Updates in Area of SpringGate Apts.

Following are just some of the updates and reports of Rockland Police in and around the subsidized SpringGate Apartments on Hannah Way and Martha Dr. in Rockland, Mass.  Property managers of Rockland Place dba SpringGate Apts. claim they hold head of households responsible for lease compliance and screen for good tenants. However, similar to the ads they run to rent apartments, their claims are often deceptive.

Friday, July 20, 2012 afternoon: Police called again to 93 Martha Drive at least 4 different times throughout the afternoon over domestics and loud disputes involving two different apartments.
  9:00 p.m. 51 Hannah Way, alarms sound, smoke reported in second floor hallway. Residents evacuated.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012 5:37 p.m. Martha Drive, disturbance
Thursday, June 14, 2012 3:02 p.m. Martha Drive, larceny

Friday, June 15, 2012 10:54 p.m. Martha Drive, domestic dispute
11:33 p.m. Hannah Way, suspicious person.

Sunday, June 17, 2012 approximately 1:00 p.m. Det. James Casper and Lt. Nick Neoli to 105 Market Street, apartment 13. Heroin, guns, ammunition discovered.
1:36 p.m. Market St., drug violation. Warrant arrest: Robert Hackett, 4 Ice House Lane, Rockland. Warrant charges: Warrant service; possess Class A drug, subsequent offense; distribute Class A drug, subsequent offense; drug violation near school; possess Class E drug; resist arrest.
2:40 p.m. Martha Drive, domestic assault and battery. Arrest: Brandon Swimm of Plymouth. Charges: Assault and battery on someone that is pregnant; domestic assault and battery.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012 6:00 a.m. Martha Drive, malicious damage to a motor vehicle.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012 10:15 a.m. Hannah Way, disturbance. Warrant arrest of Rockland male.
1:16 p.m. Hannah Way, disturbance.

Saturday, June 23, 2012 1:14 a.m. Hannah Way, check well being.
  1:41 a.m. Hannah Way, property found.
11:28 a.m. Martha Drive, missing person.
  5:34 p.m. Martha Drive, missing person.

Friday, February 3, 2012  7:06 p.m. Hannah Way, sex offense; detective follow-up.

Trouble Continues at Rockland Place/SpringGate

July 10, 2012, between10pm and 11:59pm:    Rockland Police were called to 93 Martha Drive four different times. First call involved a loud party at 93D.  Second call to police was involving another apartment in the same building for a loud disturbance. Third call involved an allegedly intoxicated woman shouting on the porch of 93E Martha Drive to a crowd of neighbors with threats of a fight. When police arrived the upset woman was advised. Police left and returned around 15-minutes later regarding the same tenant who was out of control in the hallway. All the while an adult male from 92D Martha Drive was creating a disturbance with revving the engine of his vehicle, speeding, and squealing his tires from Martha Drive to John Dunn.

July 11, 2012, morning hours:  Police were chasing alleged armed robbery suspects around the Spring Street area and then continued their search in the woods surrounding SpringGate Apartments, which has always been a convenient place to hide out and evade police.

With new corporate partners, a name change, numerous rent increases, and years of receiving housing tax credits and other monies, property management and government agencies continue to fail the decent tenants residing along Martha Drive and Hannah Way in Rockland, Massachusetts. The pattern of renting to, and protecting those involved in criminal activities is a habitual pattern at this subsidized housing complex. Management prefers evicting residents who report crime on this nuisance property before ever evicting those involved in it.

Coercions Unlimited

For residents residing at Rockland Place dba SpringGate Apartments from 2005-2009, you may recall being threatened with eviction and coerced by property management into signing a document, giving them and all their corporate affiliates permission to share whatever information they decide to create and share about you. There was no expiration date on their form and your signature may have been obtained illegally.  For those of you who signed, it is strongly suggested you revoke all permissions by writing a letter similar to the one below, and forwarding it to Strategic Information Resources and the Property Manager.  Mail your letter certified, return receipt requested.
From:___________________________________________
_______________________________________________
To: Cornerstone Corporation, First Hartford Corp, FHRC

and all affiliated persons, partners, and companies

Janet Hamilton, Property Mgr.
      Rockland Place dba SpringGate Apts.

52 Hannah Way - Rockland, MA 02370-2510

cc: Strategic Information Resources, Inc.

155 Brookdale Drive - Springfield MA 01104

Tel:  413-736-4511 / Fax: 413-733-1064

To Whom It May Concern:

     This is to notify your office that I immediately revoke all permissions and authority for Cornerstone Corporation, First Hartford Corp., Strategic Information Resources Inc. and any affiliated persons/companies to develop, give, receive, or utilize any and/or all information about me.  I will hold any and all person(s), companies, credit reporting agencies, or other providers liable for unauthorized use of my information.

     I only grant Management/Owner of Rockland Place dba SpringGate Apartments permission to perform any necessary Criminal Background History and Credit History check for housing purposes only. 

Signed____________________________    Date:  ________________

One Week of Some Reported Events

Rockland Police Calls Around Spring Gate Apts.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

2:43 a.m. John A. Dunn Memorial Drive, suspicious motor vehicle

11:59 a.m. John A. Dunn Memorial Drive, aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon

Saturday, May 5, 2012
1:07 p.m. Martha Drive, domestic dispute

8:26 p.m. Hannah Way, disturbance.

Thursday, May 3, 2012 
11:45 a.m. Hannah Way, sex offense.

Monday, April 30, 2012
2:13 p.m. Martha Drive, assault and battery. Arrest: Lindsay Reed, 51 Hannah Way, Rockland.  Charges: Assault and battery; threat to commit a crime.

A Notice on Common Sense

FIRE SAFETY ALERT

• Residents are asked to use some caution and common sense when it comes to landscaping mulch.
• Be aware of this fire safety issue.
• Smokers, discard your smoking materials properly.

Just this week, the above notice was posted on the outside entrance door of each building at Spring Gate Apartments by FHRC Management.
     Considering all the major safety issues that need addressing at this subsidized housing complex in Rockland this notice is almost laughable.  At Rockland Place / Spring Gate, people fire guns, workers torch buildings, live-ins get high and commit extreme acts of violence, and unsupervised children set fires.  These are some of the same people this property manager expects to use caution and common sense when it comes to discarding lit cigarettes into landscaping mulch. Makes me wonder where Management's common sense disappearred to.... Perhaps it's under all of their mulch?
     Oh yes, Management's fire safety alert notice reminds me of Chapter 186, Section 21 of the Massachusetts General Laws. It's just another law Rockland Place dba Spring Gate violates. This particular law reads: The landlord or lessor of any residential or commercial property, upon the written request of any tenant or lawful occupant, of any code or other law enforcement official or of any official of the municipality in which the property is situated, shall disclose in writing within fifteen days of such request the name of the company insuring the property against loss or damage by fire and the amount of insurance provided by each such company and the name of any person who would receive payment for a loss covered by such insurance. Whoever violates the provisions of this section shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars. A waiver of this section in any lease or other rental agreement shall be void and unenforceable.
     Considering this corporate landlord hasn't had to comply to their annual lease agreement while receiving subsidies and housing tax credits, I'll just bet they're shaking in their boots!

The Wonderful Web They Weave

....It’s not enough to simply proclaim that Justice officials will do the right thing.  You need to know that they are making decisions that don’t have ethical entanglements. He argued that conflicts arise “when a private lawyer enters government service and a matter comes before him affecting his former law firm or its clients.”.... 
     This is only a portion of an editorial I just read on the Forbes website. I am convinced 'ethical entanglements' and 'political favors' are a large part of why some corporate managers and partners of HUD housing complexes, including those at Rockland Place dba Spring Gate Apts., have been allowed to violate people, laws, and The Fair Housing Act. 
The editorial was written by Peter Schweizern and published on May 7, 2012. http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2012/05/07/obamas-doj-and-wall-street-too-big-for-jail/

AFFORDABLE HOUSING REWARDS

Robert Covelle, the embattled executive director of the Medford Housing Authority, is leaving his post a year after officials began to investigate allegations of favoritism in hiring and contracting under his leadership. Some of the allegations include:  attempts to get jobs and subsidized housing for insiders, the disappearance of thousands of dollars worth of salvaged copper from a housing authority demolition site, and allowing the hiring of a maintenance worker who had previously been convicted of a sex crime. In addition, federal inspectors from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development concluded last month that the agency under Covelle’s stewardship paid $1.3 million to a dozen contractors without following federal contracting rules. For more go to: http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/2012/05/16/embattled-medford-housing-chief-robert-covelle-resigning/gXlUFaWQJEWPiSiZ9HdgSM/story.html?p1=News_links  

Patterns of Nuisance Properties

     I felt disgusted to read of another poorly run subsidized housing complex in Massachusetts where concerned tenants continue to be treated with contempt and disrespect by property management.  Lincoln Village Apartments, located at 134 Country Club Blvd, Worcester, MA 01605, is another housing complex mismanaged by Cornerstone Corporation.  The listed phone for Lincoln Village is 508-853-9880.

     Most of their ongoing complaints remind me of life at Rockland Place dba Spring Gate Apartments in Rockland, MA which is, and has been, mismanaged by negligent and abusive people from Cornerstone Corporation.  All the while, MassHousing and HUD continue granting non-compliant property owners undeserved rent increases; therefore, rewarding mismanagement and contributing to many long-standing nuisance properties.  Perhaps decent tenants at Lincoln Village would like to submit photographs and/or video of these non-compliance issues to this blog for publication?  Due to the likelihood of retaliation, names and email addresses of contributors will not be published.  

     "I moved to Lincoln Village 7 years ago. They said they very rarely go up on rent. THEY LIE. The rent increases never go to anything useful, maintenance is never improved and they DO need to get rid of Barbara who always is impatient, makes it sound like you are a bother and is ready to hang up on you. To get anything fixed you have to call forever. Tenants are allowed to keep breaking rules such as dogs without leashes, rowdy noisy neighbors, illegal parking, etc, and we should be able to count on things being enforced here. The only thing LV responds to is anything involving money. That's all they care about, it's frustrating. Management, maintenance and security all suck, but I really don't have any other place to go with my 3 kids. I have notified security and the Worcester Police that work here that my neighbors use and; sell drugs and; showed them the evidence outside my door and; nothing is done. This place needs to be cleaned up and run properly."    Read more at: http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/MA-Worcester-Lincoln-Village-Apartments-1340419.html

MATURING MORTGAGE thru 2021

     Today, I discovered two different listings for Spring Gate Apts.  One is in Florida and the other is in Massachusetts.  The phone number for Spring Gate Apts. on 1500 Springate Drive in Panama City, FL is (850) 763-6938.
     The phone number listed for Spring Gate Apts. on Hannah Way and Martha Drive in Rockland, MA is (877) 844-3819.   According to a HUD document, the Spring Gate in Massachusetts is where the subsidized mortgage will mature thru 2021.
     What will become of Rockland's Spring Gate Apartments in just nine more years?  Will there be another DHCD or HUD billion dollar pot of gold waiting for new partners and corporate investors?  Will the owners and management still secretly provide unfair housing for low-income tenants?
     In 2021, perhaps 'Spring Gate' will change its name back to 'Rockland Place Apartments'.  Another alternative might be 'Connolly's Cornerstoned Condominiums'.  Maybe there will finally be genuine flowers planted at the 'Spring Gate' entrance sign by the time 2021 comes around.  Real flowers would smell a whole lot better than those airbrushed ones displayed in those deceptive Spring Gate Apartment advertisements.
     As 'Spring Gate' residents anticipate their usual annual "affordable unto perpetuity" rent increase for 2012, perhaps William Connolly, Neil Ellis, MassHousing, and HUD will finally provide them safe, decent housing.  I don't believe housing is safe or decent when substance abusers and child pornographers are allowed to frequent the subsidized, multifamily housing complex.  Do you?  Whatever happened to those promised security cameras?   Maybe they'll figure it out when the mortgage matures thru 2021.
*http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=DOC_35177.pdf