Tenants from two Durham affordable housing communities publicly launched new tenant associations on Thursday, marking a necessary escalation in their collective effort to secure safer living conditions and stronger accountability from their landlord, DHIC.
Residents of Willard Street Apartments and Ashton Place have formed Willard Street United and Ashton Seniors in Action, respectively. At a joint press conference outside Ashton Place, tenants called on DHIC to formally recognize their unions and commit to regular quarterly meet-and-confer sessions. Several tenants spoke out about their living conditions which include mold, improperly installed appliances, and a systemic failure to provide basic security for a majority senior community..
“We’re not living here for free,” said resident Kim Lovely. “So based on that alone, we need to have the assistance and the help that we’re paying for. We deserve to be secured and we deserve to be safe in our environment. I am determined to use my voice, because I have a voice.”
Willard Street and Ashton Place are publicly subsidized affordable housing developments managed by DHIC, a nonprofit organization tasked with providing housing for low-income residents and seniors. While the properties are often cited as examples of successful affordable housing, tenants and advocates say the reality has fallen short, citing ongoing concerns about maintenance delays, building safety, and inadequate staffing.
Tenants point to longstanding issues such as slow repairs, malfunctioning doors, and insufficient maintenance capacity across the two buildings, which together house more than 140 units. Tenants pay a substantial portion of their fixed incomes and find their requests for clean and functional living spaces are often stalled within poorly staffed administration or sometimes fully ignored. In January, tenants at both properties submitted petitions outlining their demands, each signed by a majority of households.
“A full-time maintenance man and a part-time maintenance man is not enough to take care of two buildings,” said tenant Bill Thompson. “Two managers are not enough to take care of two buildings.” He went on to describe a variety of amenities that tenants have created for themselves in a void of tenant support from management. “They have a food bank here. A tenant is doing that. We have Bible studies. We have group activities. That’s the tenants.”
The tenant associations are affiliated with the Triangle Tenant Union (TTU), a local chapter of the North Carolina Tenants Union (NCTU), and are part of a broader wave of local tenant organizing following the passage of new local protections aimed at strengthening housing safety enforcement for tenants that consistently overpay for unsafe living conditions. TTU is a collection of autonomous tenant groups and local organizers who provide organizing support and resources for tenants facing unsafe and undignified living conditions. They also contribute toward a statewide tenant support network through affiliation with NCTU.
“We went to a city hall meeting,” said resident Veronica Perry, describing mobilization for a pro-tenant ordinance at Durham City Council on October 20. “That was the best thing that could have ever happened. We were there fighting for the Triangle Tenant Union and we won. I thank God for the Triangle Tenant Union. We have gotten so much done through y’all.”
Tenants say their organizing has already begun to produce results, with some improvements secured through sustained pressure and advocacy. Still, they argue that formal recognition of their unions is essential to ensuring long-term accountability and consistent communication with management.
“I don’t appreciate being treated like I’m nobody,” said local tenant leader Cynthia Hoskins. “Because we’re all people. We’ve all worked our long lives to get to where we are. I have been retaliated against ever since I’ve been here and let me tell you: the claws is out. And I’m not through fighting.”