Syracuse, N.Y — The city has done everything it can do to try to force the owners of Skyline Apartments to fix problems that have plagued the building, Mayor Ben Walsh said Monday.
It has two lawsuits pending against Green National, the owners of the property, has sent code enforcement officials to the property every week over the last year and has added off-duty security by Syracuse police officers.
The city won an additional lawsuit against the owners and twice declared the property unfit for occupancy.
“I think the bottom line is that we need a new owner,” Walsh said at a Monday morning news conference.
Walsh said he believes a sale of the property is pending.
The mayor and Syracuse Police Chief Kenton Buckner called the news conference after a 31-year-old woman, Ebony Sanders, was shot in the stomach early Sunday in the building. Her injuries are not life threatening, police said.
The 12-story building on James Street has been troubled by crime, drugs and what tenants have said is mismanagement for several years. It is owned by Tim and Troy Green’s real estate company, Green National.
Last year, 93-year-old Connie Tuori was murdered in her apartment at Skyline. In the ensuing weeks, reports by Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard exposed the dangerous and unclean conditions within the building.
On Monday, Walsh and Buckner said the building has incrementally improved. It now has 24-7 private security, which is paid for by Green National, and the off-duty security from Syracuse police officers.
Officers responded to about 81 police calls each month at the end of 2020 and beginning of 2021, according to data obtained by Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.
That’s dropped to about 61 calls per month based on data from March 1, 2021 through Jan. 15, 2022 provided by Buckner.
The city has used code enforcement to make sure the Greens improve the property. In the last year, officials have found 79 code violations in the building, though only 11 remain open. The building has twice been deemed unfit for human occupancy and then had enough improvements made to be deemed fit to be occupied.
“While the current owners have certainly shown improvement over the last year,” Walsh said, “I think the best outcome is to have a different owner at that property.”
More on Syracuse.com about the Skyline Apartments
Inside Tim Green’s Skyline Apartments: Murder, drugs and filth. Tenants, cops say enough is enough
Family IDs 93-year-old woman murdered in Skyline Apartments
Walsh says he’s exploring legal action against Skyline owners: ‘It’s public nuisance No. 1′
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