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You have to wonder what would become of the residents of Kendall Villas without advocates like Dallas Area Interfaith pressing the city on their behalf.

....city staffers were aware that many of Villanueva’s neighbors had concerns. A code compliance supervisor had talked to residents in April at the behest of Dallas Area Interfaith. The nonprofit said residents relayed stories about raw sewage leaking onto walkways, electric stoves sparking and mold in bathrooms. Based on their photos and video, and what I saw in person, I believe them.

DAI met again with city officials in May. The concerns persisted into June, when DAI hosted another meeting with city workers at Kendall Villas. A code compliance officer surveyed Villanueva’s collapsed ceiling, according to DAI representatives who were there.

DAI member and Kendall Villas resident Yazbeth Esquivel, 35, helped organize neighbors who had concerns. A handful of complaints trickled into 311 in May, and more than 30 came into the system at once in June....

[Photo Credit: Michael Hogue, Dallas Morning News]

Bad Landlords Make Dallas Housing Miserable. Why Can't City Crack Down?, Dallas Morning News [pdf]

¿Porqué Dallas Permite Que Propietarios Tengan Apartamentos en Malas Condición?, Dallas Morning News [pdf]

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, Dallas Area Interfaith (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.

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Barry Lachman, a Dallas Area Interfaith leader, was involved in the creation of Chapter 27 in 2016. He said that not having enough data for at least five to 10 years can play against good landlords who are following the rules, but ultimately, the most affected by shorter retention periods are tenants.

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"It all started with a group of women," said Dallas Area Interfaith (DAI) organizer Walker Moore, that "wanted to know what their rights were." With the guidance of DAI, the ladies went on to organize several meetings -- at local churches and in apartments -- to formulate a strategy to address mold, dilapidation and crime.

In November, extra chairs had to be hauled out to accommodate 160 people who gathered at San Juan Diego Catholic Church at a meeting in which they brought specific issues with apartment conditions straight to the police chief and City of Dallas elected officials. They and the audience listened with approval as Mayor Pro Tem Monica Alonzo and Roberto Garcia, a Dallas police senior corporal, vowed to help the residents.

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