, but we wanted to let you know, especially for condo buildings where you have owners and renters, this task is difficult. Often a letter to the renter warning them that they are being rented to illegally is enough to get them to answer begin to ask some questions. And without any other recourse, this is the most we are allowed to do legally.
This is an extra special message to all colleges and universities here in the District. Many of you are getting ready for graduation and taking summer courses–maybe even working a summer job. But, we’d like for you to take a moment to consider supporting National Campus Fire Safety Month, which will officially kick off on September 17th, shortly after many of you return from summer break. It runs the entire month of September. So, start putting your plans together now, including whether you want to host any special events to educate your peers about fire safety. The summer will have come and gone before you know it and it’s best to at least have an idea of how you want to honor the month before you leave for break.
This will mark the fifth year of National Campus Fire Safety Month and organizers are making a big push on Capitol Hill. They are hoping Congress will assist them in urging schools to host fire safety courses for students. Over 80 percent of the college students who have died in fires have met their end in off-campus housing. Daniel Rigby, a Georgetown University student, died in a fire in off-campus housing he was renting back in 2004. His family and friends have been honoring his life with an annual 5k run and ball for the past five years.
“The value of National Campus Fire Safety Month comes from everyone joining together, both in Washington and across the nation, to make students, parents, schools and communities aware of the importance of fire safety on our campuses,” said Ed Comeau, publisher of Campus Firewatch.
This year’s motto for National Campus Fire Safety Month is “Fire Safety — It’s Part of Living” and it couldn’t be more appropriate. Fire safety is a matter of life and death and DCRA wants the time spent by every student visiting the District for higher learning to be safe and enjoyable. So, start thinking about how you want to take part in National Campus Fire Safety month and let us know what you guys are doing! We’d love to partner with you, highlight some of the things you are doing or just support your efforts in general. Don’t forget to take a look at the wealth of information right here at thisshouldbeillegal.com and let us know if there’s something else you think we should post. We’d love to hear it. We will be continuing our own crusade to educate students about fire safety.
Check out the heart-wrenching video below of the father of a Miami University student who was killed in an off-campus house fire back in 2005. It’s a story no parent should have to tell…..
Okay, not really. We didn’t do anything that necessarily proved that we have super powers, but we did do something good! Tuesday, we packed up the truck car with fliers, water bottles and refrigerator magnets and headed to Howard University to take part in their off-campus housing fair. As with other colleges and universities in the District, we attend events like this to inform students about their rights as renters before they sign leases.
The event at Howard was great. A steady stream of students visited the fair, eager to get information from vendors hoping to rent apartments to them. Meanwhile, we informed as many students in the hall as possible about the tools right here at Thisshouldbeillegal.com that will help them avoid all types of rental nightmares. We also informed them that even if they decided to ignore our advice and find themselves in a bad situation, they can still contact us for assistance with rental unit issues.
One of the biggest bits of advice that we give to students planning to rent here in the District is to make sure that the would be landlord is registered with DCRA to legitimitely rent a house or apartment. We warned them against signing leases that would be landlords try to rush them into committing to and we told them, “If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”
Be sure to tell your friends about this site if they are planning to rent in DC! We were told some horror stories by some of the students who stopped by to chat with us at Howard. We would really like for you not to have rats as roommates either.
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- DCRA Community Outreach Specialist Jessica Edmond speaks with students about Thisshouldbeillegal.com.
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- A number of rental companies were on hand to pitch their communities to the students.
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- Students had a number of questions for the rental companies on hand.
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- DCRA’s Jessica Edmond and Joseph Emanuel, Special Assistant to the Dean at Howard pose for a goodbye picture at the event’s end.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) issued a strong warning to students at the Catholic University of America recently. They cautioned students against what they are calling “outrageous” conduct at off-campus housing. DCRA would like to echo MPD’s sentiments, especially as we move towards the close of the semester and the sure to happen end of the year parties.
For DCRA’s part, as Sergeant Wayne Steinhilber mentioned in his post at the CUA Tower, if trash and debris is covering the ground outside of one of these houses, we will get involved–including the possible issuance of fines. Landlords don’t tend to really like the idea of police, fire marshalls and city inspectors and investigators frequenting their properties. So, if you are a student at CUA or any of the other colleges and universities in the District, certainly enjoy college life, but be mindful that there are rules that you have to follow.
Just the same as you want your landlords to respect your requests for service or assistance, your landlords expect for you to be respectful of their properties. Your neighbors want to know that their homes will be safe with you around. So, party like it’s 1999 2009, but be careful and be wise. Just this past weekend, the annual Run for Rigby was held to commemorate the life of former Georgetown University student Daniel Rigby. He was killed in a house fire back in 2004 at no fault of his own. How do you think your family would feel about getting a call that something had happened to you, only there’s a great chance you were at fault? Not good…….
This weekend, take part in what is becoming a powerful, annual tradition here in the District– the 5k Run for Rigby and Rigby Ball, started to commemorate the life of Georgetown University student Daniel Rigby. Rigby died during a fire in a room he was renting in and off-campus house in 2004. The Friends of Rigby Foundation was started to honor his memory and to raise “awareness about student safety as well as donating scholarships to the needy to further Dan’s scholarly pursuits and his belief in volunteering to assist the less fortunate.”
This Saturday, the Rigby Weekend festivities will kick off to honor his life five years after that tragic fire. Here is a snapshot of what you can expect if you want to participate:
NON-STUDENT: Combo Run for Rigby + Rigby Ball
Date/Time: 4/4/2009 @ 2pm & 9:30pm respectively
Location: Georgetown Red Square & Union Station Thunder Grill
Price: $85 - Buy Tickets Now
Notes: Combo ticket includes both events.
NON-STUDENT: Rigby Ball
Date/Time: 4/4/2009 @ 9:30pm-12:30am
Location: Thunder Grill @ Union Station, Washington DC
Price: $80 - Buy Tickets Now
STUDENT: Combo Run for Rigby + Rigby Ball
Date/Time: 4/4/2009 @ 2pm & 9:30pm respectively
Location: Georgetown Red Square & Union Station Thunder Grill
Price: $75 - Buy Tickets Now
Notes: Student tickets will require a valid ID upon check-in.
STUDENT: Rigby Ball
Date/Time: 4/4/2009 @ 9:30pm-12:30am
Location: Thunder Grill @ Union Station, Washington DC
Price: $65 – Buy Tickets Now
Notes:
Run for Rigby
Date/Time: 4/4/2009 @ 2pm
Location: Red Square – Georgetown University, Washington DC
Price: $15 – Buy Tickets Now
Notes: 5K Race through Georgetown U. and surrounding neighborhood.
If you take part in the event, email us some pictures and we’ll post them here! This is a great cause and every year, a number of students across the country die in fires in off-campus housing. It doesn’t have to happen and raising awareness about students’ rights as renters as well as offering fire safety tips are two of the greatest ways to help prevent these tragedies.
Students, particularly those in the area of Georgetown University, be sure to keep your windows and doors locked. NBC 4 reports that the notorious “Georgetown Cuddler” may have struck in the area near your campus again:
On Wednesday, an intruder broke into a home on the 3300 block of Prospect Street, police said.
It may be the man responsible for a number of break-ins in the neighborhood. Students call him the Cuddler because he will climb into a bed or couch where a resident is sleeping.
“You can say it’s a little creepy,” said Georgetown student Katrina Koser. “Obviously waking up with someone you don’t know in your bed would be extremely scary.”
In the most recent incident, the Cuddler allegedly laid down on top of a woman on her sofa, possibly after getting in through an unlocked door around 4 a.m.
Yikes! Be sure to lock up before you hit the sack and when you head out every day. Remember, if any of the locks are not working, call your landlord and make him or her fix them! If you can’t get any results, give us a call. So far, the “Cuddler” hasn’t taken the touchy-feelyness any farther, but you can never be too careful and police are concerned that he might. Besides, isn’t snuggling up to someone without permission in the dead of night enough?!
