Landlords to Continue Fight

By Robin Vinci at December 14, 2023 | 8:00 am | Print

About 150 people attended a Falcon’s Nest Club meeting Tuesday night to hear the latest news landlord groups had about some of the fees the City is imposing on them.

“We’re not unreasonable and we are not going away,” said Former Mayor Tim Stewart who is on the steering committee of the landlord group. “The time to compromise has gone and passed when they shut our mouths up and the things they did to us at those meetings. That is why we are still here and still fighting.”

Stewart said the group would not just fight over the $150 licensing fees being imposed on landlords in New Britain, but on what is happening at the state level to landlords as well.

Eric Polinsky, who represents landlord Joe Carabetta owner of Stonegate Apartments on Winfield St., spoke about what has happened at City Hall. The cost for Carabetta would be over $20,000 for the $150 fines per unit.

“When I saw some of the stuff what was going on in New Britain, I thought this was crazy,” said Polinsky. “If you put fees on landlords there is only a couple of things that can happen – pass it on to tenants or absorb it.”

He said pass it on to tenants causes vacancy and cutting things out means less maintenance which can lead to more blight.

“Both of those things are bad and would lead to depressing all property values, lead to a drop off in business when residents leave the City, unemployment when no one buys gas, coffee or groceries,” said Polinsky. “Then it would lead to lower tax revenue and the City would be forced to raise taxes.”

Polinsky said this mayor decided to go after landlords because they cannot vote.

“We tried an open dialogue with the mayor and the council and asked them to think this through,” Polinsky said. “Nobody wanted to listen. Then, they were going to and then they decided to just do it.”

Polinsky said a campaign of deception was then started in City Hall.

“There is this guy Phil Sherwood who is spokesman for the mayor or he is the chief of staff or his nephew or whatever you want to believe,” Polinsky said. “I would tell my wife about what happened at a meeting and then the TV would come on and would say something different. Then the Herald would write an article and it seemed like they were reporting to New Britain in another state.”

Polinsky said the information was all wrong.

“No one is investigating what is going on at City Hall. They just take statements from the mayor or his ‘spokesnephew’ and print it,” said Polinsky. “Everyone has a right to be heard.”

Polinsky said voices are the most powerful asset people have and they need to use them.

Information at the meeting was available in both English and Polish.

The group said more rallies are planned as well as many other things in the new year.

In the meantime, anyone interested in the latest information on the landlords activities are asked to go to www. savenewbritain.com. Daily updates are available as well as a host of other information.

 

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