Tenant Union Pushes For More Protections

Members of Hamden’s Seramonte Tenants Union gathered outside of Town Hall the night before a highly anticipated Fair Rent Commission that will likely determine their housing fates — and pushed for long-term governmental protections for all renters.

Local organizers and politicians joined tenants at the Wednesday evening rally to chant, make speeches, and display solidarity while calling on the town to draft a tenants’ rights ordinance and take actions to control housing abuse throughout town.

“Who’s already stressed thinking about the rent hike right around the corner?” Seramonte tenant and union leader Greta Blau asked into a microphone.

“We are!” a crowd responded.

“Who’s sick of dealing with landlords and managers?”

“We are!” they replied.

“We’re tired of the towing of our cars,” Blau asserted. ​“We’re tired of them taking millions out of Hamden to never return. We want to be treated like human beings. We have a voice and we will never stop using it.

“We are asking our government to prioritize housing as a human right. We deserve to have strong roots in our community just like homeowners!” 

The Seramonte union first formed last spring after a small group of tenants began working with organizers from the Central Connecticut Chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America to contest what they called substandard living conditions, predatory vehicle towing practices, and landlord non-response with the exception of retaliatory behavior at a complex of Mix Avenue apartments known as Seramonte Estates.

“There were only three of us to begin with and some really dedicated tenant union organizers,” Union Co-Founder Paul Boudreau recalled.

“Now we’re over 250 strong! We’re family, and we watch out for each other like we’re family. I can’t wait ​‘til all of Hamden is unionized so we can all be a family!”

As they gained numbers, the Seramonte Tenants Union was able to successfully catalyze change within town.

Boudreau, for example, first filed a complaint with the town’s Fair Rent Commission last February. His complaint went unheard, because it turned out the Fair Rent Commission had not convened since 2018, according to the most recent meeting minutes documented on the town’s webpage.

He has been paying the contested $100 rent increase since last winter.

As they gained numbers, the union worked with their new district Legislative Council representative, Sarah Gallagher, to move the body to appoint new members to the commission and finally get the commission up and running. The commission heard its first tenant testimonials mid-September — read more about that here. The commission is expected to hear from Seramonte’s management and perform tenant cross-examinations on Thursday night.

The tenants also inspired Representative Justin Farmer to draft a tenants’ rights resolution, which sought to improve upon the town’s current Fair Rent Commission laws and improve Hamden’s partnership with the local housing code enforcement agency, among other things. That passed this summer. Read about it here.

Tenants are now looking to use that momentum to bring bolder improvements to housing rights. Rather than a non-binding resolution, mere guidelines, why not pass an ordinance, following the lead of neighboring New Haven?

New Haven achieved that in early September. Read about what the new law accomplished here, like defining what a tenants union is and formally recognizing unions that meet that definition as a legitimate body that can interact with the Fair Rent Commission during its investigation into allegedly too-steep rent. New Haven is the first city in the state to recognize tenant unions through municipal law.

Boudreau said that in addition to seeing Hamden recognize unions and potentially allowing them to file collective complaints (a right that not even New Haven has yet to establish), he wants stronger enforcement mechanisms implemented to keep landlords accountable. For example, he said, there should be heftier fines placed on landlords who don’t show up to Fair Rent Commission hearings or obey commission orders.

Right now, under state statute, violators of aspects of the Fair Rent Commission ordinance can be fined a maximum of $100, though if their offense continues for more than five days it constitutes a new offense for each additional day beyond five.

Council Person Laurie Sweet, who attended the rally alongside representatives Gallagher, Abdul Osmanu, Justin Farmer and State Rep. Robyn Porter, agreed with Boudreau that the fines ​“could be saucier.” While $100 might be difficult for tenants to pay, Sweet suggested, it is hardly punitive for wealthy megalandlords.

“It’s not only a housing issue,” she said, when landlords neglect their tenants, but ​“a safety issue, a mental health issue.”

Osmanu added that he would like to ​“explore the idea” of Quinnipiac Valley Health District housing inspectors who are ​“part of our Fair Rent Commission,” or finding additional pathways to better ensure regular investigations are made into housing and health conditions.

Gallagher also weighed in, proposing the launch of an educational campaign and establishing a town role in helping residents understand their housing rights.

The first step was re-establishing a Fair Rent Commission, she said. ​“Now, we have to educate folks on how to access the Fair Rent Commission.”

That could mean ​“one pagers and flyers that translate ordinances into regular language,” she suggested. 

She noted that Hamden’s Fair Rent Commission ordinance is stronger than most across the state; several municipalities have not even acted to erect such bodies.

But another problem is making sure the town keeps itself in check. Even though Hamden has a law requiring that a Fair Rent Commission always be in operation, the commission still went four years without meeting despite the fact that complaints were being filed.

Besides electing legislators who are committed to following through on the town’s word, the growth of unions has, in Hamden’s case, proven to be key in keeping government officials accountable.

Boudreau promised on behalf of the union: ​“Whenever parents are looking for a safe place to raise their children we will be here. When someone is being victimized by their landlord, we will be here.”

Nora Grace-Flood’s reporting is supported in part by a grant from Report for America.