Founder and Managing Partner
By 2008, the mother and son had passed on their ownership stakes to two trusts.
A string of building inspection complaints followed, painting a picture of festering disrepair. In 2011, city inspectors ordered the owners to repair damaged walls and cover peeling paint. By 2014, the city had ordered the owners to repair three broken windows, install carbon monoxide detectors and remove “combustible storage” from the basement, including a pile of wood.
Fourteen tenants displaced from the 2015 fire alleged in a 2016 lawsuit—which was later settled for an undisclosed fee—that living conditions at the apartment building were replete with toxic mold, collapsing ceilings and a rodent infestation. Tenants further alleged the sprinkler system and fire alarms were inadequate and exacerbated the fire.
The San Francisco Fire Department did not provide a copy of the fire investigation by publication time.