410 N. Rossmore Tenants Told They Will Be Moved Around the Building

In a letter dated November 8, 2022, the tenants at 410 N. Rossmore were notified they would be relocated to other units in the building while the building owner makes “light renovations and improvements” to the building.

“Instead of a major redo, we are planning to preserve the historic charm with a subtle deco touch,” Greg Potikyan, new asset manager for co-owner ESI Ventures, told the Larchmont Chronicle this month. According to the Chronicle, Potikyan said the “remaining tenants will be relocated to top-floor units while work begins below on plumbing, electrical and other upgrades, as well as painting and new flooring and appliances.”

But the improvements are not being made in the units where the remaining 15 tenants are living.

“After a review of all reasonable and available options for renovations to the property, Ownership has decided to move forward with light renovations and improvements to the property. The property improvements will include renovating the common areas, upgrading electrical and plumbing systems, and updating unoccupied units. The current Tenants’ units will not be updated except for necessary upgrades to the infrastructure (e.g., plumbing and electrical),” read the letter sent to residents by property manager Moss and Company.

The renovations were scheduled to start in late November and be completed by September 2023. During that time the current tenants would be “temporarily relocated to the 5th floor during construction starting Q1 (Jan-Mar) 2023 and moved back to their units once the renovations and/or improvements are complete.”

This seems to be another announcement made by the building owner, ESI Ventures, that work will commence in the building despite not having secured any building permits for the project.

“We are not aware of any recently issued permits that would necessitate tenant relocation,” Alison Simard, Director of Communications for CD5 Councilmember Paul Koretz, told the Buzz. “Any tenant relocation would need to have been approved in a Tenant Habitability Plan subject to review by the Housing Department. Our office continues to monitor the situation at this time and work with tenants to ensure that their rights are being respected through this difficult process.”

In September, we reported the building owner intended to revoke all tenant parking privileges as of October 1st due to imminent construction. The tenants filed complaints with the City of Los Angeles Housing Department, which agreed that revocation of parking privileges and the move two weeks later to evict three low-income women who were offered temporary housing by Richard Loring, a representative of ESI Ventures, constituted harassment.

The November newsletter notified tenants that “due to changes in construction schedules, management has made the decision to delay the enforcement of the parking revocation until further notice. We also have contacted the neighboring properties to inquire about temporary parking spots and are looking into alternative options.”

To date the relocation of the current tenants has not been implemented.