The Voice of the West Village WestView News VOLUME 11, NUMBER 8 AUGUST 2015 $1.00 My Arrest. It Wasn’t Fair Former Attorneys and It Wasn’t Fun. Take Croman to Court: By Arthur Z. Schwartz experienced the searing humiliation of eyes asking “what crime did that man commit.” The Game of Tactics And the humiliation continued when police By Tres Kelvin escorted him into the Criminal Court where he had brought dozens of clients. Now he Greed Bites the Hand That was the criminal. Lawyers and even a few Steals for It judges who recognized him looked surprised The hand-cuffed arrest and and stunned—“why was attorney Arthur subsequent arraignment in Schwartz in handcuffs, what did he do?” Criminal Court of activist Arthur Schwartz had acted because an attorney Arthur Schwartz amoral landlord who contrived to get a and the false anonymous call ninety-two-year-old tenant committed to a to the health department that nursing home and then installed surveillance raw sewerage was contami- cameras had simply gone too far. Schwartz nating the kitchen of Nelly’s removed the cameras—and became a victim restaurant, Lima’s Taste are FIGHTING ATTORNEY ARRESTED: Arthur of those who can afford and relish the abuse just two of many actions Schwartz after his arrest looks at the article in of law. —George Capsis taken by two different West $790 or $2,360—THE HALF MILLION DOLLAR “MISTAKE”: WestView News that started it all—the event Village landlords. These Nelida Godfrey stands at the entrance of her apartment also made the Times, the Post, Daily News Since Ruth Berk got home, I have dedi- landlords use city regulations after winning a court decision. The apartment she leased 9 years ago for $2360 a month should legally have been and NBC TV. Photo by Maggie Berkvist cated myself, as her Guardian, to bringing and false—but expensive to $790. Now landlord, Steve Croman, owes her over about the repairs that her apartment has defend—legal and regula- $500,000—he has appealed the decision. Taken in handcuffs from the 6th precinct needed for twenty years. The situation has tory actions to push out low out onto 10th Street, Arthur Schwartz Continued on page 4 income tenants so they can enjoy the ef- yers who have been doing his dirty work fulgent largess of exploding Village and for seventeen years. City rents. —George Capsis Maggie B’s Photo of the Month Shakespeare, cataloging the reasons to end it all in Hamlet’s soliloquy, cites “the law’s delay” Landlord Steve Croman is notorious for and today we can add the cost of justice as a somehow getting sweetheart treatment reason (to paraphrase the bard) to make our from governmental entities—from the De- quietus with a bare bodkin (or commit hari- partment of Buildings to the Environmen- kari). tal Control Board to DHCR, all the way to Imagine the shock of desperation and de- the wrist slapping Politicians. spair when Carol Yost, in her seventies, opens His favorite Pit Bull is the law firm of a very official envelope instructing her that she Rose & Rose. After over seventeen years is evicted as of March 5 after decades in her of legal services, Rose it seems is no longer Village apartment. (Arthur saved her.) needed. Could it be the impotence of every Or take a young African American attor- major “enforcing” entity (HPD, ECB, etc.) ney living in a Steve Croman brownstone doing Rose’s job for Croman? Or did his who puts out flowering planters and tends own dog just turn on him? them only to see landlord Croman sitting in Rose was the law firm executing thou- the back of a limo watching as his men rip out sands of lawsuits on Croman’s behalf, suing the plants to make him hesitate to represent the real New Yorkers from over one-hundred harassed tenants. buildings for the last seventeen years. We have a tendency to blacken villains to In these cases, even if the Tenant wins, the serve our prejudice, but the more incidents Tenant has spent so much time and money I hear about these landlords who have made that the battle was not worth winning. the Ten Worst Landlords in New York list, the And it’s all legal. more I realize that the unquestioning embrace Each tenant removed (otherwise known as SHADES OF BOBBY FISCHER:This young lad’s performance had certainly attracted a of greed wipes out any vestige of morality. “cleared”) brings in tons of cash. The only the fascinated audience. And his opponent, the regular Union Square chess player, “Twitty- And that goes for paying your lawyers… cost would be: buying out the tenant (so low from-the-City” was genuinely impressed, particularly when, on asking the boy’s father Here is an account of how landlord and so repeated that Bill “Int. No.757” was at the end of the game, “How old is he?”— the answer that came back was “Six!” Steve Croman attempts to stiff the law- Continued on page 4 NOW! For breaking news, WestView Extra... see page19 2 WestView News August 2015 www.westviewnews.org WestView WestViews Published by WestView, Inc. by and for the residents of the Correspondence, Commentary, Corrections West Village. A Euphoria of Praise Publisher (The following is the text of a phone call to LGBTI movement, was a highlight. Executive Editor George Capsis Hi George— the publisher.) It takes a lot of people to make this Associate Editors My wife and I thoroughly enjoy read- “people-to-people diplomacy” happen. We Christy Ross, Katie Keith ing your paper and believe you have a Hello, my name is Lydia Fogerty. I sub- were especially lucky to have working with Design Consultant very good pulse on the neighborhood. scribe to the paper and I want to congrat- us Ms. Carolyn Nomura, and Mitchell Stephanie Phelan We live in Connecticut, but nearly three ulate Mr. Capsis on his diligent reporting Cohn who arranged the New York part of Photo Editor years ago we purchased our dream apart- on Diller Island and how pleased I am for the program. Darielle Smolian ment in the West Village. We have a few him that the story was picked up by the In the process, we have both taught Traffic Manager more years until we call the West Vil- Times. and learned, and so have in our own ways, Liza Whiting lage home due to two sons that are not I am sure it has made a lot of people in brought the world a little closer. Photographer Maggie Berkvist quite done with school yet, but we make the Village happy to not see this horrible — Laurence Frommer it down a few times a month to shop creation in the river. Comptroller Jolanta Meckauskaite or have lunch. Our apartment is being I want to thank him so much for what Lawsuit Will Hurt rented to a great person from Austra- he has done for the neighborhood. I was Architecture Editor Brian Pape lia who takes care of the apartment as if born here ninety years ago at 125 Charles Long-Time Residents Film, Media and Music Editor it were his own and we consider him a Street, so I am an old time Villager. At our monthly planning meetings for West- Jim Fouratt member of our family. Thank you. Bye. View News, the subject of rising rents and Distribution Manager The main reason for my note is to gripe affordable housing comes up frequently. In Timothy Jambeck about some of your readers complaining Future Leaders Visit our latest meeting, I mentioned the lawsuit Regular Contributors about not receiving their paper, and not against the city for granting preference to John Barrera willing to pay $1 per month to have it Stonewall neighborhood applicants, and mentioned that Barry Benepe mailed to them. Being in Connecticut, ours To the Editor: I was writing a letter to Mayor de Blasio and Maggie Berkvist must be mailed—but come on, a dollar!? I was happy to see the July issue of Janet Capron West- other city officials to urge them to fight this George Capsis You cannot even buy a pack of gum for a View News mentioned the LGBT tour lawsuit. WestView’s publisher, George Capsis, Barbara Chacour dollar anymore. Having been in manufac- that I led on June 21, quoting from the asked that I instead write it as an open letter Ron Elve turing for over twenty years, I understand introductory speech outside the Stonewall to be published in the newspaper. Stan Fine material and production costs and applaud Inn by the State Department’s Tom Gal- —Stephanie Phelan Jim Fouratt you for doing this amazing job for “free”! lagher, who made history in 1975 by com- Art Director Mark M. Green Somehow, some way—please keep up the ing out publicly of his own accord. Since WestView News Robert Heide good work. this tour was for a special group of visitors, Keith Michael I enjoy reading all sections of your paper, hosted by the US State Dept, I thought The Honorable Mayor de Blasio Michael D. Minichiello but particularly enjoy your then and now your readers would appreciate knowing a City Hall Clive Morrick section. Being a bit of a neighborhood his- little more about the guests this month. City Hall Park Brian Pape tory buff, I have done some research into They were a special group of up-and- Joy Pape the building my wife and I bought into and coming young leaders who were brought cc: CB2 District Manager Bob Gormley, Bruce Poli David Porat I find it fascinating when you post your to our country by the U.S.