Electricity Turned Off At Tiny Shelters

Joel Nieves woke up in his tiny backyard home on Rosette Street Thursday morning and noticed the air was warm — too warm.

At 9:24 a.m., at the Elicker administration’s behest, United Illuminating (UI) shut off the power to six pre-fab shelters, including the one that Nieves has been living out of.

With the temperature rising and his air conditioner now off, Nieves immediately thought about his CPAP machine, which he uses to sleep at night.

“What am I going to do? It’s a sad situation, but we need to stand our ground,” Nieves said. ​“I’m nervous because I don’t know how I’m going to sleep tonight.”

Thursday’s power shut-off marked the latest turn in a tense week between City Hall and Hill homelessness activists over the six tiny shelters that have stood since last fall in the backyard of the Amistad Catholic Workers House at 203 Rosette St.

On Monday, Mayor Justin Elicker’s administration called on UI to turn off the electricity at those shelters because they are now ​“illegal dwelling units,” after the expiration of a 180-day state permit granting them relief from complying with the state building code. Residents, neighbors, and activists associated with the Rosette Village Collective responded on Tuesday by marching on City Hall to return the city’s case-and-desist letter that had arrived right in the middle of a protest press conference.

UI spokesperson Sarah Wall Fliotsos told the Independent on Thursday that the Meter Services department received a form from a city inspector at around 8:30 a.m. requesting that the power be shut off in the backyard of 203 Rosette St. on the grounds that the owner had not obtained needed permissions for the property within 180 days.

“We completed the disconnection remotely following this call,” Wall Fliotsos wrote.

Mark and Luz Colville, who co-own the Amistad Catholic Workers House, sat in their Hill property’s backyard Thursday morning alongside fellow housing activist Billy Bromage, strategizing ways to keep the village afloat.

The three floated ideas of community fundraising and requests for generators to keep the electricity on in the under-100-square-foot homes — at least temporarily. (The shelters do not have individual kitchens and bathrooms. As part of a suite of zoning relief granted by the Board of Zoning Appeals in March, the Amistad Catholic Workers House has to make available the main home’s bathroom and kitchen to the backyard residents.)

Mark Colville remembered how the village ran before the 180-day permit, with extension cords and rechargeable electrical boxes, to power ​“simple electronics,” such as lighting. But times are different, Colville noted, pointing out the record-breaking heat this summer.

“It’s a siege that Elicker has decided to impose on us,” he said. ​“These [houses] will turn into saunas.”

Rosette organizer Sean Gargamelli-McCreight shared that the collective sent an appeal Wednesday to the state’s Code and Standards Committee to try to extend the 180-day permit, and its receipt was confirmed Thursday morning, before the power shut down. As part of the appeal, the collective requested the power to be turned on, at least until the end of the appeals process. The committee will meet on August 14, where the case will be sent to another panel for discussion.

But Colville emphasized the importance of timeliness.

“We’re worried about health right now,” Colville said. ​“And we have to protect our people.”

The request is an attempt to appeal an earlier call, last week, to renew the permit.

Gargamelli-McCreight pointed to section 108.1 in the state code

​“The building official may issue a permit for temporary structures and temporary uses. Such permits shall be limited as to time of service but shall not be permitted for more than 180 days. The building official may grant a single 180-day extension for demonstrated cause.”

Gargamelli-McCreight emphasized that the original permit actually fell under an exception to the section, which classified the structures in the backyard as tents or membrane structures. Now, the collective is pursuing another permit which would recognize the structures in their correct classification as ​“temporary structures.” When they signed the original agreement, they were hoping that ​“a policy change or passage of legislation like HB 5174 at the state level during the upcoming legislative sessions” which could permit the project in the long term. Now, Gargamelli-McCreight noted that they intend to pursue legal action.

“We filed for a new permit and the city denied it. Then they cut power for lighting and air conditioning to the residences of individuals who are elders and have disabilities,” McCreight said. ​“The mayor could issue a new permit today and restore power. The State Building Code allows for a new permit to be issued at the discretion of the local Building Official, and they have refused. So I would ask, who is actually breaking the law?”

In a phone interview Thursday afternoon, Elicker emphasized that he does not have the power to extend the permit.

“It’s a question for the state if there’s any other interpretation [of the code]. That question, I presume, will be revealed through the appeals,” Elicker said. ​“We do not have authority over the state building code. Demonizing me is not a productive way to confront challenges around homelessness.”

All the while, Nieves is scared about where to go next. He declined to go to the city’s homeless shelters, which he described as an ​“endless chase,” leaving every day and returning at night: ​“Someone in my condition — I can’t be walking around the city all day long. So what do I do?”

He also noted that he’s been waiting for a Section 8 housing-subsidy voucher for two years, and is still waiting. He hopes that there will be some solution at a policy level soon and for Elicker, and anyone at the city, to come visit the village. Though he doesn’t know what kind of solution exists off the top of his head, he noted that the village is working for him.

“I feel safe right here. I’ve gotten to know all the neighbors around and they greet me like I’m one of their neighbors,” Nieves said. ​“Just come down….see how we live, how we treat people. It’s a family atmosphere.”

Leigh Appleby, a spokesperson for the state Department of Administrative Services, told the Independent earlier this week that municipal building departments are responsible for enforcing the state’s building code and permitting relevant projects.

“Temporary structures and membrane structures are only allowed for a 180-day period,” Appleby wrote. ​“Anything erected longer than that must meet the State Building Code for permanent structures. Temporary structures still need to conform with the structural strength, fire safety, means of egress, accessibility, light, ventilation and sanitary requirements of the code. These structures do not meet the structural strength thresholds for wind and snow loads, foundation requirements, energy efficiency requirements for thermal insulation, fire resistance rated walls, and sanitary provisions. Once the permit expires, the temporary structure and membrane structures must be taken down.

“People have a reasonable expectation that all structures they enter are safe. Building codes are put in place to ensure just that. It is the responsibility of municipal building officials to assure that all structures are up to code and are safe environments for all occupants.”