Koreatown property owner tows tenants' cars in order to turn parking spots into ADUs

KOREATOWN, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Update: The owner, Mark Nassab, asserts that only three cars were towed (not eight), and that tenants were given notice of the towing. He also says that not all of the tenants are opposed to the ADU project, and not all tenants have guaranteed parking. And Mr. Nassab's lawyer clarified a point of dispute, stating that, "rent adjustments were and will be based on a permanent reduction for the following year for affected tenants as all tenants with assigned parking spots were given a rent decrease of $200.00." We're continuing to follow this story as one of the tenants is asking LA Superior Court to vacate the Tenant Habitability Plan for the project and require a new plan to comply with municipal regulations.

A Koreatown property owner had his tenants' cars towed from their parking spots in order to convert those spaces into small housing units.

Confrontations erupted Monday morning outside the apartment complex on 501 S. Kingsley Dr., where residents say they felt ambushed by the property owner's actions.

"Today at 6:30 in the morning they ambushed us. They towed all the cars. They brought a crew of 20 men to take our parking using brute force," said Lauren Seely, a 12-year resident of the building.

On Monday afternoon, tenants were still standing guard right outside the now fenced-off parking spaces to try and prevent any construction from taking place, effectively creating a standoff situation. They're trying to ward off crews from permanently sealing off the parking spots.

According to residents, this is the fourth time since the summer that the owner has tried to do this. He hadn't been successful until Monday, when eight vehicles were towed from their assigned parking spots.

The city of Los Angeles, trying to address the housing shortage, has encouraged the building of ADUs, or accessory dwelling units, which are essentially tiny apartments.

The owner plans to convert the parking spots on his property into five ADUs. The main problem is that the tenants were assigned the spots in their lease.

"There are ways to do this legally, but they are basically slumlords at this point, and this is how they choose to engage with us," Seely said.

Now, the residents have to spend time and hundreds of dollars to get their cars out of a tow yard.

"Their response was, 'Well, we put a notice on your door.' Well, that notice on the door doesn't change my lease. So this is still lease protected," said Mel Raymond, a 9-year resident of the building, pointing at the parking spaces. "They still haven't given us an adequate plan to make sure this is habitable."

Raymond said she didn't realize the property owner could do something like this.

"It never even occurred to me that a landlord could just say we don't care about that... I thought that the lease was a document that protected me, and it turns out, not necessarily. You know, they can just do whatever they want," Raymond added. "To him, our quality of life doesn't matter, so he can squeeze an extra buck. It's disgusting."

The owner of the building, Mark Nassab, declined an on-camera interview but told Eyewitness News the following:

"We have permits, they've been approved by the city... If it was illegal, building and safety would be here to shut it down."

When Eyewitness News brought up the point that the tenants have a parking spot in their lease, he said:

"They have it in their lease, but the city allows, the state allows by just cause, we can modify the lease."

When asked his thoughts on the situation casting him as the "bad guy," he said: "I know who I am, I know what I'm doing is right."

Nassab said he is offering the tenants a $200 rent reduction, but the tenants say that's not really the case. They tell Eyewitness News that they've been offered temporary reductions, but they want to see a permanent reduction to their rent.

"They are already planning our next rent increase, and that's based on the existing base rent and not the permanent reduction," Raymons said.

Eyewitness News reached out to the office of L.A. City Councilwoman Heather Hutt regarding the situation and received the following response:

"Parking is already scarce in Koreatown, and I know how frustrated tenants must be to have to deal with their cars being towed especially while juggling extra expenses during the holiday season. My team is in contact with the Kingsley Tenants Association, and I will take their concerns and forward them to the Housing Department for further investigation."

Meanwhile, the tenants say they have a court case set for next month in an appeal to stop the ADU process from happening, but they are concerned that the property owner will move forward regardless of the outcome of that case.

"Now we've been put in a space where we don't have anywhere to park tonight. All we can do is try to hold them off physically and stop them from doing any type of construction," Raymond said.