Report: Steve Croman filed for alterations in 32% of his East Village properties

According to an analysis of Department of Buildings filings, there’s about one alteration application for every three East Village apartment units that Steve Croman owns, The Real Deal reports.

Croman of Croman Real Estate and 9300 Realty was arrested last month. In a lawsuit via New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, "Croman directs an illegal operation that wields harassment, coercion, and fraud to force rent-regulated tenants out of their apartments and convert their apartments into highly profitable market-rate units." In total, Croman was hit with 20 felony charges and faces 25 years in prison.

The Croman revelation was just one finding from The Real Deal's investigation of DOB permits dating to 2012 to determine which landlords filed the most permit applications relative to the number of units they own in the East Village.

Per TRD:

Other East Village landlords with a high alteration strike rate include Mark Scharfman’s Scharfman Organization, which owns about 4,000 units citywide ... The company filed 19 alteration permits at its 118 East Village units since 2012, a rate of about 16 percent.

Jared Kushner’s Kushner Companies, which has acquired a sizable portfolio in the neighborhood since 2012, also made the top five. It filed 77 alteration permit applications and owns at least 522 units in the neighborhood. Raphael Toledano’s Brookhill Properties, which owns about 400 units in the East Village, was fourth on the list and filed 53 alteration permit requests.

Per previous published reports, Kushner and Toledano have been accused of trying to force out tenants at East Village properties in the past. (Like here ... and here... and here...)

And what might all these filings mean?

Emily Goldstein, an organizer at the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development, an affordable housing advocacy group, believes any correlation between a high rate of renovations and harassment allegations may be more than coincidence.

“I think it raises a red flag,” she said. “I think absolutely an unusual rate of alt filings is cause for concern.”

However, reps for the landlords "emphatically rejected such characterizations of renovation work."

Find the the full Real Deal report here.

Report: Steve Croman earned $23 million from his East Village properties in 2014

On Monday, news broke that landlord Steve Croman of 9300 Realty was hit with a 20-count indictment on charges including grand larceny and filing false documents ... as well as a civil suit.

Croman, who reportedly owns more property in the East Village than any other landlord, faces up to 25 years in prison.

In a story posted yesterday, The Real Deal dug into public records to figure out Croman's revenue and expenses from his 145 buildings, which was used to estimate his net income.

According to The Real Deal's research, Croman owns 47 buildings in the East Village with 617 units. His gross income just from the East Village properties was estimated at a little more than $23 million. (In total, he took in some $63 million in 2014, per TRD.)

Here's an excerpt from TRD:

At six of his properties — 380-382 East 10th Street, 145 East 26th Street, 44 Avenue B, 20 Prince Street, 199 East 3rd Street and 325 East 5th Street — Croman was charged with changing the rent rolls in an effort to make the property’s income appear higher than it was. In one instance in 2012, Croman reported that all 20 units at 380-382 East 10th Street were market-rate, according to Department of Finance records reviewed by TRD. However, all 20 units were listed as rent-stabilized in the prior year, and 10 were marked as rent-stabilized in 2013. At present, three of the apartments are listed as rent-stabilized.

According to Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s lawsuit, Croman allegedly would walk through his office chanting "buyouts buyouts," and staffers received sizable bonuses for every successful buyout.

More on the charges against Steve Croman; buyouts were a 'team sport'

Here are more details about the arrest this morning of landlord Steve Croman via the Attorney General's office...

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced that Steven Croman, a major New York City landlord with more than 140 apartment buildings across Manhattan, surrendered on multiple felony charges for his role in an alleged scheme to fraudulently obtain several multi-million dollar refinancing loans between 2012 and 2014.

Croman was also named, along with private investigator Anthony Falconite, in a civil suit filed today by the Attorney General’s office for allegedly engaging in illegal, fraudulent, and deceptive conduct in connection with Croman’s real-estate business. The lawsuit alleges that Croman directs an illegal operation that wields harassment, coercion, and fraud to force rent-regulated tenants out of their apartments and convert their apartments into highly profitable market-rate units.

The lawsuit further alleges that Croman deployed Falconite, a former New York City police officer, to frighten and intimidate rent-regulated tenants into surrendering their apartments.

“My message to unscrupulous landlords is simple: if you put your own profits over your tenants’ legal protections, we will investigate you and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law,” Attorney General Schneiderman said. “My office will not tolerate anyone who attempts to line their own pockets by gaming the system. No one is above the law – no matter how rich or powerful.”

The criminal and civil cases are the result of independent, parallel investigations during the past two years.

Details on Criminal Charges

Based on an extensive investigation by the Attorney General’s office, Croman allegedly submitted false mortgage documents to New York Community Bank and Capital One Bank, including rent rolls that falsely reflected market rate rents for units that were actually occupied by rent-stabilized tenants. Croman also allegedly inflated the amount of rent charged for certain commercial spaces in his buildings in an effort to show greater rental income. Croman allegedly falsified these rent rolls in order to inflate the annual rental income of his buildings, upon which his refinancing terms are partially based.

All told, over a three-year period, Croman allegedly received more than $45 million in loans under these false pretenses.

A grand jury indicted Croman on 20 felony counts, including seven counts of grand larceny in the 1st degree, seven counts of falsifying business records in the 1st degree, one count of scheme to defraud in the 1st degree, four counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the 1st degree, and one count of criminal tax fraud in the 4th degree.

Croman’s mortgage broker, Barry Swartz, also faces 15 felony counts, including seven counts of grand larceny in the 1st degree, seven counts of falsifying business records in the 1st degree, and one count of scheme to defraud in the 1st degree.

If convicted of all counts, Croman and Swartz could face as much as 25 years in prison. The charges against Croman and Swartz are allegations and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

The Tenant Protection Unit of New York State Homes and Community Renewal provided the Attorney General’s office with a criminal referral that was pivotal to the process.

Details of Civil Lawsuit

The civil lawsuit, filed in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan and the product of an independent investigation, alleges that Croman used the following illegal tactics to push working-class and low-income tenants out of their homes:

• Harassing tenants into surrendering their apartments—and their rights under the rent-stabilization laws—in exchange for “buyouts,” which are often no more than a few thousand dollars or a few months of free rent.

• Incentivizing his employees and agents to obtain buyouts, at the expense of their other responsibilities. Employees allegedly refer to rent-regulated tenants as “targets” and compete with each other to obtain the most buyouts. In one characteristic exchange, Falconite allegedly wrote to a property manager that obtaining buyouts was a “team sport,” to which the property manager responded, “I know that!! Who’s our next target? We have to start lining them up!!!”

• Pressuring tenants into surrendering their apartments by repeatedly filing baseless lawsuits against them. In internal emails, company employees allegedly acknowledged that such lawsuits would “aggravate” tenants or pressure them to accept buyouts. In some cases, Croman’s employees allegedly created a false record for litigation by refusing to acknowledge receipt of tenants’ rent checks and then suing them for unpaid rent—a deliberate fraud upon the court.

The lawsuit also alleges that Falconite, whom Croman allegedly refers to as his “secret weapon,” used deceptive and frightening tactics to intimidate rent-regulated tenants. The lawsuit alleges that Falconite’s text messages with property managers show that he regularly uses false pretenses to gain access to tenants’ apartments, often posing as a repairman or building manager. For example, in text messages to a property manager, Falconite allegedly agreed to use “false pretenses” and pretended he was with the construction department.

The lawsuit alleges that Falconite routinely threatened tenants and improperly accused them of violating their lease. He also allegedly abused his position as a former NYPD officer to threaten and intimidate tenants.

In addition, the lawsuit alleges that Croman, in his rush to flip vacant rent-regulated apartments into high-rent units, presided over a disturbing pattern of illegal and hazardous construction. The lawsuit alleges numerous examples of illegal construction, including the following:

• On at least 175 occasions, Croman’s companies allegedly performed construction without obtaining permits.
Croman allegedly regularly directed his employees to flout stop-work orders and conceal unlawful construction from Department of Building inspectors.

• Croman allegedly filed false documents with the Department of Buildings on dozens of occasions in an attempt to avoid stricter oversight of his construction projects and elude tenant protection measures.

• Croman and his companies allegedly violated lead-safety laws repeatedly, exposing numerous tenants to lead-contaminated dust. On more than 20 occasions, the Department of Health (DOH) found impermissibly high levels of lead dust in Croman’s buildings, including levels up to 65 times the legal threshold.

• Croman allegedly defied DOH orders to address the lead hazards. On one occasion, after DOH order Croman to stop all work and begin lead-abatement measures, Croman directed his property manager to postpone the lead abatement so that the construction could continue.

Read the full release here. As previously noted, Croman owns more buildings in the East Village than any other landlord.

[Updating] Steve Croman hit with 20 felony charges; faces 25 years in prison

Controversial landlord Steve Croman, whose 9300 Realty owns multiple residential buildings in the East Village, "was busted" this morning, according to the Post.

The precise charges against Steven Croman weren’t yet clear, but the state attorney general’s office is expected to file a Manhattan civil suit today accusing him of unlawfully deploying a former NYPD cop to harass and coerce rent-stabilized tenants into vacating their apartments, said a source close to the investigation.

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is expected to announce the charges against Croman this afternoon.

Updated 10:45 a.m.

The Daily News reports that Croman has been arrested.

And the Daily News was first with the report.

EXCLUSIVE: Landlord arrested after threatening, trying to force out rent-stabilized tenants https://t.co/HvT4xg0fUi pic.twitter.com/EWFCYRHK4y

— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) May 9, 2016

Updated 12:45

Here is The New York Times with the details:

Mr. Croman’s business came to embody in many ways how rent regulations have eroded in the city, putting housing out of reach for more and more New Yorkers. He was able to deregulate most of his rent-stabilized apartments within just a few years of buying the buildings, enabling him to reap much higher rents.

On Monday morning, though, his fortunes took a different turn. Mr. Croman, 49, turned himself in around 7 a.m. at the First Precinct in Lower Manhattan. He was charged with 20 felonies, including grand larceny, criminal tax fraud, falsifying business records and a scheme to defraud, relating to accusations he inflated his rental income to secure more than $45 million in bank loans. He faces up to 25 years in prison. His mortgage broker, Barry Swartz, 53, was charged with 15 felonies.

The New York State attorney general’s office, which investigated Mr. Croman for almost two years, also sued Mr. Croman on Monday, seeking to force him to give up his real-estate business and pay millions of dollars in restitution to tenants and penalties.

Updated 3:45

The folks at Bruno Pizza on East 13th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue have a Croman-related special tonight...

Toast karma! Free glass of rose tonight if u mention @nytimes Steve Croman article ow.ly/8dCh3003had

A photo posted by Bruno (@brunopizzanyc) on May 9, 2016 at 11:39am PDT

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

Tenant advocacy group names Icon Realty and Steven Croman among NYC's worst landlords

Report: Landlord Steve Croman owes the city over $1 million in unpaid code violations

Controversial landlord Steve Croman, whose 9300 Realty owns multiple residential buildings in the East Village, reportedly ended 2015 with more than $1 million in unpaid building- and construction-code violations on properties he owns.

This is according to research by the Cooper Square Committee, the East Village-based tenants' rights group. As Crain's reported:

The fines that Croman and his firm, 9300 Realty, had accrued showcase the city's inability to collect about $1.6 billion in quality-of-life fines, known as Environmental Control Board (ECB) violations. The city has few means to ensure the fines are paid, giving some landlords and contractors leeway to continue to rack up infractions.

"The city issues quality-of-life violations when people violate construction safety rules, start construction before or after hours, or have dangerous sidewalk conditions—and nobody seems to care," said City Councilman Ben Kallos. "Many landlords and developers treat [the fines] as a cost of doing business."

A spokesperson for 9300 Realty disputed the $1 million figure. Here's more from them:

A Croman spokesman said that the firm invests in buildings prone to violations. "We invest in older properties with the objective of restoring and holding them for the long term," the spokesman said in a statement. "Due to the age of properties in Manhattan, these buildings usually require substantial upgrade and repair work. We take maintenance of our properties very seriously and continually invest to clear building violations and enhance the quality of life for all of our residents."

Among other things, Croman has been accused of using illegal tactics to force out rent-stabilized tenants. Tenants have also said that Croman hired a former NYPD officer to harass and intimidate them.

And in other Croman-related news making headlines... Steve's son Jake Croman, a member of the University of Michigan’s Tau Kappa Epsilon chapter, has been vilified on the Internet for a video in which he is seen berating an Uber driver in Ann Arbor, Mich., last week.

As Gothamist noted:

Uber driver Artur Zawada started filming Croman and his friends after they began harassing him when he apparently canceled a ride they ordered. "Fuck you Artur, you little faggot fuck," Croman yells. "You wanna kick me off? Kick me off, you little piece of shit. You're an Uber driver! Go fucking drive, you little fuck! Minimum wage faggot! Go fuck yourself!"

He added toward the end, "You're working all night! Guess what? I'm gonna sit on my ass and watch TV. Fuck you!"

In a statement to BuzzFeed, Jake Croman said, in part: "What you don’t see in the video is that the driver had made a number of offensive anti-Semitic remarks that provoked my response. I am not proud of my reaction to his discrimination and I regret my choice of words."

The Uber driver denied the accusations.

Someone quickly created "the public warning website about the world famous Michigan/New York City douchebag Jake Croman."

Jake Croman's LinkedIn profile notes that he is an associate for his father's real-estate firm.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

Tenant advocacy group names Icon Realty and Steven Croman among NYC's worst landlords

Image from May 2015

Tenant advocacy group names Icon Realty and Steven Croman among NYC's worst landlords

[Photo from June by Derek Berg]

Some familiar names to East Village residents have reportedly made the inaugural list of bad landlords by Stabilizing NYC, a coalition of City-funded tenant advocates and neighborhood organizations.

Politico New York has the story and background:

As the de Blasio administration engaged in a push to reform rent regulations in June, a coalition of tenant advocates and neighborhood organizations seeking to protect renters from landlord harassment received a $1.25 million boost in City Council funding for the upcoming fiscal year.

Stabilizing NYC, which formed last year with seed money from Councilman Dan Garodnick, has since created its own version of the typical "bad landlords" watch list, including seven companies that own or run a combined 509 buildings throughout the city.

Icon Realty and Steve Croman were among the seven landlords named. According to Politico New York, the reps for the two landlords either did not respond to messages or declined to comment about making the list.

Croman remains under investigation by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for allegedly using illegal tactics to force rent-stabilized tenants out of their units.

At the Icon Realty-owned 128 Second Ave., tenants in March filed a HP Action for Repairs and Services, citing inconsistent heat, lack of fire alarms, a broken fire escape, front door, and stairs, and other dangerous living conditions. Residents have also alleged "harassment from the landlord in order to push out rent-regulated tenants." In June, the tenants filed a contempt of court motion against Icon for the ongoing building issues.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

Tenants at 128 2nd Ave. file suit against Icon Realty in housing court

The Wall Street Journal on the ongoing issues at Icon Realty's 128 2nd Ave.

East Village tenants demand end to months without heat, gas at 128 2nd Ave.

New Steve Croman warning flyer makes the scene

Last week, an EVG reader noted a lone flyer on East 11th Street at Avenue B warning potential residents of living in a property owned by Steve Croman, aka 9300 Realty, named one of the top-10 worst landlords in NYC last year by The Village Voice.

This past weekend another flyer arrived … affixed to a city trash can on Second Avenue and East Fifth Street…



In this flyer, Croman is pictured with his wife Harriet … and the flyer's creator points out that Croman "is now the subject of an investigation into potentially illegal tactics used to force rent-stabilized tenants out of their apartments, the Daily News has learned."

That Daily News piece is from last July.

Photos by Derek Berg

Warning flyers posted about renting from Steve Croman's 9300 Realty

An EVG reader noted a lone flyer warning potential residents of living in a property owned by Steve Croman, aka 9300 Realty, named one of the top-10 worst landlords in NYC last year by The Village Voice.

The reader spotted this on East 11th Street near Avenue B…



The reader noted another flyer posted nearby. (Anyone spot any other Croman flyers around?)

We're not sure who's responsible for the warning… there is the Croman Tenants' Alliance … as well as the Stop Croman Coalition Blog that serve as resources for Croman-related activities.

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village represented on this list of the city's worst landlords

Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

Reader report: Someone dumped motor oil in 2 Steve Croman-owned buildings

[Updated] Mitali East has closed for good on 6th Street

That's it for the always-reliable Indian restaurant at 334 E. Sixth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue that opened in 1973.

The sign posted to the front door sends would-be patrons to Haveli, their sister restaurant around the corner on Second Avenue...



And this makes three Indian restaurants now in one at Haveli. Banjara moved here in late 2013.

You can read more about Mitali East closing in our previous posts here and here.

Updated 1:24 p.m.

Workers are now dismantling the space...


[Photo by Michael Hirsch]

How East 6th Street mainstay Mitali East lost its lease

As we first reported back on Saturday, the owners of East Sixth Street mainstay Mitali East have lost their lease.

According to posted signs in the restaurant between First Avenue and Second Avenue, Mitali East "is being forced to close" courtesy of the building's new owner, Steve Croman of 9300 Realty.

And now Mitali East has posted a letter outlining how the 42-year-old Indian restaurant lost their lease.

It's a little complicated... here's part of the letter:

It all started in 2010 when we had modified a lease agreement with the Previous landlord due to business becoming slow after the 2008 financial meltdown. Which we followed and paid by according to that modified lease agreement.

Fast forward to June 2012 and our building was sold by the old landlord to 9300realty (aka 334 east 6th LLC). 9300realty was made aware of our modified lease agreement from us and the old landlord. 9300realty who became our new and current landlord honored the modified lease agreement from June 2012 to November 2013 for about 18 months. Not sure why after 18 months 9300realty decided that they would not abide by the modified lease agreement.

It may have to do with the fact that at that point they had almost bought out most old tenats in the building and renovated the apartments to higher rents.

On December 2013 we got a notice that our rent would increase to the pre-modified amount. We reminded 9300realty about the agreement we had and they knew about when they had bought the building, but they didn't adjust it accordingly. Since then we have been paying according to the modified agreement monthly which they cashed and they had been billing the old amounts. We kept in contacting them to adjust the amounts to reflect our balance due as $0.

So basically this is how things followed: these ARE NOT THE REAL figures for rental amounts just make believe amounts to show an example.

In this example we will use 9,000 as the modified amount and 15,000 as the old amount. Basically it went like this. During this whole time our amount due was $0 if modified lease agreement was applied.

• December 2013 Rent paid 9000 they billed 15,000 difference 6,000
• January 2014 Rent paid 9000 they billed 15,000 difference 6,000
• February 2014 Rent paid 9000 they billed 15,000 difference 6,000

This pattern went on until April 2013 when they added up the differences of the 4 months and added April 2013 rent to file nonpayment proceedings in housing court. Even though our rent due balance was $0 since it was paid up to date.

There's a lot more. You can red the whole thing here.

Back on Friday, we heard that they would be closing any day now. Mitali East was not open as usual yesterday. Calls to the restaurant were met with a generic outgoing message. So perhaps that's it. The restaurant is open for business today.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Landlord Steve Croman denies new lease for 40-year-old Mitali East on 6th Street

Landlord Steve Croman denies new lease for 40-year-old Mitali East on 6th Street

[Image via Facebook]

The sign on the restaurant's door at 334 E. Sixth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue sums up the situation...



As we understand it, the Marshal has already been by with eviction papers … and Mitali East, which has served Indian and Bengali specialties here since 1973, will be closing in another few days at most.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy dined at Mitali East last night. She said that Sai, the owner, wasn't bitter or upset — just sad. They have looked in the neighborhood for another space but, not surprisingly, nothing affordable is available.

Steve Croman bought the building in early January, according to public documents.

East Village represented on this list of the city's worst landlords

[EVG file photo of 149 First Ave.]

The Village Voice released its list of the worst NYC landlords yesterday.

Coming in at No. 10: 149 Associates LLC. As we first reported in August, the landlord sent notices telling residents that they were losing their lease because the owners probably needed to tear down the building.

The only violation on file with the Department of Buildings was a failure to file an annual boiler inspection report from 2012. Probably not worth tearing the building down for... Meanwhile, the residents of the building between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street banded together and worked with various housing advocates to fight the evictions.

And there is a landlord who needs no introduction at No. 8: Steve Croman.

Per the Voice:

Over the years, tenants claim, he's initiated pointless lawsuits, ignored requests for repairs, and flat-out refused to renew leases, all in an effort to drive them out of their rent-stabilized units. If Croman had a mustache, he would have twirled it throughout – but what he lacks in diabolical facial hair, he makes up for in henchmen.

However, neither of these East Village property owners made the Public Advocate's list of the worst landlords in New York City.

Today in Steve Croman legal news

[State Sen. Brad Hoylman speaking out against Steve Croman at rally in Tompkins Square Park in May]

The Real Deal reports:

• Commercial brokerage Daniel T. Enterprises won a court battle against landlord Steven Croman for non-payment of a commission on a $5.5 million off-market deal for a tenement building at 635 E. Sixth St.

• "TRD has learned that Croman’s longtime legal counsel, Rose and Rose, filed suit in September for more than $720,000 in unpaid legal fees." (In a statement, Croman reps denied these allegations.)

Meanwhile, Croman remains under investigation by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for allegedly using illegal tactics to force rent-stabilized tenants out of their units.

Read the whole Real Deal article here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

Reader report: Someone dumped motor oil in 2 Steve Croman-owned buildings

Work permits arrive at the former Amato Opera on the Bowery

There's now activity at the Amato Opera building at 319 Bowery … the work permits have been posted… (the city issued them on Thursday)…



Landlord Steve Croman finally received DOB approval last month to convert the former theater between East First Street and East Second Street into a commercial and residential building. Documents show that there will be one residence on each floor above the retail space.

Amato Opera ended its long run on May 31, 2009. Anthony Amato, the company's founder, died in December 2011.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Life after the Amato Opera

Costume drama on the Bowery as the Amato Opera empties out

Ruin of the Bowery nearly complete: Last season for the Amato Opera

Amato Opera looks to be getting an encore as city OKs residential use

Reader report: Someone dumped motor oil in 2 Steve Croman-owned buildings

On Wednesday night between 8-8:30, someone entered 521 E. Fifth St. and made an awful mess with a canister of motor oil.

"They spashed the oil on doors, walls and mailboxes on the ground and first floors," according to an EVG reader in the building between Avenue A and Avenue B. "It was frightening actually, not to mention that the smell is horrible."

The NYPD did interview tenants.







Apparently there was a similar incident around the same time at another building on East First Street. Both buildings are owned by Steve Croman, aka 9300 Realty, who is not the most popular landlord in the neighborhood. One theory is that this was the work of a disgruntled contractor.

According to public documents, 9300 Realty bought the building last November.

Updated 1:46 p.m.

Sorry, we were wrong. The Cromans took over the building in 2005. At that time there were 20 rent-stabilized tenants; now there are only three remaining.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

New sidewalk bridge for 309 E. 8th St. as tenants face landlord Steve Croman in court

[309 E. Eighth St. file photo]

As The Real Deal reported, five tenants of 309 E. Eighth St have filed suit seeking a halt to construction at the building owned by Steve Croman of 9300 Realty.

This is on top of the lawsuit some residents filed against Croman here claiming that he has has engaged in a "campaign of harassment, abuse and neglect" since taking over the property between Avenue B and Avenue C in December 2012.

According to The Real Deal, Croman will face the tenants today in New York City Housing Court.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, we noticed a truck parked in a rather dangerous fashion on Avenue B at East Eighth Street. Workers were unloaded pieces for a scaffolding.



Turns out that it was for a new sidewalk bridge outside 309 E. Eighth St.



Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

Report: Steve Croman facing another lawsuit from East 8th Street residents

As previously reported, two tenants at 309 E. Eighth St. are suing their landlord, Steve Croman of 9300 Realty, claiming that he has has engaged in a "campaign of harassment, abuse and neglect" since taking over the property between Avenue B and Avenue C in December 2012.

Now five tenants have filed suit seeking a halt to construction at No. 309, as The Real Deal reported.

According to the suit, filed Aug. 7, the five tenants claim that the landlord has engaged in gut renovations of multiple vacant apartments at the building since 2013, causing the ceilings to collapse in several occupied apartments.

The renovations at the 17-unit building also caused a gas leak that resulted in a month-long gas suspension, according to lawyers for the tenants.

"I would say that this case is symptomatic of what is going on in the Lower East Side today," said attorney Sadia Rahman, who represents the five tenants. "Violations like the broken front door and broken cornices have been in place for years, but owners instead are investing considerable sums of money into vacant apartments so that they can be deregulated and rented at market value."

As the Daily News reported on July 26, State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has launched a probe into Croman's potentially illegal tactics. On July 25, the Daily News reported that Schneiderman slapped a cease-and-desist order on Falconite, who "tenants say has engaged in a campaign of harassment and intimidation to force them out."

Meanwhile, Croman and his wife Harriet, an official with 9300 Realty, have been enjoying another August in the Hamptons. On Tuesday, Page Six reported that the Cromans "created a Playboy-themed bash ... complete with a replica of Hugh Hefner’s famed grotto in the center of a tent. Completing the theme, pale pink carpeting surrounded a dance floor."

In her Gimme Shelter column at the Post yesterday, Jennifer Gould Keil noted that the Cromans paid $650,000 this month to rent a Water Mill home "while their own beach mansion, in Sagaponack, is being built."

As for the Playboy bash, "some of Croman's guests told Gimme Shelter they wondered what the couple is celebrating."

Report: East 8th Street residents sue landlord Steve Croman, allege intimidation, harassment

[309 E. Eighth St.]

Tenants at 309 E. Eighth St. are suing their landlord, Steve Croman, claiming that he has has engaged in a "campaign of harassment, abuse and neglect" since taking over the property between Avenue B and Avenue C in December 2012, according to The Real Deal.

The lawsuit, filed Aug. 6 in Manhattan Supreme Court, also alleges that Croman is using former police officer Anthony Falconite to intimidate rent stabilized tenants into leaving the building.

As the Daily News reported on July 26, State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has launched a probe into Croman's potentially illegal tactics. On July 25, the Daily News reported that Schneiderman slapped a cease-and-desist order on Falconite, who "tenants say has engaged in a campaign of harassment and intimidation to force them out."

Manhattan politicos respond to the Attorney General's investigation of Steve Croman

[State Sen. Brad Hoylman speaking out against Steve Croman at rally in Tompkins Square Park in May]

Via the EVG inbox...

State Senators Daniel Squadron and Brad Hoylman, Assemblymember Brian Kavanagh, Borough President Gale Brewer, and Councilmembers Rosie Mendez and Margaret Chin released the following statement regarding landlord Steve Croman:

"Steven Croman’s pattern of tenant harassment must come to an end. Tenants from his buildings have contacted us with accounts of chronic harassment and intimidation – including disruptive building maintenance, frivolous lawsuits, and most egregiously, the dispatching of a ‘private investigator’ to apartments to intimidate tenants.

“We’ve worked closely with a coalition of tenants and advocacy groups like Good Old Lower East Side, Cooper Square Committee, and the Urban Justice Center to address Croman’s tactics of driving tenants, many of whom are rent regulated, out of their homes. We applaud the Attorney General’s investigation into Croman, and we will continue to support tenants’ efforts as it unfolds."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Despite plea, landlord doubling rent on East Village family with cancer-stricken 2 year old

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

Report: State Attorney General launches Steve Croman investigation

From the Daily News today:

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has launched a probe into the potentially illegal tactics used by landlord Steven Croman, 47, to force rent-stabilized tenants out of their valuable apartments, a source said.

The AG is investigating potential violations of city and state laws, including numerous infractions related to tenant harassment by Croman, the source said.

The article includes a story from Cordelia and Graham Winton, who live in a building on East Eighth Street that Croman/9300 Realty bought last year.

They declined Croman's buyout offer, and remain living in their $1,250 apartment while neighbors above and below them pay $6,000.

When they returned from a vacation last Saturday, they discovered that someone cranked up the steam heat in their building while they were away.

The heat was so extreme, wine bottles had uncorked, spewing their contents on the floor. A glass cabinet shattered, wood shelves warped and collapsed, the plastic spray arm in the sink melted, an outlet popped out of the wall and the ceiling and walls bubbled.

You can read the article here for the rest of this.

Yesterday, the Daily News reported that Schneiderman slapped a cease-and-desist order on one of Croman's employees, ex-cop Anthony Falconite, who "tenants say has engaged in a campaign of harassment and intimidation to force them out."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

Despite plea, landlord doubling rent on East Village family with cancer-stricken 2 year old

[Photo of Steve and Harriet Croman by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for DuJour]