BUILDING TIKI POWER: Tenants Rights Campaign Underway in Tacoma, WA
There is a humanitarian crisis in Tacoma, WA.
On April 4th, 2018, the tenants at Tacoma’s Tiki Apartments located at 1111 S. Highland received 2 different notices taped to their doors. The first notified them that the apartments were now being managed by a new owner group Allied Residential. The next informed them that the apartments were to be remodeled extensively and everyone would have to move. They split the apartments into 2 groups. Half the tenants were given 57 days to move and a $600 assistance fee if they surrendered their keys. The other half received a 26 day notice with a $900 assistance fee if they surrendered their keys.
I caught wind that the Tenants Union of Washington would be visiting the apartments and holding a meeting, so I grabbed some coffee and headed over.
A quick personal note. I have never been involved in tenant advocacy before so if I sound awkward, it is my first rodeo. I also don’t claim to be the worlds greatest at traversing language in a way that is not harmful to people with disabilities, so feel free to reach out and let me know how I could word something better. I would appreciate it.
I come out of the union movement and most of my organizing and participation is usually around union and worker specific issues. I understand housing and rent, landlords and capitalists, incarceration and bad credit and I easily connect the dots that this mass displacement of Tacoma community members and the larger housing crisis are bound to one another. They are workers issues and an attack on working class people. BUT, my initial thought was devoid of any broader analysis and was quite simply… I’m a longshoreman, I have a van, my coworkers and I move and stow cargo for a living. Maybe my union can go out and help people move who are experiencing crisis right now. What transpired was one of the most raw, human, community meetings I have ever attended.
Amy Tower from the Tenants Union was doing her best to facilitate. This was the first organizing meeting like this so navigating a process for communication was a challenge, especially with frustration and emotion boiling over, not to mention we were right next to Highway 16 so hearing was difficult. People were scared, angry, exhausted and wanted to be heard.
Probably 40 people participated. Mostly tenants, home care workers and some community members, groups and city agencies. Here are the external community folks that I noted as being present, may have missed a few…
- Associated Ministries
- United Way — South Sound 211
- Tenants Union of Washington State
- Veterans Housing Services?
- Community Healthcare
- International Longshore & Warehouse Union
- Democratic Socialists of America
- Pastor Eric Jackson — Bethlehem Baptist Church
- 3 University of Puget Sound students
- Komo News 4
- A staff aide for City Councilman Keith Blocker
- Tacoma Housing Authority
The meeting started with introductions. “Hi, I’m so and so from unit 106…” and so on. As new people came to the meeting things often got passionate and sidetracked and it was difficult to reign things back in or move the discussion in any liner direction but this really was a space to vent, to cry, to be heard and tell your story. That in itself may have been the most important thing that happened today as a whole community. We sat in a circle outside on various chairs that had been supplied from kitchens and living rooms.
I jotted down a lot of notes and a lot of quotes. I didn’t ask permission to share anyones names so I don’t intend to do so here. But I do want to sift through my chicken scratch and use bits and pieces to help paint a picture of the community that’s under attack.
- “…full time student with chronic back problems.” Also a social worker.
- Went to trade school and joined the union. Needs stability to overcome past debts and rebuild credit from past eviction.
- Recovering from a stroke. Movement in hands difficult. not able or prepared to move out.
- Elderly man with back problems. Lived there 15 years. Unsure how he will be able to pack his things.
- “…I’m exhausted and scared and I’m not afraid to cry about it.” Currently on a 3 year wait list with housing authority. Panic attacks and anxiety.
- “moved down from Seatac to get on my feet and had really hoped to stay here for awhile longer.”
- “I was living in a car 6 months ago but I got help and was able to get this apartment.”
- “was thinking about suicide last week.”
- “they waited till I paid my rent, then put this notice on my door.”
- “We’re Tiki Refugees!”
- “I just want people to know there is still sunshine in the sky.”
I was struck by this cross section of working class voices. Union members. Dollar store workers. Women of color. Students. Formerly incarcerated. Single moms. Single dads. Formerly homeless. Recovering drug addicts. Retirees. People with disabilities. People moving away from domestic violence situations. Some people expressed that this was going to be hard because everyone is experiencing this notice to vacate in different ways. While this is certainly true, it struck me that this also connects a lot of different communities and groups to this struggle. A possibility for a broad coalition that could come together to support these tenants and maybe launch a bigger conversation about housing, slumlords and development in Tacoma.
One thing that makes me sick, is one of the tenants told us Allied is offering new leases again to everyone after the remodel but with no guarantee of a timeline and at $500 more per month. The units are being “upgraded” to bring them up to rent levels in the booming Tacoma market.
The Tacoma Housing Authority, who does good work really put things in perspective. Their list for new applicants is CLOSED. Only 3 of the Tiki Tenants were already on the list and were on a 2–3 year wait for placement.
Community Healthcare had several patients at the Tiki Apartments and wanted to let people know they were monitoring the situation and would assist anyway they could. Veterans Housing and the Associated Ministries let people know that nobody needed to worry about purchasing packing materials and that boxes and other supplies were readily available. The tenants were informed that a gofundme had been set up already to help people with the transition. UPS students met with tenants and offered to help them move.
We all waited for the city council to arrive at 4:30 and they never showed up. An aide for Keith Blocker did attend and interviewed the Tenants Union and spoke with tenants. This prompted a conversation that if the city wasn’t going to come to the Tiki’s, then the Tiki’s were going to go to the city.
So what do we do? Here is all the concrete information I have at this time.
On Saturday, a group of tenants and community folks are going to doorbell and talk one on one with Tiki tenants and distribute flyers. We are going to make a note of accessibility needs and get a rough headcount for the council meeting on Tuesday.
Tuesday, April 24th @ 3:00pm There will be another community meeting at the Tiki Apartments.
We are organizing a caravan to get everyone down to the city council meeting. Sign in for speakers is at 5:00 PM. Meeting is at 5:30.
There was consensus on asking the council to pass an emergency ordinance blocking this notice to vacate. Essentially buying time to sort through this housing emergency. More discussion at 3:00 pm on Tuesday.
WANT TO HELP?
Join us on Tuesday. Listen to speakers. Hit the mic. Stand with the Tiki’s.
We are looking for a place to warehouse peoples personal things during this transition. Just the knowledge that there is an available place, would ease a lot of anxiety. Know someone in Tacoma that owns secure storage units and likes helping people?
Every dollar counts. We are looking for people, possibly from the building trades unions that could help touch up paint, fix doors and help get much needed deposits back for 59 apartment units. We anticipate Allied Rentals “nickle and diming” everyone, even though they are supposedly tearing everything out for a remodel.
You may also donate here to help with the transition for 100 displaced people:
https://www.gofundme.com/tiki-tenant-relief-fund
Thank you.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Brian Skiffington is a rank and file member of the International Longshore & Warehouse Union.