SECURITY ISSUES AT 3003 VAN NESS

In January, 2022, the Office of DC Attorney General Karl Racine designated the apartment buildings at 3003 Van Ness Street a “nuisance property” because the company that manages it, Equity Residential, has refused to implement security procedures needed to address sharply rising crime. The designation, made at the request of the Metropolitan District Police (MPD), will give the Attorney General and MPD additional authority to compel the company to take steps needed to ensure the safety of its tenants.

Less than a decade ago, 3003 Van Ness was advertised as a luxury property, with large apartments, hardwood floors, balconies, underground parking, and a spectacular outdoor swimming pool. However, since Equity Residential took control of the property in 2013, residents report that it has been allowed to deteriorate in almost every way, with worsening maintenance of common areas as well as possible structural damage to the garage, reduced amenities, problems with heat and hot water, poor ventilation and other problems.

THE SCOPE OF THE PROBLEM

Many residents see the lack of security as the most serious issue. Police crime statistics reveal that in 2021 crime at 3003 Van Ness was many times higher than in large neighboring buildings in the same complex – six times higher than at the coop building immediately to the north and 15 times higher than the condo building immediately to the east. Public records show that in 2021 alone more than 300 calls to the police via 911 originated from 3003 Van Ness.

In recent years, there have been vehicle thefts, burglaries, robbery, narcotics dealing, simple assaults, and assaults with dangerous weapons. On multiple occasions, teams of law enforcement officers have descended on the property to investigate a violent incident or make a drug bust. In September, 2021, residents found the building in lockdown, with officers searching for a fugitive with a gun. In December 2021, a resident of 3003 was stabbed in her apartment.

Equity Residential has refused to provide virtually any security at 3003 Van Ness

• Exterior doors and locks are frequently broken.

• Many security and safety lights don’t work.

• The security camera system is practically inoperable, with broken cameras, poor coverage and limited recording capacity.

• The key fob system is outmoded and fails to safeguard against unauthorized entry.

• There is no 24/7 security guard, despite the high incidence of crime.

• There is poor screening of visitors, with many non-residents freely entering the building.

• There is poor control of master copies of keys to residents’ apartments.

• Aggressive dogs that have attacked others are permitted to remain on the property.

• Management takes no responsibility for handling even simple problems and instead instructs residents to call 911.

TENANTS SIMPLY WANT A SAFE PLACE TO LIVE

The Van Ness South Tenants Association and the residents of 3003 Van Ness simply want Equity Residential to live up to its marketing hype so that they can live in a safe, well-maintained building. The tenants association strongly supports and is grateful for recent action by the Attorney General and the Metropolitan District Police to compel Equity Residential to improve security and lower crime.

THE MOST SERIOUS SECURITY ISSUES

It is hard for some people to believe that a $33 billion corporation would fail to provide the most basic building security to its residents — functional doors and locks, proper lighting, operational security camera, procedures to screen visitors, and a full-time security guard. However, at 3003 Van Ness, Equity Residential has refused to adequately provide any of these things, leading to more non-residents freely entering the building, more nuisance behavior, and more crime.

Ironically, on the home page of Equity Residential’s website, the company states:

“Our purpose at Equity Residential is creating communities where people thrive. We know that in order to thrive, however, our residents must first feel safe.”

The many photos below demonstrate that the company isn’t living up to the hype.

EXTERIOR DOORS AND LOCKS ARE FREQUENTLY BROKEN

Many of the exterior doors and locks at 3003 Van Ness are broken for weeks at a time, despite frequent complaints from residents. Some doors don’t close automatically after an individual enters or exits. Some don’t latch properly. In some cases, the button that is supposed to automatically open the door doesn’t work.

Equity Residential finally began repairing doors and locks after VNSTA published a 45-page report, “Structural Problems, Security Issues and Safety Hazards,” and it filed a complaint with the DC Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs. While the tenants association welcomes recent efforts to repair doors and locks, in the past the repair work has been shoddy and the doors and locks break again.

VIDEO SECURITY SYSTEM ISN’T FULLY FUNCTIONAL

The video screen behind the main desk, which should show live video from cameras all over the building, appears to show only a few video streams.

The system as a whole doesn’t seem to record video for any length at time - perhaps not at all. When incidents have occurred in the past, management has been unable to produce video evidence.

MISSING VIDEO CAMERAS

There are no security video cameras in many important locations at 3003 Van Ness, including the main entrance, the garage entrance, the loading dock, as well as other exterior doors. There are no security cameras in the mail rooms, near the elevators, in stairwells, or other interior areas. Because of the high level of crime and nuisance behavior, many more cameras may be needed.

EXTERIOR LIGHTS OFTEN DON’T WORK

A recent inspection found a half dozen exterior lampposts not working, leaving areas around 3003 Van Ness in the dark. In the past, some have been broken for weeks or months at a time. Some of these bulbs in the lights below were finally replaced after the tenants association published its report on maintenance problems at 3003 Van Ness.

NO SECURITY GUARD

For many years, the tenants association has requested that Equity Residential management hire an experienced, full-time security guard. However, Equity has refused to do so, citing the cost. In light of increased crime and nuisance behavior at 3003 Van Ness, the tenants association now requests that Equity Residential have experienced guards, off-duty or former police officers or persons of similar qualifications, to patrol the building 24/7.

After a woman was stabbed at 3003 Van Ness on Dec. 3, 2021, the VNSTA Security Working Group met with Equity Residential management in December 2021 to request increased security. The management representatives said that they would provide a security plan and that until a full plan was completed, they would ensure that a security guard was on the premises. Since then, no plan has been released, and Equity Residential has been elusive about sharing details about the promised security guard

After a security team is in place, duties must be clearly established — what needs to be checked and how often, as well as where the guard will be stationed when not on rounds. Daily reports need to go to management and weekly reports should be shared with the tenants association.

In addition, there should be clear protocols for what residents should do when they confront a problem — whether it is merely a nuisance like loud noise or smoking, or domestic disturbance, possible criminal activity or some other threat. Currently, Equity takes no responsibility for any such problems on the property, and merely directs residents to call 911. There were more than 300 calls to MPD via 911 from 3003 Van Ness in 2021 alone.

POOR CONTROL OF APARTMENT KEYS and BUILDING ENTRANCE FOBS

In at least two periods, there were strings of burglaries at 3003 Van Ness. Many did not appear to be forced entries. It was thought that these could have been “inside jobs” or due to the fact that Equity Residential allows contractors to use keys to residents’ apartments when making repairs. (In the past, building staff would escort contractors to apartments to let them in.) Equity needs to clearly establish its procedures regarding apartment keys.

Likewise, Equity managements seems to have lost control of the fob entry system. It does not appear to know how many operational fobs are in existence or who has them.

POOR SCREENING OF VISITORS

There are some very good staff members 3003 Van Ness who are hardworking and well-liked. However, Equity Residential severely understaffs the building to cut costs, and so it is nearly impossible for employees to keep the building maintained or to serve its residents adequately.

One of the most serious problems is the inability to adequately screen visitors to 3003 Van Ness. People often enter the building without any check whatsoever. Side and back entrance doors often are broken or propped open. Video cameras at the exterior doors don’t work or don’t exist. As a result, many people flow into the building who have no business being there, creating a serious security problem.

MANAGEMENT TAKES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY INCIDENTS THAT OCCUR

One overriding problem is that Equity Residential takes no responsibility for any incidents that occur on the property — whether they are simple complaints about noise or smoking, or more serious complaints about possible criminal activity. In all cases, residents are told to call 911.

However, most residents don’t want to call the police when their neighbors do something that is extremely annoying but not necessarily criminal. And they are reluctant to call the police when they hear neighbors screaming at each other — was that just a fight, or domestic abuse? For these reasons, the very high number of 911 calls from 3003 Van Ness may substantially understate the number of problems experienced by residents. Equity Residential should provide an intermediate channel for addressing problems in the building, so when they are not serious they can dealt with locally by a security guard, or they can be directed to the police via 911 when they clearly are serious.

THE RESULTS OF POOR SECURITY — AT THE EXTREMES

Less than 10 years ago, 3003 Van Ness was a well-kept, quiet building with an aging population. The building was in better condition, there was a larger staff, nuisance behavior wasn’t tolerated, and crime was relatively low. There has been a gradual deterioration of the building under management by Equity Residential. The failure to maintain the building or make it safe for residents isn’t the fault of an individual building manager - it is a corporate strategy.

The effect of abysmally poor security is that residents quality of life suffers because of extremely poor, but not necessarily criminal behavior. In some cases, they become victims of a crime. In others, they are merely scared bystanders.