NYC Feds Clip Bronx Landlord For $75K In Fair Housing Suit Settlement; Building Super Admits Stiffing Black Prospective Renters While, On Same Day, Welcoming Apartment-Seeking Whites With Open Arms

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (New York City):

• Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, [] announced a settlement of the United States’ lawsuit against LOVENTHAL SILVER RIVERDALE, LLC, GOODMAN MANAGEMENT, and JESUS VELASCO for discriminating against African-American apartment seekers in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
  
  The settlement, in the form of a consent decree, resolves a lawsuit filed by the United States on September 26, 2011. It enjoins LOVENTHAL SILVER RIVERDALE, GOODMAN MANAGEMENT, and VELASCO from discriminating based on race or color in the terms or conditions of renting a dwelling, and establishes a $35,000 victim fund that will be available to compensate the victims of their discriminatory practices.
  
  Defendants LOVENTHAL SILVER RIVERDALE and VELASCO must also pay a $40,000 civil penalty.

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• According to the Complaint and the Consent Decree filed in Manhattan federal court:
  
  LOVENTHAL SILVER RIVERDALE owns an apartment complex at 3800 Independence Avenue in Riverdale, New York, which consists of approximately 72 rental apartment units. GOODMAN MANAGEMENT is the management company for the complex. Under the settlement, VELASCO, the superintendent of the complex, admits that, on repeated occasions, he informed prospective African-American tenants that there were no available apartments, while, on the same day, he informed prospective Caucasian tenants that there were available apartments in the building.

For the U.S. Attorney press release, see Manhattan U.S. Attorney Settles Housing Discrimination Lawsuit With Owner, Manager, And Superintendent Of Riverdale Apartment Complex (Superintendent Admits that He Did Not Show Available Apartments to African-Americans).

For the lawsuit, see U.S. v. Loventhal Silver Riverdale LLC, et al. (go here for the settlement agreement).