This week, as good people across Martha’s Vineyard come together in each of the six Island towns to begin the arduous process of developing housing production plans (HPP) that will serve as blueprints to help alleviate the dire shortage of housing, we report on the darker side of that shortage, one that touches on the Island’s large population of workers, who, desperate for a bed to sleep in, may be easily exploited.
Following up on complaints from neighbors appalled by the stench of a failed septic system, last Tuesday Oak Bluffs board of health agent Ade Solarin, Oak Bluffs fire chief John Rose, and Oak Bluffs building inspector Mark Barbadoro went to a four-bedroom, 1.5-bath, 1,300-square-foot house at 98 Pennsylvania Avenue owned by Lisa Kusinitz of Tiverton, R.I.
Town officials found a failed septic system, no smoke detectors in the entire building,; no carbon monoxide detectors, debris and garbage littering the yard, blocked bedroom exits, exposed electrical wires in several places, and clutter in the boiler room that created an obvious fire hazard.
The basement had been converted into a two-bedroom apartment complete with a separate kitchen.
No smoke detectors in an overcrowded house rife with fire hazards. Septic system overflow in a neighborhood. It is frightening to contemplate the serious consequences of such irresponsibility.
It is difficult to accurately describe the situation at 98 Pennsylvania Avenue, or say exactly how many people called the building home. The occupants who were home when the town officials arrived said they were related. Neighbors with a clear view of people entering and exiting the premises on a regular basis estimated that more than 18 people lived in the house, and that included young children. The health inspector was circumspect; pressed for details, he referred to his inspection report.
Whatever the case, according to Mr. Barbadoro, “It was not a tenable living situation. It was troubling, to say the least.”
It is understandable that town officials would be sympathetic. By most accounts, the 98 Pennsylvania Avenue tenants were respectful, quiet neighbors.
“It’s tough, because there’s such a need for housing,” Oak Bluffs building inspector Mark Barbadoro told The Times, “… but I don’t want people to die.”
The housing squeeze has created circumstances in which people desperate for housing are willing to overlook substandard conditions. But it has also allowed unscrupulous lessees to profit by turning around and subletting rooms, or in some cases beds, for large monthly payments — in effect creating unregulated boarding houses.
Erik Hammarlund, an attorney representing Ms. Kusinitz, makes the case that his client rented the house to one tenant. She was a model tenant, he said, who made no demands. Ms. Kusinitz was unaware of the situation. And anyhow, she could not just enter the premises. Really?
Perhaps she could have driven by and wondered at all the cars in the driveway, or smelled the odor emanating from the yard.
It stretches the imagination to think that the owner of an investment valued by the town at $362,000 — even an off-Island owner — would not be just a bit curious and periodically stop by to check on his or her property. Ah well, as long as the rent check cleared.
Property owners, whether they live on- or off-Island, have a responsibility to the Island community. Those who choose to ignore it must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law, which unfortunately is quite weak.
Years ago, officials in Edgartown moved to adopt rental regulations that would require any owner renting or leasing a building or space for human habitation to have a certificate issued by the town. The proposed regulations were similar to a rental bylaw in effect in the Cape Cod town of Yarmouth.
The Yarmouth bylaw does not allow any person to rent or lease a house or a room in a house for living purposes without first registering with the board of health. It is up to the board of health to determine the number of people who may lawfully occupy the space under state sanitary codes.
That information is then listed on a registration certificate that must be conspicuously posted in the rental unit, which is subject to periodic inspection for safety features that include working smoke detectors.
Hotels, inns, and businesses are subject to regulatory inspection and licensing. It is time to apply the same scrutiny to private property owners who are in effect in the rental business, with the goal of ensuring that safety and health guidelines are in place and followed.
Mr. Solarin, Mr. Rose, and Mr. Barbadoro did the right thing. The three town officials acted on reports from neighbors, and took action. They have now demanded the violations be corrected.
The three have set an example of interdepartmental cooperation among the zoning, fire, and health departments that should continue, and be emulated in Edgartown and Tisbury.
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