Facing eviction this week, Hamilton on the Bay residents ask for federal funds
Residents at Hamilton on the Bay, an Edgewater apartment building whose 200 renters were told their leases were being terminated in May, spoke at a Miami City Commission meeting on Monday, appealing for federal funds from the American Rescue Plan to make up for what they describe as inadequate compensation from building owners.
The plea comes as the Hamilton’s few remaining families approach the Sept. 17 deadline to vacate. Of the 140 units that faced removal, only nine families remain living in the building. Around 30 families have yet to reach a settlement with Aimco/AIR Communities, a Denver-based real estate development and management company that purchased the building for $80.9 million in August 2020.
On May 16, residents received notice from Aimco saying their leases were being terminated and they would have to leave by July 16 in order for the company to complete renovations and repairs. Aimco later extended that deadline to Sept. 17.
Greg Frank, a former Hamilton on the Bay resident, asked that the city declare that a portion of the incoming $139 million in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan go towards assisting Hamilton residents.
“It’s the company’s responsibility to compensate us fairly, but they’re not taking responsibility,” Frank said in an interview outside City Hall during a break. “We signed a [rental] contract and they’re breaking it.”
Commissioner Ken Russell responded that $100,000 was being allocated to legal services for residents in private disputes with landlords but said the city doesn’t have much more recourse to offer. The city passed its American Rescue Plan budget plan later in the afternoon without any specific allocations for Hamilton on the Bay residents.
Aimco is offering residents three months’ rent plus $500 for moving expenses. Hamilton residents facing Miami’s fierce rental market say this isn’t nearly enough to compensate for the much higher rent prices they’ll have to take on and note that moving expenses generally far exceed $500. The roughly 30 remaining families who haven’t settled with Aimco are seeking to reach a collective agreement with the company for $22,500 in compensation, a number they calculated based on the increased expenses they’ll face in today’s rental market, plus cost of moving and rental application fees.
Tony Recio, a lawyer representing Aimco, said the upcoming Friday deadline is final.
“Come the 17th, we have to move forward with the work,” Recio said. “We will work with residents but the [construction] work has to be done. We’ve tried to avoid evictions but we will have to start shutting off things like the water in order for the [construction] work to proceed.”
This story was originally published September 13, 2021 at 5:51 PM.
