“I don’t know how much longer these tenants can continue to fund litigation and be homeless at the same time,” said Hoboken-based attorney Cathy Cardillo last week about her clients, the tenants of and current lessees at the evacuated and severely damaged Clam Broth House building near the corner of Newark and River streets.
For the past seven months, while litigation continues, seven families were first forced into hotels, and now are bunking with friends and family, according to their attorney. While the displaced tenants have been busy moving between multiple temporary quarters, nothing has been done to repair the damage to the building, and the landlord has yet to settle with the tenants, although mediation is now underway.
The restaurant and bar had been open in Hoboken since 1899 and served dockworkers in its heyday. But the structural integrity of this historic vestige was damaged after a portion of the building buckled on May 7, causing cracks to open and bricks to bulge out of the side of the building.
The building contains the Clam Broth House restaurant, “Boo Boo’s Bar,” the Cadillac Bar, and 11 residential units.
The approximately 12 residential tenants of the building were evacuated safely, but have been essentially locked out of their homes since.
Since May, the only construction that has been complete was the installation of wooden beams and steel cables that were installed to prevent the façade of the building from crumbling. Since those stabilizing measures, no work has been undertaken and no future plans have been approved by any of the city’s boards, despite numerous assurances by the owner that he intends to repair.
Arthur Pelaez, who has owned the residential units in the building for 25 years, said on May 7 that he would do everything he can to get the residents back into the units.
“I feel bad for the people,” he said then. “There is nothing we can do about it, except get it fixed as fast as possible.”
But now that pledge to act quickly is being called into serious question.
If the tenants sign a lease or a mortgage at a new residence, they might not be able to claim damages, especially when it comes to the value of the leasehold interests, so right now they are in “legal limbo” as Cardillo put it. “We are heading toward seven months,” she said, “and absolutely nothing has been done.”
Pelaez’s attorney did not return multiple calls seeking comment, and his listed phone number in Hoboken has been disconnected.
City wants to press the issue
At the end of May, the city supplied each of the families with $4,000 a piece to help off set the costs they were absorbing because of being displaced. The city is still attempting to receive reimbursement from Pelaez or the company that holds the insurance policy on the building.
According to Councilwoman Theresa Castellano, who is the chairman of the Hoboken Historic Preservation Committee, because the building is in a historic zone, all repairs must conform to standards that apply to historically significant buildings, and the board must approve all renovations.
On May 30 Superior Court Judge Arthur D’Italia ruled that the tenants were not entitled to additional emergency relief from the landlord.
Pelaez and his hired professionals, in June, went before the Historic Preservation Board and suggested replacing the historic brick façade with stucco or aluminum siding, which was rejected.
As time passed, no new plans were presented and the litigation went back before the judge in August.
D’Italia said that Pelaez should “proceed in a timely fashion” with repairs. After the Aug. 1 hearing, Pelaez submitted a certified affidavit that it was his intent to repair, and that he had hired new architects and engineers.
But now it is nearly four months since that submission and no new plans have been presented or approved by the Historic Preservation Commission.
Castellano said that she and the board will do everything in its legal authority to expedite the process, but they can’t force him to file.
“We are very anxious to see that site cleaned up,” said Castellano Tuesday. “We are just waiting for them to submit an application.”
She added that the project has been put on the agenda of every meeting for the past several months as a courtesy in hopes that Pelaez or his professionals would appear.
Now, according to city officials, it’s getting to the point where the owner’s hand has to be forced.
‘Everyone is frustrated’
“At this point, everyone is frustrated over how slow things are going,” said Mayor David Roberts Thursday. “I’m very upset over how the owner has handled that situation, and the city is going increase the pressure to force him to begin repairs.”
City Business Administrator Robert Drasheff added, “It’s disgraceful how the landlord is handling such an important Hoboken building and how he is treating those tenants. There are numerous cases where a century-old building along Washington Street has had similar damage to the façade, but in each of those cases, repairs began in a timely fashion and no one was displaced for any extended period of time.”
According to the city attorney Joseph Sherman, the city has asked the owner of the property for a “stability report” from a professional engineer, which it has not received. He added that within the past two weeks, the city’s construction code official began the process of engaging an engineer to undertake that report because the landlord has not.
The cost, said Sherman, will be recouped from a lien on the property.
The judge has also appointed a mediator to work out a settlement between the tenants and the company that holds the insurance policy on the building.
According to Cardillo, the tenants are seeking compensation for the damage to their property, hotels, associated moving costs, their leasehold interest (money they would have saved by continuing to live there), and attorney fees.
A leasehold interest in land is created whenever a landlord contracts with a tenant and gives them the right to exclusive possession. The leasehold interest can have a value. Most often it comes into play when an owner wants to tear down the building and build something else in its place.
Cardillo added that while monetary awards are definitely welcomed, the best thing that can come out of mediation would be closure.
“I just want them to be able to move on with their lives,” said Cardillo. She added that at this point a settlement is better for everyone involved – the tenants, the landlord, and his insurance company.