> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Owners ordered to back up - URL: https://www.smdp.com/owners-ordered-to-back-up/ - Published: 2007-09-21T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T02:54:49.000Z - Author: Guest Author - Tags: Business, Venice, #archive-import *Building owners ordered to halt evictions* *By MICHAEL J. TITTINGER Daily Press Editor* VENICE The remaining tenants of Lincoln Place, who have fought their eviction from the 38-acre, World War II-era complex tooth and nail, can stand their ground indefinitely. A state appeals court on Thursday ordered an immediate halt to the evictions at the hands of owner AIMCO Venezia, LLC., the largest apartment rental company in the United States. Ruling the ousters unlawful, the three-judge panel of the 2nd District Court of Appeals determined that AIMCO had not held up its end of the bargain, ignoring self-imposed conditions not to evict any tenants involuntarily. AIMCO moved to evict the massive complex’s 86 remaining tenants in December 2005 — the largest such eviction in Los Angeles history — claiming they were within their rights under the Ellis Act, a state law that allows property owners to get out of the rental business by converting properties into home ownership opportunities. Tenants are also legally challenging the Denver-based AIMCO’s stated intentions to leave the rental business at the Venice site. “We are finally vindicated,” said Laura Burns, a former Lincoln Place tenant.“These evictions were so traumatic and a nightmare for everyone who was there. We have finally been heard.” AIMCO claimed that 13 households still living in the complex off Lincoln Boulevard were doing so illegally, following the company’s order for them to vacate the premises Aug. 31. AIMCO had plans to replace all buildings on the Lincoln Place property with contemporary housing, complete with affordable units for low-income residents, AIMCO officials have said. Most of the tenants have already left, accepting relocation packages that included thousands of dollars to help pay for moving expenses. Those who did not accept AIMCO’s offer were summarily evicted in December, some of whom formed a “tent city” nearby in order to stage protests. Under an agreement reached during a series of mediations, 40 households comprised of elderly tenants and those with disabilities were allowed to remain at the site until demolition commenced. “We are jubilant. This points the way for (Los Angeles) City Councilmembers to assist longtime renters being pushed out of gentri-fying neighborhoods by condo conversions where the developer wants to evict them rather than include them in redevelopment plans. “Councilmembers can negotiate win-win situations and the city can enforce these agreements,” said Sheila Bernard, president of the Lincoln Place Tenants Association. Attempts to reach representatives from AIMCO seeking comment on the court decision were unsuccessful Thursday. Officials with AIMCO had stated previously that they offered in October 2005 and in April of 2006 to allow existing tenants to remain at Lincoln Place in their current rents for life. Those offers were rejected by the tenants association, who said residents on fixed incomes would be unable to afford market rate housing elsewhere. For the past two years, AIMCO officials said they have offered “generous monetary relocation packages” far in excess of what state and local law requires. Lincoln Place, a garden-style campus of 52 buildings built in 1951, was originally backed by the Federal Housing Authority to support World War II veterans and their families. However, it always has been privately owned. Once offering 795 affordable apartments, the site has been largely abandoned in the face of an ongoing legal debacle that began shortly after 1993, when the property owner proposed a redevelopment plan that called for 850 units to be built on the site, most of which would be market-rate condominiums. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 21, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/092107.pdf?ref=smdp.com)