But the landlord told the Sun-Times he is being falsely accused. Carlson claimed a witness saw the brewery burning before the fire spread to all four floors of his apartment building.

“It’s all about a landlord being guilty until they prove themselves innocent, right?” Carlson said. “As a landlord in the city of Chicago, guilty until you prove yourself innocent instead of the opposite way around. Thou shalt not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

Carlson said he got a message from the daughter of a tenant saying “she saw the Hippo, Hippo whatever it is, burning. And then the fire spread to my building, not the other way around. That’s it.”

He added that the brewery “had the highly flammable materials in there. I don’t blame anybody. But why are they blaming me?”

    • Deadend [he/him]
      hexagon
      ·
      3 years ago

      I feel you. I live in a good place but the anxiety over all this shit around me I can’t control or do anything more than say please. The walls aren’t mine, hell any fixes may count against me. I have no say in trying to get my neighbors to stop fighting at 2 in the morning aside from yelling at them.

      I get why people move out to the countryside and live off the grid, as at least that way, it’s between you and luck/god regarding bad shit moving forwards.

      The only real way to legally fight back against landlords is knowing their finances and where they live, and organizing your neighbors which is hard, especially in buildings with faster turnover.

      I don’t know what options are left outside of violence to deal with the landlords.

    • Kanna [she/her]
      ·
      3 years ago

      I deeply empathize with what you're saying. It's infuriating

  • 420blazeit69 [he/him]
    ·
    3 years ago

    “It’s all about a landlord being guilty until they prove themselves innocent, right?”

    :yes-comm:

  • AFineWayToDie [he/him]
    ·
    3 years ago

    Thou shalt not bear false witness against your neighbor.

    lol as if this fucknut would lower himself to living in one of his own buildings

    • Deadend [he/him]
      hexagon
      ·
      3 years ago

      Those were mostly contained to the brewery.

      Brewery was one of the only places that was trying to do a regular salary for staff, no tip expected because waitstaff were full time on an hourly wage and had medical coverage. The gym that burned down also wasn't a GYTM gym, it was an obstacle course area for kids and adults.

        • Deadend [he/him]
          hexagon
          ·
          3 years ago

          They were both pretty good.

          I had a couple of friends who heard the nitrogen tanks go up, and another that only noticed the helicopters for the news coverage.

          Basically the brewing gear, and the tanks under heat and pressure basically a potential bomb. The fire department was trying to keep the fire from igniting but failed to.

  • DragonNest_Aidit [they/them,use name]
    ·
    3 years ago

    “There is absolutely no appreciation factor for landlords,” he said. We’re all money-grubbing ass----- to put off all their maintenance, take the money and run. And nothing can be the further from the truth. “

    Carlson said he was told the city may order his building torn down, though to him it looked like it was “perfectly salvageable.”

    :stalin-gun-1:

    • CTHlurker [he/him]
      ·
      3 years ago

      Feel bad for me! Demanded the slumlord who lives entirely off the back of the working poor. Quick question; does America have a work-requirement for Section 8 housing, which I think is the name of your public subsidized housing? Or is the work requirement built in, since you can't afford the rent if you aren't working.

  • Kanna [she/her]
    ·
    3 years ago

    I've seen multiple fires at apartment buildings in my general area this winter. Thankfully nothing devastating, but it's not good

    • Deadend [he/him]
      hexagon
      ·
      3 years ago

      Fire is scary. As even small fires can render a lot of people homeless and without much of their personal property due to smoke and water damage.

  • footfaults [none/use name]
    ·
    edit-2
    3 years ago

    I bet he put all those "highly flammable materials" in the brewery. Gotta store those oily rags and lit cigar somewhere

    • Deadend [he/him]
      hexagon
      ·
      3 years ago

      I mean, the brewery has beer, and alcohol, in theory it has flammable items.

      He was cited for an electrical issue in his building last month and maybe didn't repair it.

          • Deadend [he/him]
            hexagon
            ·
            3 years ago

            Nah, all his property was dirt cheap and he was king of Section 8 and subsidized housing from the government, with a real knack for not spending any money but able to qualify for vouchers.

        • Deadend [he/him]
          hexagon
          ·
          3 years ago

          It's possible.

          The Slumlord - Gary Carlson is apparently hated by EVERYONE for being such a scumbag slumlord.

          Cops hate him, the fire department hates him, everyone hates him.

          He even makes himself impossible to reach to report issues in his buildings.

      • LezGirl [she/her]
        ·
        3 years ago

        Beer doesn't have anywhere close to high enough of an alcohol content to ignite.