Seniors living in the Brith Sholom House apartment building in Wynnefield Heights–one of Philadelphia’s few affordable senior housing complexes–experience unacceptable conditions every day: broken plumbing systems, exposed wires, leaking pipes, pest infestations, fire code violations that threaten their safety, and much more. The Department of Licenses and Inspections has found more than 100 serious code violations.

We represent the building’s elected tenants’ council. Residents have been organizing for months, hoping for a solution that holds building ownership accountable, provides the dignified housing they deserve, and allows them to stay in their homes. More than 150 low-income seniors live in the building

Brith Sholom House is in receivership, and its owner was ordered to make the needed repairs in a November 15, 2023 injunction. Progress remained painfully slow, tenants say.

After months of grassroots mobilization, relationship building, and public pressure, the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) agreed to purchase the property. The sale closed in September 2024.

Because of the conditions Brith Sholom Winit L.P. left the building in, PHA found that clearing the units and gutting was the safest option. PHA has paused rent payments and is guiding residents through the process of finding temporary alternative housing. Tenants will be welcomed back to their homes once the necessary repairs are completed.

We will continue to stand with tenants to make sure the City of Philadelphia does not allow the mass displacement of seniors amid an affordable housing crisis.