Letter to Krenger - May 13, 2009

5528 N. Kenmore Ave. Apt 106
Chicago, IL 60640

May 13, 2009

The Krenger Company
3304 N. Halsted St.
Chicago, IL 60657

Dear Martin,

Two days ago I received your letter dated May 11 and wish to sincerely apologize for having broken your policy regarding posting materials without permission. I did not recall any such policies and should have been more careful to review the lease agreement for such rules. I assure you that I will not violate this rule again and will post any further communication with my neighbors through the US Postal Service. You also mentioned in that letter that you appreciate my cooperation and patience as you attempt to remedy this problem. I’d like to remind you that I have shown extreme patience and continue to cooperate with you in your efforts to fix this problem. I, perhaps more than anyone, am eager for you to solve this problem. I have no interest in “payback” or any other sort of oppositional action. My desire is that the problem of roaches coming into my apartment be resolved.

Yesterday I received another letter from you (dated May 11 as well) along with the letter I wrote to my fellow residents (dated May 8). Again, I hope you will accept my apologies for having broken your policy regarding the posting of materials. I also would like to express how pleased I am that you are doing/have done a building-wide inspection today. In your letter you also mentioned that you would be happy to contact the building inspector to review your actions in the building. I assume you are talking about a city inspector. Yes, I would be very interested in receiving information on when the last city inspection was and how their findings may relate to the work that you are doing in the building. I would also be interested in when your next routine inspection is planned.

In this second letter, you asked me if I would prefer to end my lease. I thank you for your willingness to release me from the lease, but I have no interest in doing so. In fact, I plan on renewing my lease when given the opportunity. In this letter, you said, “If it is your intention to remain in the building unhappily and attempt to perpetuate this unhappiness, then we will take offense.” I am not exactly sure what you mean by this statement, but I would like to emphasize that my plans to review your company on opinion sites and to create a blog specifically dedicated to reviewing your company is not intended to offend you or to drag your company’s name through the mud. Rather this action is intended to make your company accountable for the actions it makes and the attitudes it expresses. If you stand behind the work that you have done and do, then my honestly discussion about that work should not be a problem. If you consider your interaction with tenants to be respectful and professional, then there is no cause for concern if I speak openly about it.

When I spoke to you on the phone on Tuesday, May 5th, I was very disappointed by the tone you used and what I perceived to be an expression of condescension and a lack of respect. I understand that these are very subjective impressions. In my reviews of your company, I will be very honest is recognizing what is my subjective impression and what are the indisputable actions that your company has taken. Let me be clear, though: I have no desire to harm your company or to play a game of tit for tat. If you can adequately find some resolution to the problem I am facing, then I will positively record that fact in my reviews. I feel that I have waited nearly three years to see this problem resolved and that now is the time to put some pressure on your company to stand behind the work it does.

I am not alone in my desire to see a more permanent solution, though I am sure I have become the most vocal person. As I have also indicated, I will share my experience with others in the building who have expressed an interest in hearing about it and will hear from some of them even if they are too timid to contact you directly. I hope you will not be offended by my willingness to be honest and open about my experience in this apartment, but if you are, I hope you can at least understand that in theory, transparency is not something to be feared. I will make every effort to be accurate and generous in the way I represent my impressions of your company’s attitudes because I understand that anger and retribution will not help my cause, which is really and honestly just about keeping the roaches out of my apartment.

I still look forward to receiving the report Smithereen gave you and that you offered to fax me. Again, the fax number at my work is 773.---.----. I would also like to receive a response to the comment I made in my email (dated May 10). I will paste it below:

I think there should be a more consistent attempt to keep them out of the building in the first place. When I talked to you on the phone on Tuesday (it may have been Monday), you said that you visited the building and did not see a significant problem. You also suggested that perhaps pests such as these were just a fact of life in city apartments….I was at the el stop when I was on the phone with you, so I may not have heard everything you said about the subject of pests and city life, so I’d also appreciate some clarification on what kind and frequency of pest problem I should expect from my time as a Krenger tenant.

Respectfully,
Erica Chu
773.---.----
---@---.com