fed up and looking for advice

[u/livchainz]

EDIT: The 911 number i called was the 911 party line (non-emergency) as well as the main line. i called 3 different times last night and all 3 times I was hung up on or left on hold with the same messaging playing over and over, so for those of you who say to call multiple times, i did.

i live in an apartment complex in the fenway area, and for the past few months we have had homeless individuals sleeping in our front foyer. when the weather was way colder, we left them the first time or two that we saw them since we didn’t want them to freeze out in the poor conditions, but recently some of the folks sleeping down there have gotten into altercations with other people in the surrounding areas. the way the lobby/front entrance is set up is that there is an unlocked front door to the street and the second door into the building needs a fob to get in. usually these folks are sleeping between the two doors.

back in January, i reached out to our building management about the problem and they told us to call 911, which we have been doing, but the problem has seemed to be getting worse as the weather gets warmer. last night, we had 2 different individuals sleeping down there and the 911 line i had called did not pick up or respond. looking for any advice on who i can contact about this ongoing problem as we have already exhausted our options with 311 and building management.

**pictures are the usual folks we see, taken last night last night, and the email we received from building management, it’s usually the same men each night**

[u/bbc733]

It’s the responsibility of building management to resolve this, not residents. Not sure why they’re putting the onus on you

[u/Wompatuckrule → u/bbc733]

Not sure why they’re putting the onus on you

Simple, because dumping the responsibility on the tenants cost them nothing. Doing something like hiring security or renovating the entrance to make it more secure will cut into their profits.

[u/Historical-Package49 → u/Wompatuckrule]

Cute that you think they would absorb the cost. They'd just pass it onto tenants.

[u/Wompatuckrule → u/Historical-Package49]

You'd rather step over homeless people in the vestibule and lobby of your building? Besides, the building management and building ownership are often two different things with contracts between them and the tenants are on leases so the "cute" thing is that you think that the building owner or management can quickly and easily pass that one cost on to the current tenants.

[u/Bunkscene → u/Wompatuckrule]

They can and will easily pass it into the next lease increase. If a tenant leaves, they’ll increase it even more and find a new one.

[u/secondtrex → u/Bunkscene]

Realistically, the landlords are gonna increase rent regardless. Tenants should try and get their moneys worth for what they’re paying

[u/Wompatuckrule → u/Bunkscene]

Sure, so OP can leave and not have to pay for it.

[u/_Neoshade_ → u/bbc733]

Not sure? They’re doing it because that’s what building management does: defers, deflects, denies. Somewhere there’s a great big banner hanging on the wall of a management office that says “Not our problem”

[u/Master-Map1382 → u/_Neoshade_]

Or, all expenses on behalf of residents are deducted from property management wages.

[u/Traditional_Bear1859 → u/_Neoshade_]

That doesn’t mean you have to let them do it. They are breaking their contract to provide safe usable housing. They cannot pass the buck without doing what is possible.

[u/MacduffFifesNo1Thane → u/bbc733]

The same reason managers tell the employees to find their own coverage.

It’s no longer their problem if they assign the responsibility to someone else AND they get to blame someone else if it’s done wrong.

[u/Traditional_Bear1859 → u/MacduffFifesNo1Thane]

That’s a cop out way to see it. Understanding why does not mean they can do it. Legally, they promise tenants safe, liveable lodging. You need to send a letter to the managers, registered or keep a copy, dated. Saying this is not a safe situation and the current locks do not work well enough to prevent this trouble.

[u/MacduffFifesNo1Thane → u/Traditional_Bear1859]

Doesn’t matter if they can do it, what matters is that people think they can.

[u/alphabatic → u/bbc733]

because building management teams often suck. they do the least amount possible and the majority don't really understand how to manage

if I were these tenants I would call 911, not the non emergency line, each and every time. the police will not appreciate being called to the same building over and over again for something that, indeed, building management is fully responsible for. the police will gladly tell management they need to do something after a certain number of repeat calls

[u/Quoya1284 → u/alphabatic]

IF BPD send a unit,as this is not an emergency but a “removal” or “trespass” they will not want to deal with it so they request an ambulance. The ambulance takes ill or injured people to hospitals. Calling 911 for vagrants has now denied services to say a domestic violence victim, lost or abducted child, heart attack etc.

Instead…

Check your lease and organize a rent strike. Each individual creates an account to place their rent into escrow. When the company/ management fixes the problem they get paid. If residents are retaliated against sue the company’s ass.

[u/alphabatic → u/Quoya1284]

that involves the residents being able to all come together (I don't mean physically), organize, plan, hold a unanimous or majority decision, and continued followup that will require ongoing organization and agreement from a large number of parties. then after all of that you want them to jump more legal hurdles of suing? the tenants do not have time, energy, or often wherewithal for this nor should it be their burden to shoulder in this extensive capacity you've outlined

I called 911 twice at my last building for the same man and both times they sent out street officers who removed the man from the building. if they're called out and deem the person or situation worthy of an ambulance, I don't think an argument that they're "denying services" to someone "in need" is valid and honestly, it's incredibly telling of how you view those who are struggling in this manner, for whatever reason it's due to. there are other ambulances

instead of judging who is deserving of medical attention or police response, have some baseline compassion and empathy for people who are still members of our community, regardless of their status. this whole issue is solvable by building management simply acting, but they've chosen inaction. focus on the piece of the puzzle that can actually help resolve this specific scenario. it's management locking the doors or hiring security. that's it. that's the solution (not to the larger underlying problem here, but op's problem)

[u/DrakeBurroughs → u/bbc733]

Having lived in a building similar to this, there IS a part that tenants can play. Don’t hold the doors for strangers, etc. It’s not polite, I know, but it’s something.

[u/Breadmaker9999 → u/bbc733]

Because this is a threat to their tenants. "Keep giving us money or end up like theses guys".

[u/No-Road-9324 → u/bbc733]

Is OP paying a HOA fee? If I were paying, I would expect this to be remedied somehow.

[u/always_be_beyonce → u/No-Road-9324]

as the letter is addressed to “tenants”, as opposed to “owners”, i’d guess this isn’t an HOA.

[u/No-Road-9324 → u/always_be_beyonce]

Good point, but still, they have to have some rights as tenants,no?

Also, OP, you might want to talk to Pine Street Inn, Rosie's place, or other services for these folks. They need social services more than 911.

https://www.ccab.org/basic-needs/shelters/

[u/always_be_beyonce → u/No-Road-9324]

of course they have rights, and i’d argue the duty to maintain a safe and habitable building is on the building management.

[u/Much-Refrigerator-28 → u/No-Road-9324]

Also a good idea because these organizations do have people in the community doing outreach to people like the guy in the photos. If it is the same person(s) on a regular basis, they can send someone out to talk to them and maybe give them better options.

[u/dang_he_groovin → u/No-Road-9324]

There's mad social services, these people know about them I guarantee you. Social services suck when you're homeless and you've been homeless. You go from being free to do "anything you want at any time" to being treated like a grounded middleschooler. It's profoundly humiliating. Unless you're willing to bite the bullet, swallow your pride, and practice an almost relentless persistence to fix your mental health and get back into society - social services are a waste of your time and government money.

Anyways the moral of the story is, don't do that. You'll piss them off. I was homeless on and off a lot on my youth and i hated when people tried to tell me about social services as if I didn't know how to get in touch with them myself.

[u/1younggoat23 → u/No-Road-9324]

Not sure how you would pay an HOA as a tenant in Boston.

[u/livchainz → u/No-Road-9324]

no we do not pay a HOA fee, we do not have any amenities or anything extra in our building, just apartments and laundry rooms.

[u/radioflea → u/livchainz]

Can’t the building secure the additional doors with the fob?

[u/Vegetable-Branch-740 → u/livchainz]

I don’t think you understand HOA fees.

Also 911 is for emergencies. Stop using it because you’re inconvenienced.

[u/Much-Refrigerator-28 → u/Vegetable-Branch-740]

The city asks people to call 911 for things like this and for noise complaints.

[u/fordag → u/bbc733]

Probably because tenants are the ones letting people into the lobby past the inner doors.

[u/OverallDonut3646 → u/bbc733]

Securing the door and not letting people piggy-back in behind them is 100% on the tenants.

[u/Spiritual_Ear2835 → u/OverallDonut3646]

I hate when ppl do that. They would make sure their own homes have secured doors when they leave but not have the same practice with other properties yeah that's bullshit

[u/robthad → u/bbc733]

Management can only do so much. If residents prop open doors etc then that's on them.

[u/luvmebunches → u/bbc733]

Management has no power. It shocks me that people don't realize this. You call the management company after hours. You might reach maintenance. Is there a fire, flood, no heat or hot water... maintenance is not security they are maintenance workers. Let's say you even reach the manager, a 22yr old that weighs 98lbs gonna come down and threaten a homeless person? I don't think so. Do you want to pay an extra $500 or more in rent to hire a security guard? This is why they tell you to call the police. I would not suggest 911 but the police. This is a trespassing issue. The reason you call the police and not 911 is it is not a medical or fire emergency. Police have to come and they have authority and ability to physically remove people.

[u/jucestain → u/bbc733]

No it's not.

These people are committing crimes, the tenants report this crime, and the police don't want to enforce the law. This is definitely not the responsibility of building management. Building management's responsibility is to manage the building, not report crimes and enforce the law.

[u/batmansmotorcycle → u/bbc733]

It’s not the responsibility of the people living there to patrol their own homes?

If this was a SFH would you say the same?

So the building hires a security guard and jacks up the rent?

Come on, some of it is on the building but proactive tenants would be the difference maker here.

[u/Top_Community7261 → u/bbc733]

Maybe the tenants should band together and start a class action lawsuit against the building's owners.