Tarek El Moussa Responds to Critics Slamming His $50 Million Dollar Project in Los Angeles
Tarek El Moussa is constantly working on various projects. One of his current and biggest undertakings—a $50 million development in Los Angeles—has sparked controversy. Here's a breakdown of what's going on, who's mad at Tarek, why, and what he has to say in response.
First, What Is the Project?
Tarek is working on a massive development called NoHo 138 located in Los Angeles's North Hollywood neighborhood. The new luxury apartment complex will consist of 138 units and amenities including a gym and rooftop deck. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2024 with an expected completion date in 2026. And it's something of a family affair: His investment company TEM Capital, his wife Heather Rae El Moussa's company HEM Capital, and other partners are handling the project.
Why Has the Project Come Under Fire?
There are various residences currently on the project site including 10 bungalows, five dingbat apartments (the kind built over a two-car garage in sunnier states), and a single-family home across multiple lots, according to the Los Angeles Times. They'll all need to be torn down to make way for the new build. This has sparked concerns from those who still live in the rent-controlled units. One 77-year-old tenant has lived in a $824-per-month dingbat unit alongside her 56-year-old son with special needs for 40 years, the outlet reports. The current tenants, who are part of the Hartsook Tenant Association, have stated on Instagram that the project "will destroy their homes and inevitably displace the tenants.” They've also called out Tarek personally, saying that he is "swooping in on a vulnerable but vindicated set of tenants."
How Has Tarek Responded?
Tarek publicly responded to the tenants' concerns in a lengthy post on his Instagram. In the statement, he said that he wanted to clear things up as he's "being dragged for false accusations and misconceptions." Before addressing the claims, he added that his "intentions are to do good."
First, the Flip of Flop alum explained: "Notices to the tenants were served by the current owner, not by me or the partners of NoHo 138. I am not evicting anyone. We did not issue the Ellis Act relocation documents."
The Ellis Act is "a provision in California Law that provides landlords in California with a legal way to go out of the rental market business," according to the Los Angeles Housing Department.
Tarek went on to write, "The city of Los Angeles determined that a new structure shall be constructed on the premises and requested that the structures be removed pursuant to California Civil Code Section 1946."
He added that the partners of the project have attempted "to get in touch with the remaining tenants to have an amicable discussion regarding final move out agreements" and "reached out to the attorney representing the Hartsook tenants to request assistance in facilitating a meeting between both parties."
He explained that the partners' intentions are to work with the tenants to "offer a great opportunity for them while helping to improve the neighborhood."
As part of that effort, the apartment complex will include 14 low-income units so that tenants who already live on the land will have the opportunity to move back when the project is complete. He also claimed that the project will provide new jobs through the construction process, boost city tax revenue for homeless programs, create new parking spaces, and more. "The entire process has been and will continue to be handled according to the law, and the existing tenants will continue to be treated respectfully and lawfully," he added. "I look forward to being a great addition and neighbor to the community."
What’s the History of the Property?
This isn't the first hardship the Hartsook tenants have dealt with as of late. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California, their landlord Arthur Raffy Aslanian was found guilty of "conspiring with his employee to hire a hitman to kill two men" and of hiring someone to set fire to a vacant unit so that the remaining tenants would be forced to leave the property. That July 7 verdict came a few months after the tenants filed a 53-page lawsuit against him in the Los Angeles Superior Court "for assault, breach of common care, and intentional infliction of emotional distress for an alleged prolonged harassment campaign," Vulture reports. The tenants have also complained about rodent infestation, black mold, sewage flooding, broken appliances, and more.
Clare Letmon, one of the current tenants who heads the resident;s Hartsook Tenant Association, told the outlet that the remaining tenants were given notices to leave on June 28, the first day of Aslanian's federal trial.
The partners of NoHo 138 have recognized Aslanian's involvement with "several serious legal matters" on the project’s website, stating that they "previously and currently do not have any involvement or relationship with the seller or these matters, nor will they have any relationship in the future following the property transfer."
So, What Now?
The NoHo 138 website refers to three remaining tenants on the premises, but tenants confirmed to Vulture and the Los Angeles Times that there are five. NoHo 138 "plans to offer generous proposals to the remaining tenants for relocation and the opportunity to move back" once the project is complete, according to the project website. Letmon told Vulture that she's only received the bare minimum required by law for relocation at this point. A meeting between the partners and tenants is reportedly being organized.
“Hartsook Tenants are organizing for a truly just outcome after years of trauma and abuse in solidarity with tenants across Los Angeles who are engaged in a literal life-or-death struggle to stay housed in this City,” Letmon said in a statement obtained by Vulture.
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