Lawsuit filed to pressure developers to keep promise

Three tenants, prospective one sue Front Street Apartment partners

A lawsuit was filed Thursday against the builders of the Front Street Apartments and the state housing agency to challenge the developer’s attempt to convert the complex to market-rate units before the end of its 50-year commitment to keep rents affordable for low-income tenants.

Three tenants and a prospective tenant are the plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed in 2nd Circuit Court against Front Street Affordable Housing Partners and Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corp.

If the conversion is allowed, nearly all of the more than 300 tenants would lose their housing, a news release from the plaintiffs said. The tenants include seniors and people with disabilities living on fixed incomes and families with incomes of less than $15,000 annually.

Tenants argue that the market rents would drive many into homelessness.