As Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village owner Tishman Speyer prepares to mount an appeal to the court decision that puts the company at risk of owing hundreds of millions dollars in rent overcharges due to improperly deregulated apartments, the landlord of the East Side rental megacomplex must now deal with another lawsuit brought by tenants. The ST/PCV Tenants Association, along with four tenants, has announced the filing of a $10 million class-action lawsuit against Tishman Speyer for making improper primary residence challenges in an effort to oust rent-stabilized tenants out of their cushy deals.
The lawsuit alleges that the landlord initiated legal proceedings against these and other tenants "without probable cause and in a malicious, willful, reckless and wanton manner." The wide net that Tishman Speyer casts in its effort to find abusers of the rent-stabilization system (and the innocent little fishies that get caught) has long been a controversial component of TS's running of the 110-building complex, which the company purchased for $5.4 billion at the height of the real estate boom. Given the size and potential impact of the two tenant lawsuits, we'd call this latest one the remora hanging off of the shark. Either way, Tishman Speyer can't ignore the creepy Jaws music that's suddenly playing in the background.
· Tenants Association Files 10 Million Dollar Class Action Suit On Behalf of Rent Stabilized Tenants Forced to Defend Lease Renewal [stpcvta.org]
· Stuy Town coverage [Curbed]
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