Remaining Lockhaven tenants found another letter from the Management taped to their doors last Friday, November 22 - the company’s recap of the Open House meeting on the 14th. The best outcome for most of us was a “timeline”, a table of buildings and the corresponding month in which “residents may expect to receive notice that renovations will soon begin” (italics mine). A step forward in “transparency”, perhaps, but not the information we deserve. The latter would be a solid commitment to dates before which renovations will not commence and/or especially a commitment to dates before which we will not receive (legal) termination notices.
The letter also makes an “Incentive” offer of 1-month free rent for those returning to renovated units. Presumably this means current tenants, although it’s not clear if this would apply to former tenants as well. In any case, a kind gesture but takers on this offer are not likely to be many, with projected new rents being twice the current rate. Would moving twice, OUT and then IN again, be worth a month’s rent? Help in storing belongings is also offered with no specifics. How convenient that Goodman Real Estate manages the nearest storage facility! Are we supposed to infer something here? A month of free storage also?
Contact information for the new relocation specialist, Kerry Lynch was also given. We are thankful for this service, but Kerry’s work is certainly cut out for her! Those of us who have already been searching are finding local rental rates pretty depressing. And we have already said goodbyes to ejected Lockhaven neighbors who have given up on Ballard and fled to places as far away as Edmonds, Olympia, and Vancouver.
Evan Sugden
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