A group of community organizations are standing with residents of Dorsett Court (4710 Locust St.) and Admiral Court (237 S. 48th St.) apartment buildings who were recently given bogus eviction notices to scare tenants out and make way for the sale of the buildings. A court decision has staved off eviction for at least a few more weeks.

Residents and supporters gathered in front of the buildings, which are adjacent on the corner of 48th and Locust, at a rally yesterday organized by the Philadelphia Tenants Union (PTU), a grassroots organization focused on protecting renters from unfair evictions. Community Legal Services and the Public Interest Law Center are also assisting the roughly 70 residents who received the eviction notices. Some video of the event is available on the PTU Facebook page. 

Several neighborhood organizations issued a joint statement on Monday (see below) supporting the tenants and calling for “policies that preserve existing affordable housing in our communities and encourage the inclusion of new affordable housing units within the larger redevelopment of this area.” The organizations that signed onto the statement include the Garden Court Community Association, Walnut Hill Community Association, Cedar Park Neighbors, Cobbs Creek Neighbors and The Enterprise Center CDC.

Rally to resist mass eviction of residents at the Dorset-Admiral, and to demand justice for Philly tenants. @PHLTenantsUnion pic.twitter.com/aM9F1pR87E

— Kate Cairns (@katefcairns) April 30, 2018

About 70 residents in the buildings were issued the eviction notices on April 9, ordering them to move out of their apartments by April 30. Attorneys from Community Legal Services filed an injunction to prevent the evictions on April 26, stating that they were a “clear violation” of the eviction process. A day later Common Pleas Court Judge Abbe Fletman agreed, saying that “defendants are not permitted to evict plaintiffs, shut off the utilities, or otherwise interfere with the possession and quiet enjoyment of the premises … until further order of the court,” according to an article in the The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Several alleged improprieties related to the building’s ownership and management have surfaced in recent days as well. According to the injunction filed by Community Legal Services, Phillip Pulley of SBG Management – the buildings’ owner – has not had a rental license since 2015 and has been illegally collecting rent.

Building residents still are not in the clear. A court date looms on May 24 as part of the eviction process.

Join statement from neighborhood organizations.