FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 24, 2026
Contact: Anna Baker-Heans, (510) 599-6430, annab@coopersquare.org
New York, NY — On Tuesday, March 24th, 2026, the tenants of 109 E 9th St rallied outside their building along with tenants rights group Cooper Square Committee, and local elected officials to call attention to the fight to save their deeply affordable SRO housing, and the City’s recent decision to rescind their landlord Michael Geylik’s Certificate of No Harassment (CONH).
Single Room Occupancy buildings (SROs) are a form of deeply affordable housing where tenants rent a private room, and share common facilities like showers, toilets, and kitchens. 109 E 9th St is one of the few remaining SROs in the East Village. Prior to the building’s sale to Michael Geylik in 2021, most of the 14 units at 109 E 9th St were tenanted. Now only 6 tenants remain. The landlord has refused to rent the other units, holding deeply affordable housing off the market, and has made it increasingly challenging for the remaining tenants to stay in their homes. The landlord’s tactics have included the removal of two communal toilets, one bathing facility, and the building’s only kitchen, as well as a lack of repairs on open DOB violations.
“After the landlord removed the bathroom on my floor, I have had to walk down a flight or up two flights of stairs just to use the bathroom. I am getting older, and stumbling on the stairs when I’m half asleep is becoming dangerous, not just inconvenient. When the landlord tore out the main shower and bathroom above me, even basic bathing became unpleasant. Removing our communal kitchen made meals more costly and less healthy,” says tenant Patterson Beckwith about the removal of communal facilities.
Based on the landlord’s conduct, HPD’s CONH unit found probable cause to suspend the CONH previously granted to Geylik and petitioned for a full rescission of the CONH at the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH)—an action that the buildings tenant organizer and lawyer understand to be fairly rare and only available where the conduct is particularly egregious. On Friday, February 20th, 2026, OATH found HPD’s legal team proved several counts of harassment. On March 11th, 2026, HPD rescinded the CONH.
Tenant Zachary Hall said that, while the decision is an overall win for tenants, “It is now being claimed that a CONH will be required to repair and restore parts of the building that Gyelik already destroyed without building permits.” Tenants are in communication with elected officials and city agencies to identify a pathway for restoring the shared toilets, shower, and kitchen, as well as addressing open DOB violations. “We demand that Michael Geylik repairs the damages he has made to our home and restore our essential services with the safety and security of us tenants being the guiding principle…” Hall added.
Tenants are also fighting for an end to all harassment, restoration of building services such as a janitor and proper trash disposal, restoration of all vacant units to habitable condition, and a discontinuation of any and all eviction cases against current tenants. Local leaders have voiced strong support for the tenants.
“Every New Yorker deserves a safe and livable home. The residents of 109 E 9th Street, many of whom have been there for decades, have shown incredible perseverance in the face of very difficult circumstances. I am glad that the NYC Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings and the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development have decided to officially rescind the Certificate of No Harassment after finding proven instances of harassment, and I urge the property owner to work expeditiously to resolve all outstanding violations and restore the building to habitable conditions. I also urge the NYC Department of Buildings, HPD, and all other relevant City and State agencies to take all actions within their power to ensure that these issues are corrected. My office and I will continue to work toward that and support these tenants in securing the homes they deserve,” said Senator Brian Kavanagh, Chair of the NYS Senate Housing Committee.
Assemblymember Deborah Glick stated: “I stand with the residents of 109 East 9th Street and with community leaders to express my outrage over the unacceptable harassment facing tenants. SROs are critical to the survival of these tenants, and HPD’s decision makes clear there has been a pattern of disgraceful behavior. The landlord must cease harassment and work to restore livable conditions.”
Council Member Harvey Epstein echoed those concerns, stating: “I stand with the tenants of 109 East 9th Street who are being denied access to basic necessities because landlords refuse to make repairs. There is nothing complicated about this—landlords must follow the law, make essential repairs, and ensure tenants have access to basic necessities like kitchens and bathrooms. We will not stand by while these homes are neglected.”
Tenants closed the rally by emphasizing that the city’s decision to rescind the CONH is only one step. The ultimate goal, they say, is not just accountability—but the full restoration of their homes and the preservation of a vital form of affordable housing in the neighborhood.
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