Even at the cusp of the new year, tenants in the Baldwin Hills neighborhood mobilize against evictions organized by east-coast Boston University (BU). Since Dec. 26 tenants of the Corbett Street apartments have been demonstrating and organizing to leverage BU to accept their proposed community land trust offer brought forth by the Liberty Community Land Trust.
Earlier in the year, property owner Frederick Pardee died, leaving over 100 tenants in a precarious situation about transferring management, yet the previous owner in some ploy to demonstrate his sick loyalty for BU decided to sign off his four building properties to the university, his prized “alma mater”.
BU had no business to keep the properties, but they found business for their newly acquired ‘property”, and since the death of owner the 4 properties have been showed off to potential buyers.
Though the tenants with their community land trust are leveraging a deal with BU, and while the victory is seldom guaranteed, the community mobilization has taken BU by surprise.
These are the moments we were considering pragmatic tactics to explore better alternatives for tenants to leverage their interest against the incursions of corporate interest have the right impact. Aside from LATU’s civil society strategy to compel landlords to submit to tenants engaging in community defense, Community Land Trust have been garnering the reputation of being useful, not as movement builders like LATU, but as instruments to use in community movements.
Consider the possibilities for LATU if the movement pushed to leverage the state to pass the “Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act,” an act that “would offer tenants the first opportunity to collectively purchase their buildings, through organizations like community land trusts, when the properties go up for sale.”Knock LA The possibilities would be endless.