Woodmere, New York-based real estate investor Shlomo “Sam” Sarot has been repeatedly described by Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam as a problem landlord.
Still, Sarot continues to invest in Connecticut’s Capital City, paying $3.82 million for two apartment buildings with a combined 48 units in July. The purchases closed weeks after the mayor’s office continued to criticize Sarot following flooding that displaced dozens of tenants at Sarot’s largest building.
Sarot counters that he is working to bring older buildings up to standards while cooperating with city officials. He said repairs are ongoing and progress is being made.
Despite the friction with City Hall, Sarot said last week that he hopes to mend the relationship by cooperating with city staff and continuing to invest in repairs and upgrades. He said he also remains confident in Hartford’s economic prospects and continues to invest in the city.
By Thursday morning, Sarot was less optimistic, saying city offices are complicating permit requests and canceling inspections, holding up repairs as well as rental permits.
“Everything was resolved, we were waiting on inspections,” Sarot said. “However, this is not the town’s priority.”
Cristian Corza, Arulampalam’s deputy chief of staff, said Sarot has made “limited progress in resolving housing code violations, as several open cases remain on multiple properties.”
Sarot owns, or has a stake in, at least 198 apartments across five Hartford properties, including the two purchased in July.
In deeds recorded July 31, limited liability companies controlled by Sarot paid $1.46 million for a 1920-vintage, 18-unit apartment building at 660 Farmington Ave., and $2.36 million for a 30-unit, 1965-vintage building at 25 Imlay St.
In both cases, the seller was Martin Sbriglio, of Stratford.
Norwich, New York-based NBT Bank provided financing through mortgage loans of $1.08 million for 660 Farmington Ave., and $1.76 million for 25 Imlay St.
Rocky relationship with city administration
In December, Arulampalam’s office included Sarot on a list of problem landlords whom he promised the city would target. At the time, the mayor’s office said Sarot’s properties had documented violations, including mice and roach infestations, non-working sinks and excessive heat issues.
Flooding over the July 4 weekend at an 80-unit apartment building Sarot owns at 57-59 Sumner St. resulted in 40 adults and eight children being displaced. Ten days later, Arulampalam held a press conference in front of the building to blame Sarot for the conditions and promise tough action.
Arulampalam said the city had suspended Sarot’s rental license, issued comprehensive notices of building and fire safety code violations and deployed staff and financing to help displaced tenants relocate. The city has since placed a lien on the property to recover associated expenses.
“And we will do everything in the power of the law to hold Shlomo Sarat accountable for his actions here in the city of Hartford,” Arulampalam promised. “These are real people who are getting hurt. You might sit out there in Woodmere, New York, and you may not have to think about them. This might just feel like dollars on a spreadsheet to you, but we think about them every single day.”
Sarot said a fire had disabled the elevator before the flooding. Firefighters responding to the blaze inadvertently damaged the roof membrane while dragging equipment across it, he said, causing three floors to flood when heavy rain fell days later.
The roof of the 1970-vintage building has since received a temporary patch and cleanup work is beginning. Sarot, in an interview last week, said restoration of the elevator will take time, but he is pushing forward. Electrical work must be permitted and performed, while other repairs will depend on a payout from his insurance carrier. Replacement parts could also take some time to arrive, he acknowledged.
Sarot said his staff helped tenants retrieve belongings from their apartments. He said that, working through the city, he has also offered to relocate tenants to other units he owns, terminate leases upon request, refund rent or put tenants in hotels while their units are repaired.
“We are working with the town to give them all these options,” Sarot said.
