Leaking faucets, holes in the floor, and rats running across children's feet at night.  An apartment manager refusing to start repairs without proof of US citizenship.  These are just some of the conditions that leaders of Bachman Lake apartments, like Iris Romo and Ericka Ventura, unearthed in a neighborhood conversation campaign.

When tenant leaders at Lumin Bachman Lake Community School began to share these stories, the city didn't take them seriously.  However, DAI leaders knew that this was unacceptable.  After all, they had been instrumental in the development of housing standards that were now being violated. In 2016, DAI had compelled the City of Dallas to impose these standards, and the tenant leaders had been a key part of that effort.

They were not going to be ignored again.  On April 18, when a group of north Dallas congregations -- including Temple Shalom, King of Glory, Temple Emanu-El, and Christian Chapel CME -- organized a DAI accountability session. In front of seven city council candidates, Iris Romo from Lumin Bachman Lake Community School shared the stories of the Bachman Lake residents. The candidates were shocked and committed to working with DAI to address the issue.

Councilwoman Janie Schultz followed through on her commitment and reached out to Councilman Omar Narvaez, who had previously refused to meet with DAI. After hearing from Councilwoman Schultz, Councilman Narvaez invited DAI to a meeting with city staff to discuss the issue. City staff finally began to take the issue seriously and have taken concrete steps to clean up the apartments in Bachman Lake.

There is still a long way to go, but the residents of Bachman Lake are on the right path to getting the safe and healthy homes they deserve.

Some Say Dallas Landlords Use This City Policy to Game the System, Dallas Morning News [pdf] 

Bachman Lake Tenants Need Support, Dallas Morning News [pdf]

Inquilinos de Dallas Denuncian Malas Condiciones en Viviendas, Telemundo Dallas

Dallas Tenants Counter ‘Unbearable’ Conditions, Dallas Morning News [pdf]

[Excerpt]

Reporting bad landlords who won’t fix apartments to maintain adequate living conditions should be easier for Dallas tenants, especially for those who are the most vulnerable because of their economic or immigration status.

It has been a little over a month since this newspaper reported the hazardous conditions endured by Bachman Lake-area tenants, including moldy walls, pest infestations and leaky roofs. This is not a case of “they get what they pay for.” Residents said they are paying up to $1,400 a month, close to the rent average in the Dallas area.

For these tenants, most of them with limited English skills, navigating the city’s bureaucracy to report code violations has been frustrating. They said they rarely see results. “We are not living for free; we are paying,” Bachman Lake resident [and Dallas Area Interfaith leader] Claudia Cruz, 38, told us.

Bachman Lake Tenants Need Support, Dallas Morning News [pdf]

Inquilinos de Dallas Denuncian Malas Condiciones en Viviendas, Telemundo Dallas

[Excerpt]

On Wednesday, residents will join Dallas Area Interfaith, Bachman Lake Together and Lumin Education in a meeting with city officials to demand solutions to what they describe as “risky and unbearable living conditions” in many units.

“We are ready to speak up, and we are not scared anymore. All the things we went through are helping us to move forward,” said Claudia Cruz, 38, a mother of three children who lives in an apartment in the area. “We are not victims, we are organizers now, and we want the city and those in charge to work with us.”

[Photo Credit: Maria Ramos Pacheco, Dallas Morning News]

Dallas Tenants Counter ‘Unbearable’ Conditions, Dallas Morning News [pdf]