Bronx Tenants Storm Bank, Demand Building Repairs [VIDEO]

Tenants Rally at New York Community Bank from Bronx News Network on Vimeo.

A group of Bronx tenants from a number of foreclosed, violation-riddled apartments have filed a lawsuit against the bank that owns the mortgage on their properties, hoping to hold the lender responsible for paying for repairs.

The lawsuit was filed last Thursday on behalf of tenants by Legal Services NYC-Bronx, the Urban Justice Center, Urban Homesteading Assistance Board and NY Communities for Change.

That same day, residents from the buildings and organizers rallied at a Manhattan branch of the New York Community Bank. They were turned away after asking to see the branch manager to make their case (see the video, above, for more from the scene.)

"We don't do those types of loans here," the dismayed manager said, after closing the door to her office once protesters filed inside the bank's lobby.

"You have no idea what we're going through, because you live fine," responded Gennet Riley, a tenant who lives in one of the foreclosed buildings at 735 Bryant Avenue. "We're here trying to let you understand that we care about our buildings. We just want you to acknowledge us."

City Launches Housing Initiative, Inspired by Milbank Mess [VIDEO]

Mayor Bloomberg Announces New Housing Initiative from Bronx News Network on Vimeo.
Above, Mayor Bloomberg discusses a new way the city plans to drive landlords to repair housing violations.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg was in the Bronx today to announce a new city housing initiative largely inspired by the Milbank properties--the now infamous 10 neglected apartment buildings in the northwest Bronx that have been falling apart since foreclosure two years ago.

The Mayor made the announcement this morning at Our Lady Of Angels Church, on Webb Avenue in Kingsbridge Heights, before a crowd of Milbank tenants and organizers from the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition, who have been fighting for almost a year to draw the city's attention to the deteriorating buildings (here's a short summary for some background.)

The new "Proactive Preservation" program will essentially allow the Department of Housing Preservation and Development to more aggressively identify and inspect distressed properties, intervening to make repairs if necessary, in the hopes of preventing another Milbank scenario from taking place.

"While the work our housing inspectors do is very good, it can sometimes be too little, too late, or both," Bloomberg said.