Another week, another use of the Ellis Act to evict long time SF residents. 98 year old Mary Phillips has lived on Dolores Street for 50 years, and she’s now being told that she has to leave by her landlord, a real estate company called Urban Green Investments. According to KRON 4, when she heard the news, Mary said “I didn’t sit down and cry, I just refused to believe it. They’re going to have to take me out of here feet first.” She says that she has never been late on her rent and has nowhere else to go. Heartbreaking. This is really where we’re at.
Way back in DotCom1 when my single mom and I were illegally evicted from our Dolores Street apartment, the Tenants Union was a big help. You can become a member or donate to them on their site.
UPDATE: According to Business Insider, Urban Green has released a statement revealing that they will allow Mary Phillips to remain in her apartment for the rest of her life, rent free.
“Contrary to recent reports, we have always planned to provide for Mary in this way,” said McCloskey. “We have made no comment about Ms. Phillips’ situation to this date as we have been negotiating with her attorney in good faith, but the recent media reports have made today’s comment necessary in order to clarify the facts.”
UPDATE 2: According to some, the deal that McCloskey wrote to Business Insider about was never acceptable to Phillips. The larger issue for her may be that her caregiver, Sarah Brandt, is still being evicted, making the living situation too unsafe for Phillips to remain. Though I’m seeing conflicting takes on who’s offering what and when they offered it. More on Brandt and her relationship with Phillips here.
Ugh. These horrible companies should be permanently barred from owning property in California.
Hear, hear.
Thanks, Capitalism!
Anytime! Can I get a Huzzah from some Chinese real estate speculators?
Sick.
Kick her out, turn whatever giant place she was renting for 50 years into rentals and rent it. I feel for this person but rent control and strong tenant protections are starting to irk me. She is dominating far too much room, these rules we have severely limit young people from moving to San Francisco, unless they are fantastically wealthy. Tough situation all around, but if you want non tech young people to move here, they have to be given a space.
Sorry Bob, but this and most Ellis Act evictions won’t make a dent in the rental market, and definitely not enough to impact middle-to-low income renters. You don’t feel for her cause you don’t have feelings.
Yup, well said.
Very few ‘non-tech’ people can afford the market rate rents, hence the tech backlash. Soon there will be no cooks for you at Tacolicious. Obviously, you didn’t like or care for your parents.
Fucking troll, fuck off.
Bob….are you a robot?
What if she was allowed to be kicked out, her giant place turned into multiple places and the law mandated she be given one of those places? I’d be fine with that, but its hard for me to really take seriously the argument that this person deserves a huge house just because ‘hey I was here fiiirrsssttt so its miinnnee’
She’s 98 years old, fool!
You hella dumb.
What giant place, turd?
Why don’t the news sites report that she refused a lifetime lease? I’d like to know who advised her to make such an irrational decision.
if the news outlets aren’t reporting it, how do you know about it?
It was said at the State Assembly Committee meeting which rejected Leno’s Ellis Act amendment.
Lifetime lease?
Urban Green: Just kidding Mary! (all in good fun everyone)
Apparently they do have shame…finally. She needs her caregiver in order to live. Guess that doesn’t count and I would have rejected it too.
98 years old and kicked out? WTF.
Heartless assholes. This is just enraging. What have we become?
Why doesn’t the caregiver just live in the second bedroom, rent free?
how the hell does somebody get “illegally evicted”? haha
I’d tell you the story, but I get trolled enough around here.
Are you joking? It happens constantly.
There’s definitely something shady going on here, this story just doesn’t add up.