Fair Rent Commission

Minutes of the July 18, 2024 meeting of the Norwich Fair Rent Commission Present: Commission members Lee-Ann Gomes, Chair, Ed Belli, Rebecca Melucci, Alternates Nicole Haggerty, Laurie Messore Atty. Michael Driscoll, (Corporation Council for the City of Norwich), Tenant LeRoy McLish The meeting began at 9:04am. Minutes of the June 20, 2024 meeting were approved. The commission discussed smaller towns not being mandated to have a FRC. Members had heard from residents of Baltic requesting if they could be heard by our Commission, which the statute does not allow. We also read an article where in Niantic rents were being raised by $800 and $900/month. Attorney Driscoll stated that any town could form a FRC but the legislation only mandated that towns with a population of 25,000 or more were now mandated to have a commission. Lee-Ann stated she had reached out to the CT Conference of Municipalities to see if they were involved in helping smaller towns to find solutions for their residents. She is expecting a call to be set up to discuss this and will invite commission members to be on the call, should they so choose. The Commission heard the case of Leroy McLish. He was sworn in by Atty. Driscoll. The landlord, TMC Keywest LLC, was notpresent. Both parties had been advised of the hearing date and time. In April of 2024, Mr. McLish states that he had been having sewage issues in his apartment and had called TMC to have the problem fixed numerous times. Sewage was backing up into the tub and toilet. He states they failed to correct the problem, despite him calling the emergency number they listed. He subsequently called the Uncas Health Department on 4-23-24 who did a same day inspection and condemned the apartment, and subsequently the whole building. Mr. McLish vacated the unit on 4-24-24 and the condemnation was ultimately lifted on or about 5- 10-24. He was advised to return home. He had asked if the electricity to the building was restored and if the sewage had been cleaned up. He was assured power was on and the cleaning had been done. When he returned there was no power and the sewage was not cleaned up. He informed the landlord and stayed out of the unit until May 13. When he returned home on that date, the power had been restored and the sewage was cleaned from the toilet but not the shower. Mr. McLish cleaned the shower himself. Mr. McLish acknowledges that while he was out of the unit he did not pay May’s rent initially. He received an eviction notice on 6-4-24 but was able to show a receipt that he paid rent in full on 5-15-24. He acknowledges that the landlord did reimburse him for the 2 days of hotel costs that he incurred while out of the unit. (The remainder of the other days he spent at a friend’s home). The eviction was ultimately dropped. Mr. McLish received notice on or about 6-1-24 that his rent would increase $100 on 7-1-24. Mr. McLish cited statute 47a-20 which states that a landlord may not raise the rent for at least 6 months after a complaint of a violation is filed with a municipal agency. He also states that his rent had been raised in February of 2023. The Commission debated this case. There was consensus that the landlord handled the situation poorly by not immediately addressing Mr. McLish’s problem, causing him great inconvenience and expense, the loss of the use of his unit and exposing him to health issues. The landlord did not provide evidence that a professional cleaning company cleaned up sewage, as was their obligation. They further exacerbated the problem by sending Mr. McLish an eviction notice, raising his rent and then charging him late fees. It is the decision of the Norwich FRC that no rent increase should occur before February 2025, one year from his last rent increase. Mr. McLish owes no late fees from increase he did not pay on July 1, 2024. The landlord is cautioned against retaliating against Mr. McLish in any way, including evicting him without cause. Having no further business, the meeting adjourned at 11:00 am. The next meeting of the FRC will be August 15, 2024 at 9:00 am.