Thirteen households inside a 38-unit building at 535 Stockton St. in Nob Hill were told last week to clear out their belongings within seven days after a fire, even though San Francisco’s Department of Building Inspection says no repair permits had been filed for the property. Some tenants, including a man who has lived there for 30 years, say they are refusing to go.
The fire broke out on July 25 in a unit two floors above the apartment of a longtime resident named Ahmad, who has lived in his fifth-floor studio for three decades, according to The San Francisco Standard. The fire was sparked by a faulty refrigerator, and Ahmad later found an inch of standing water in his kitchen, the outlet reports. Construction workers hired by the building’s owner, Mill Valley-based Montgomery Partners, visited his apartment repeatedly afterward and eventually brought in large dehumidifiers.
Last Friday, attorney Dave Wasserman — who represents Montgomery Partners — emailed residents demanding they remove all personal items from their units by Sunday; leftover belongings would be placed in storage, per the same account. Any unremoved items, the email warned, would be placed in storage. The email did not include links to a secured Department of Building Inspection permit, nor did it list current rental rates for any of the affected units.
No Eviction Notice, No Permits, City Says
Despite the demand, tenants at 535 Stockton St. never received a formal temporary capital improvement eviction notice, the kind San Francisco’s Rent Ordinance requires before a landlord can force tenants out for repair work lasting more than 20 days. The Department of Building Inspection confirmed no new permits had been issued for the building and posted a notice of violation on the property, later ordering the owner to obtain a repair permit within 60 days. The department also said a permit for the affected floors would not require tenants on other floors to vacate…