Victory! Direct action stops predatory lawsuit dead in its tracks

Alejandro moved in to one of Victor Venavides’ “Delridge Cottages” in West Seattle last year with his cousin. The place was rundown, had rats, and Venavides repeatedly ignored several requests for repairs, including a shower that went unfixed and unusable for 25 days and a stove Alejandro had pay to have repaired himself. When Alejandro’s cousin decided to move out, Venavides told Alejandro that he was expected to pay an additional $500 security deposit. Alejandro said he didn’t understand why he had to pay it, given the fact that his cousin had still never had his deposit returned and the place had not been cleaned- but Venavides insisted. At the same time Alejandro was having to scrape together money to pay the additional deposit in increments as well as his monthly rent, Venavides started upping the rent. In less than a year Alejandro’s rent increased over $200 per month.

Weary of Venavides’ bullying, Alejandro finally moved out at the end of November 2009, thinking he’d never have to hear from Venavides again. What Alejandro didn’t know at that time was that it is actually only after his tenants move out that Venavides really goes after them. Venavides quickly filed a lawsuit seeking several thousand dollars in damages from Alejandro. Alejandro had no money for a lawyer and did not speak enough English to understand what the lawsuit was all about. It was at this point that, with the help of some friends, Alejandro got in touch with SeaSol. As it turned out, Venavides was falsely claiming that Alejandro had had nine people living with him.

It quickly became apparent after a little digging that this sort of bogus lawsuit was not at all uncommon for Venavides’ former tenants. Venavides’ plan, as he has done to many others, was to use his knowledge of the court system, and Alejandro’s lack of resources and legal expertise, to win a default judgment and begin garnishing Alejandro’s wages. This would add a small extra profit to Victor’s shady business operation as a landlord while causing serious and unjust hardship to Alejandro.

So, on June 15th nearly 30 SeaSolers showed up at Venavides’ door with a simple message: drop this lawsuit immediately or face of the consequences. In the following weeks we put up posters warning people about Venavides around his properties, conducted a door-to-door tenants investigation, and left letters on every car outside his workplace saying we would be coming soon with important information about a slumlord in their midst. After five weeks of relentless pressure Venavides finally realized he had better let this one go, and Alejandro received a letter announcing that the lawsuit had been withdrawn, “with prejudice”.

Talks break down as Lorig demands permanent gag on future abuses

Three months of offers and counter-offers between developer Lorig Associates and SeaSol seem to be ending in failure. The sticking point: Lorig’s insistence on a permanent license to engage in predatory and/or racist behavior against workers, tenants, and communities in the future, without ever facing any form of criticism from SeaSol.

Gaining this extreme form of protection is apparently very important to Lorig–so much so that Chief Operating Officer Tom Fitzsimmons (who you may remember from our last face-to-face Lorig negotiation) has been personally calling ex-receptionist Patricia at her home and dangling the prospect of thousands of dollars in compensation in front of her (“We have the papers drawn up and the check ready for you!”), if only SeaSol will sign their permanent, blanket gag agreement.

Our answer: never. Unlike Tom Fitzsimmons, we have integrity and basic principles to uphold. SeaSol has never granted any employer or landlord a blanket protection to carry out unjust practices in the future without fear of repercussion. If Lorig is unwilling to come to a reasonable agreement, we must be prepared to carry on and step up our efforts at pushing individuals and institutions to cease doing business with this company. If necessary, we may have to proceed all the way to the trial in 2011, where we will beat back their ridiculous lawsuit in a manner that is as public and as costly to them as possible. If Lorig chooses this course, they will still end up with no immunity whatsoever from future criticism and protest.

Victory in Nelson fight–Time to celebrate!


The fight against Nelson Properties is now over! For the past five weeks we have postered every week around Nelson’s properties warning potential renters about the company. We also began a tenants’ rights investigation at their buildings, delivered letters to the owner’s neighbors informing them that there was a slumlord in their midst, and held two small pickets in front of Nelson’s offices to warn potential tenants not to do business with them.

Last Thursday we found out that property management boss Lisza Darling’s reign of terror is over–she is no longer an employee of Nelson Properties. Then this Monday, June 21, Maria received her $500 deposit plus a letter agreeing that all issues from her tenancy (i.e. bogus bills) are now settled!

Let’s celebrate–come to High Point Park at 6 pm this Sunday (6/27/2010) for a victory potluck!

Tenant action beats money-grubbing banker

Megan and Alan’s old landlord wouldn’t return their $1300 deposit. A small claims court judge ordered the landlord to return the money, but she–a Wells Fargo loan officer and the owner of five properties–still refused to give it back. Megan and Alan, both low income workers, couldn’t afford to let her steal it. They joined SeaSol and prepared to fight for their money back.

On Monday April 5, Megan, Alan, and a small crowd of others marched into the lobby of the landlord’s office at Wells Fargo Home Loans. The receptionist called the landlord, saying “There’s a lot of people here to see you!”. When she came out, Megan and Alan presented their written demand: all the money they were owed, within a week. The landlord took it, then scurried out of the office, exclaiming, “This is my place of business!”

A week went by and no check arrived, so we started preparing for further action against the landlord. Then, just before our next action, she sent her former tenants a text message: the check was in the mail. A couple days later, the check arrived in their mailbox, and it cleared.

Thanks to everyone who helped Megan and Alan win this fight.