Ypsilanti Tenants' Union

07/30/2024

Check out what YTU has scheduled for August!

August 4th: Renter Repair Skillshare, 4:00-5:30 p.m. at Marketplace Hall, 16 S Washington St - Learn how to do basic repairs!

August 11th: YTU General Meeting, 3:00-4:30 p.m. at Solidarity Hall and virtual - Reflect on the Skillshare and join us for board games afterward.

August 25th, YTU General Meeting - 3:00-4:30 p.m. at Solidarity Hall and virtual - Agenda TBD

07/23/2024

Join us for the Renter Repair Skillshare workshop on August 4th at 4 p.m.! 🛠 We will gather at Marketplace Hall (16 S. Washington St.) to learn how to do basic repairs, discover the free resources available to make repairs, and build community! MASKS REQUIRED! 😷 We will have extras!

03/10/2024

Ypsilanti Tenants Union Presents: This is Parkdale film screening & community discussion

This Is Parkdale is a short film documenting a successful rent strike organized in Toronto.

"In the summer of 2017, in the Toronto neighbourhood of Parkdale, over 300 tenants living across 12 apartment buildings went on rent strike to protest a wave of rent increases that would have displaced members of their community. Through months of organizing and a series of escalating actions, working-class people took on the biggest corporate landlord in their neighbourhood… and won. In an age where gentrification is rapidly transforming the nature and demographics of working-class neighbourhoods in cities across the world, pushing out poorer tenants, people on fixed incomes, immigrant communities and other long-term residents, the story of the Parkdale rent strike offers an important and practical lesson on how we can organize with our neighbours to fight back."

The documentary is 35 minutes long, and a discussion on the film and how it relates to us and our organizing here in Ypsi will follow.

The event will take place on Saturday March 23rd from 7:30-9:30, at Growing Hope Marketplace located at 16 S Washington St.

Masks are required! Closed captions, masks, and CR boxes will be provided. The building has a 0 step enterance. There is a small parking lot on site, parking in a lot across the street, and parking on side streets in the neighborhood.

If you have any questions, DM or email us at [email protected]

02/17/2024

The supply drive went so well 💖 Thanks to everyone who came, brought essential survival supplies, and stuck around to have fun with us too

02/10/2024

This is tomorrow!!! Who's coming out?

Come join Washtenaw Camp Outreach and the Ypsilanti Tenants Union at our winter camp supply drive and open mic on Sunday, February 11th, 1-5 pm. This event is free to attend, but there is a $10 suggested donation. All proceeds will be going toward purchasing more essential items for the survival of people camping out in these harsh winter conditions.

MASKS ARE HIGHLY ENCOURAGED! Let's be responsible and keep each other safe. Masks will be available at the door. Consider taking a covid test before you come and DO NOT come if you're sick! You can get free covid tests at the library.

We'll be collecting the following items at the event! Stop by anytime during the event to drop them off:

- Sleeping bags
- Sleeping pads
- Tents
- Blankets
- Socks
- Winter coats
- Hats
- Gloves
- Handwarmers
- Buddy heaters
- Camp-ready food
- 16 Oz propane tanks

The community open mic will feature performances by Diont'e Visible, MC Kadence, and Premium Rat! Open mic slots will take place throughout the event between each scheduled performer. Come show us what you got!
⚡️🎤🎸🎷🎺🥁🪗🎤⚡️

RSVP at our Facebook event link here https://www.facebook.com/share/nPERaQBu4Qpqv8f5/?mibextid=9VsGKo

01/17/2024

Come join Washtenaw Camp Outreach and the Ypsilanti Tenants Union at our winter camp supply drive and open mic on Sunday, February 11th, 1-5 pm. This event is free to attend, but there is a $10 suggested donation. All proceeds will be going toward purchasing more essential items for the survival of people camping out in these harsh winter conditions.

MASKS ARE HIGHLY ENCOURAGED! Let's be responsible and keep each other safe. Masks will be available at the door. Consider taking a covid test before you come and DO NOT come if you're sick! You can get free covid tests at the library.

We'll be collecting the following items at the event! Stop by anytime during the event to drop them off:

- Sleeping bags
- Sleeping pads
- Tents
- Blankets
- Socks
- Winter coats
- Hats
- Gloves
- Handwarmers
- Buddy heaters
- Camp-ready food
- 16 Oz propane tanks

The community open mic will feature performances by Diont'e Visible, MC Kadence, and Premium Rat! Open mic slots will take place throughout the event between each scheduled performer. Come show us what you got!
⚡️🎤🎸🎷🎺🥁🪗🎤⚡️

RSVP at our Facebook event link here https://www.facebook.com/share/nPERaQBu4Qpqv8f5/?mibextid=9VsGKo

01/17/2024

Re-sharing with this important feedback from Detroit Eviction Defense:

"Thanks to Ypsi Tenants Union. But there is a CAUTION and a mistake in the link on withholding your rent. Take all the steps to notify the landlord of the problems and requesting repairs and abatements before withholding rent. Have evidence of your notifications to the landlord. In Detroit, you also can and should call Building and Safety (BSEED) at 313-224-2733 to request a city inspector to inspect your unit and write up any violations to send to the landlord and get a copy of that report.

Here is the CAUTION, if you withhold your rent, the landlord likely will serve you with a 7 day notice, Demand for Possession for nonpayment of rent and take you to 36th District Court in Detroit or the 14th District Court in Ypsi to evict you for nonpayment. It's not just small claims court. You have to have the evidence and request an attorney and show up for court. And understand that the landlord may get a judgement which says you have 10 days to pay any amount the court says is owing or you can be evicted. If other tenants in your building or with the landlord are having similar problems then good to work and organize with them to take collective action, to withhold rent together. We are stronger together."

01/16/2024

From

Join McKinley Tenant Association TOMORROW, Wednesday January 17th at 7 pm for a meeting on rent increases for the next lease cycle. McKinley Tenants Only! To access the zoom link, fill out the membership survey on their website and get on their email list.

https://mckinleytenantsassociation.org/

01/16/2024

Landlords are responsible for the heating of your home & maintaining running water. If the electricity goes out, even if it’s in the hands of DTE, it's their responsibility to keep you safely housed. If your heat is out right now or your pipes are frozen, call AND email (so you have written documentation that you contacted them) about needing buddy heaters, a power supply, or an alternative warm place to stay while your power is out. Ask that they call DTE.

If your pipes are frozen & you have electricity, electric heaters, heating pads, & hair driers can help to unthaw them. Soaking towels in hot water to cover the pipes can also help. Regardless of what actions you take, contact your landlord immediately if you need to get your pipes thawed. If you’re worried about your pipes freezing, turn up the heat in your apartment, leave the cabinets under your sink open to allow warm air to circulate, & leave the water trickling in your faucets.

If your landlord is refusing to help in a timely manner and you have documentation to prove it, you can request a rental abatement. If you buy a heater, have to drive a distance for adequate shelter, need to purchase food due to being unable to cook in your home, or otherwise incur expenses as a result of your landlord’s inaction, refer to this how-to guide for next steps: https://docs.google.com/document/d/17nMknCPPUm_bMq93xlyPCLPgnZuo42oIoVSXqCkKhnE/edit

Check on your neighbors! Sharing resources & putting pressure on landlords by having multiple tenants contact about issues they’re facing builds community power.

In the mean time while you wait for your landlord & DTE to take action, you can stay warm & charge up your devices at the following places: The Ypsi Daytime Warming Center at the Freighthouse, open Mon-Thurs 8am-6pm; The Superior Township & Whittaker Road Libraries, & Solidarity Hall open hours on Sundays 11am-3pm.

If you're at high-risk for covid & need a safe space to recharge devices & stay warm, reach out & we’ll try to connect you with someone who can host you for a couple hours in their covid-free home. If you have any questions about this information, or you’re able to loan out supplies (such as external heaters) to support tenants, please reach out at [email protected]

01/09/2024

📢 URGENT CALL TO ACTION 📢

STOP THE SWEEP

Washtenaw County Sheriffs have issued a 24 hour eviction notice to eight unhoused people to leave their campsite on Michigan Ave. They have nowhere else to go or store their possessions. The eviction might take place TODAY, Tuesday January 9th!

Phone local officials and demand an extension of the eviction notice TODAY!

Washtenaw County Sheriff: 734-973-4613
Property Owner: Joe Sesi - 734-668-6100
Ypsi Township Board: 734-544-4000
(ext. 6) - Supervisor
(ext. 2) - Clerk
(ext. 3) - Treasurer

01/08/2024

Upcoming general ypsi tenant union meetings:

January 14th, 3 pm
January 28th, 3 pm

Always both in person at 169 S Washington St and hybrid on zoom. DM us for zoom link or if you have trouble locating the space. MASKS REQUIRED, we run air purifiers in the space, do not come if you're sick or have been exposed to covid. If you are uncomfortable masking, you may attend on zoom. There is a no step entry into the space where we hold our meetings at the end of the driveway, but the house itself which has a bathroom has a two step entry.

If you regularly can't make this time but wanna get organized, reach out and we'll try to work something out! You can DM us here or email us at [email protected]

11/30/2023

December tenant meetings + December Daytime Warming Center event & reminder!

Our general YTU meetings are open to the public. All tenants and homeowners in solidarity welcome. No landlords or landlord informants. Our meetings are every other Sunday at 3 pm. This month, they fall on December 3rd, 17th, and 31st. Meetings take place both at Solidarity Hall 169 S Washington and on zoom. Masks are required. There is a no step entry into the hall where our meetings take place, but the house where the bathroom is located does require steps. DM us for the zoom link or any questions.

Arbor One and McKinley tenants also meet regularly to organize their specific complexes. If you are a tenant of these places, you are welcome to join their meeting. Arbor One tenants will meet on December 10th at 3 pm in person -- DM us for address. McKinley Tenant Association will meet on zoom on December 13th at 7 pm -- DM us for zoom link.

In addition to these meeting updates, we remind you of the Washtenaw Daytime Warming Centers! The warming centers are not organized by the tenant union, but we support them and encourage you to check it out, volunteer, or just come and hang. A warm and free place to exist, nap, eat, gather. The Ypsi location is at the Freighthouse and runs from 8 AM-6 PM. You can come and hang out, grab some coffee, and meet your neighbors, both housed and unhoused. You can also volunteer to do laundry, bring food, or bring needed items. DM for more info. You can find the links to volunteer and donate in the bio.

Daytime warming center is having a Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser this Saturday, December 2nd, at 5:30-8:30 at Ann Arbor Friends Meeting House, 1420 Hill St, Ann Arbor. Come out, support, eat some food, hear some stories about how the warming centers got started!