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Uploaded: Tuesday, February 10, 2009, 3:59 PM
Tenants lash out against police investigation
Palo Alto police recorded activist's phone call as part of extortion claim
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by Gennady Sheyner
Palo Alto Online Staff
A group of East Palo Alto tenants is protesting a recent Palo Alto Police Department investigation of a leading tenant activist Christopher Lund, who is engaged in a bitter feud with property manager Page Mill Properties.
The tenants are also questioning why Lt. Tim Morgan, a Palo Alto police official who moonlights as a consultant for Page Mill, was taking photos on activist Lund's rented property two weeks ago.
Lund, a community organizer and one of the fiercest critics of the Palo Alto-based company, said he had a confrontation with Morgan on Jan. 29, when he saw a man with a camera loitering outside his Woodland Avenue home.
Lund said he asked the man to identify himself, but the man refused and began taking photos of Lund, prompting Lund to call the police. When East Palo Alto police arrived a few minutes later, the man was gone, Lund said.
The next morning, the man appeared again, but was spotted by a neighbor who stepped outside to look for her cat, Lund said. The man noticed her and quickly left.
"He jogged back down to his truck and sped off on Woodland," Lund said.
Page Mill General Counsel Jim Shore confirmed to the Palo Alto Daily News last week that the man who was taking photos was Morgan. Shore reportedly said Morgan was taking photos of Lund and his truck because someone had earlier followed Shore's wife and Morgan wanted to see if Lund's car matches that of the stranger.
Page Mill had also filed a complaint with the Palo Alto police, accusing Lund of extortion, Ryan said. As part of the department's investigation, police recorded a phone call between Russell Schaadt, Page Mill's director of asset management, and Lund in which Schaadt reportedly tried to offer Lund money. Lund refused.
Lund was subsequently cleared of any charges, Ryan said.
But the bitter feud between Page Mill and its tenants has prompted the department to reexamine Morgan's role with Page Mill, Ryan said. Morgan's contract with the company was approved about eight months ago by former Police Chief Lynne Johnson, he said. It designated Morgan a consultant for emergency preparedness and risk management, but did not specify which companies he could work for.
Since then, Morgan's relationship with Page Mill has changed, prompting the department to review his current role with the company, Ryan said.
"We're looking to see if there is any conflict of interest," Ryan said.
Ryan said Morgan had no involvement in the department's investigation of Lund.
On Monday night, several East Palo Alto residents asked Palo Alto officials to look into the police department's involvement in the long-standing and highly litigious dispute between Page Mill and its tenants.
"We were very alarmed to learn through media reports about the PAPD investigation regarding activist Chris Lund," said Andy Blue, member of tenant-advocacy group Tenants Together. "We're very concerned about use of police resources to tape a conversation between landlord and tenant."
William Webster, a member of East Palo Alto's Rent Stabilization Board, was even more blunt.
"It's appalling that the name and Palo Alto label be associated with the machinations against the residents of East Palo Alto who are being driven out by the thousands in our community," Webster told the Palo Alto council.
Lund declined to comment about possible police impropriety and said he was confident with how Interim Police Chief Dennis Burns is handling the issue. Ryan said recording conversations is a widespread practice in investigating extortion and other cases. He said the phone call was made from the police department and did not require a warrant.
Page Mill tenants also asked the Palo Alto council to censure the company for what they claim are "predatory" policies, which they say consist of driving out tenants through constant harassment and sharp rent increases.
Lund also attended the council meeting and used his allotted three minutes under oral communications to criticize Page Mill's treatment of its tenants. He said his own monthly rent jumped from $800 to $1,400 in February.
Lund said Page Mill has already forced 1,500 residents to leave their apartments, pushing the vacancy rate at the company's buildings from 2 percent to more than 20 percent.
"We lost on average 20 people per week, week after week," Lund told the council.
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Posted by TipAndRing, a resident of the Crescent Park neighborhood, on Feb 10, 2009 at 5:18 pm Is this the rebirth of the PAPD Red Squad?
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Posted by WireTap, a resident of the Midtown neighborhood, on Feb 10, 2009 at 5:55 pm "Ryan said recording phone conversations is a widespread practice in policing and one that does not require a warrant."
Mr. Ryan, what is the purpose of any warrant by your policing standards?
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Posted by Brandon Hall, a resident of the University South neighborhood, on Feb 11, 2009 at 10:03 am Who is "Ryan"?
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Posted by Ref, a resident of Menlo Park, on Feb 11, 2009 at 11:08 am Not to mention, who is Schaadt?
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Posted by FT, a resident of the Barron Park neighborhood, on Feb 11, 2009 at 11:25 am This really stinks. Are we really supposed to believe that something really rotten didn't go on here. Page Mill's General Counsel is a former DA in Santa Clara County. [Portion removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
One needs to ask:
Who approved this "investigation"?
Who released this material to Page Mill?
Did Mr. Shore have any contact with the PAPD on this issue? And at what level?
Does Palo Alto rent its police power out to people in San Mateo county for a price?
Did this ever go before a judge?
Why is Mr. Shore speaking to the press in insinuating tones about an investigation that he initiated and yielded no charges? [Portion removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
Some people need to be fired at the Palo Alto Police Department. This is not right.
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Posted by Farfel, a resident of Menlo Park, on Feb 11, 2009 at 11:36 am It's sad to see the PAPD doing the bidding of this predatory organization.
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Posted by YouShouldKnow, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Feb 11, 2009 at 12:30 pm Morgans behavior sounds incredibly out of line to me. If he is a sworn Officer of the court and is directly questioned by a person he is outright observing doesn't he have to identify himself? Or did he not because of a conflict of interest. If I see someone photographing me or any part of my life I grab my camera, put it to video, and do it right back. Video screams louder than he said/he said. I am a supporter of PAPD but there can be wrongdoing in any organization. If there was a question of possible criminal behavior why not investigate in an official capacity?
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Posted by YouShouldKnow, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Feb 11, 2009 at 12:51 pm And why didn't Morgan wait for the EPA PD or contact them as a professional courtesy before going in? Very unprofessional borderline behavior. It sounds like intimidation and perhaps retribution based tactics to me. Any good investigator can get a few photographs of a vehicle without being so obvious.
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Posted by Morgan should get in trouble, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Feb 11, 2009 at 5:15 pm I understand how the procedures in an investigation go and I know the taped phone call, in light of an extortion investigation, is de rigeur. But Morgan's actions are not, and he needs to get nailed for his behavior.
I should also say that as a Page Mill tenant, I have not been subject to the type of harassment others have (others who are innocent of any wrongdoing, pay their rent on time, etc), but nevertheless, Page Mill violates the law constantly. I have had numerous unidentified people on my property without appointment, without my being notified. It's always been like this, since they bought out units. Heck, when the property was being inspected, Page Mill's inspectors were here 15 minutes early, tramping about my yard. I called them on it and made them wait til the allotted time.
I have come home numerous times to find that some Page Mill designee has been on my property without my being notified. So you can imagine what they're doing to tenants that they want to get ride of, and activists such as Mr. Lund. Page Mill may think EPA residents are a bunch of ignoramuses who don't know their rights, but they're having to change their tune. There are a number of intelligent, educated, informed residents involved in these tenant issues. Page Mill has to be stopped. It would be wise for Palo Alto Police to distance themselves from these lawbreakers, and prevent Mr. Morgan from any further work with them - after he gets in trouble for what he's done to Mr. Lund.
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Posted by This is who Schaadt is, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Feb 11, 2009 at 5:31 pm Russell Schaadt is named both as Director of Operations and Director or Portfolio Options in different news articles. I could not find info on him on their website. There used to be a list of company directors, but it's gone now. They use many methods to obfuscate, including calling themselves Woodland Park Apartments, having tenants pay rent to various LLCs so as to avoid being linked as one entity subject to rent control and other laws.
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Posted by Useful Links, a resident of another community, on Feb 11, 2009 at 5:44 pm Below are links to the website about these tenants rights issues. It's a well-done site:
Web Link
Web Link
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Posted by S. Rogers, a resident of the Fairmeadow neighborhood, on Feb 11, 2009 at 6:28 pm It looks like Page Mill Properties might be involved in something shady.
I heard unfavorable stories about this company, but having a police officer allegedly act on their behalf goes a step further...
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Posted by From EPA to PA, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Feb 11, 2009 at 6:43 pm Thanks to the Palo Alto residents who are learning about this situation. The thoughtful comments on this board indicate that people outside of E. Palo Alto are learning that Page Mill Properties are behaving abominably.
Having a former DDA and a current cop on their payroll doesn't make them legitimate or give them the right to pervert justice. One good reason this impacts Palo Alto residents (besides them being based in your city) is that they are wasting taxpayer money with bogus accusations and investigations. Given the financial woes of your city, you deserve much better use of money spent.
I hope that you keep apprised of the ongoing lawsuits and issues pertaining to Page Mill Properties and its tenants on the other side of the creek.
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Posted by TwoSides, a resident of the South of Midtown neighborhood, on Feb 11, 2009 at 8:47 pm It sounds to me like this police officer is acting out of the legitimate scope of his jurisdiction. Was he doing this as a pay job? As an employee or consultant of Page Mill Properties? While on duty (but in plain clothes) in Palo Alto and slipping over the border? Why did he 'rush off'? If there legitimately, why not state his name and his business?
Highly suspicious.
As to tenant rights, what the hell are people doing tramping all over your properties all day long? You ARE entitled to 24 hour notice, and some quiet and peaceful enjoyment of the property for which you are paying.
Sounds like greed and shady back room dealings are the order of the day here.
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Posted by put put boogie, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Feb 12, 2009 at 9:53 am Oh ya? They also hired the EPA Building Inspector, his office is at 420 E. Okeefe (behind 2043 Euclid ave with a shared driveway on the corner) EPA. He's in the house, with Great Bay Painting in the garage. Of course they hired the cities Building Inspector to expedite their building permits, duh! [Portion removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
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Posted by gano, a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, on Feb 12, 2009 at 10:24 am [Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
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Posted by Youna, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Feb 12, 2009 at 10:34 am A classic battle between the profit motive and caring for people and communities. Also, is this a legacy of Lynn Johnson? I would wish the City Manager to clean out the corruption in the PAPD, and think about the concerns of people and communities first, the profit motive second or third. We are all in this together, and we succeed or fail together.
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Posted by post, a member of the Terman Middle School community, on Feb 12, 2009 at 10:47 am [Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
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Posted by To Boogie, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Feb 12, 2009 at 1:56 pm More info, please! It'd be helpful if you could post, without objectionable content, more about Page Mill Properties hiring EPA building inspector. Do they also use the painting company you referenced? Thank you!
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Posted by put put boogie, a resident of the St. Claire Gardens neighborhood, on Feb 22, 2009 at 11:45 am Hey ya'll, I hadn't posted objectionable content I simply goofed on the addresss as it is out of sequence for the block & when I proofread & checked the map I saw I'd goofed & asked the paper to remove it the only way they allowed. My email is venturetape@live.com if you wish to ask specific questions.
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