Letters to the Editor
Here are a couple of letters to the editor in response to City Pages’ article on Spiros and UPi:
Pillow talk with Spiros
I wanted to thank you for your article on slumlord Spiros Zorbalas (“The Slumlord of South Minneapolis,” 1/30/08). These issues are not made public enough and people like him need to be exposed. As a former tenant, I dealt with constant issues, from no heat in the winter, to broken appliances replaced with other broken appliances, to drug dealing, to no fire alarms, to ignored maintenance requests, to broken front doors, to poor building management, to a $200 “move-out” fee! How does he sleep at night? (I know: on a bed of money.) Thanks again.
Dan Minneapolis
A former UPi employee speaks out
I commend you for bringing to light the slumlord of south Minneapolis. As an employee of UPi for nearly a year, I experienced firsthand how this man operates his business. I was the onsite person for a Loring Park property, where I dealt with many of the issues that you outlined in your story. There was even an individual there who committed suicide, and Spiros did not refund his deposit for his apartment to his parents because proper move-out notice wasn’t given. As the onsite manager, I had to deal with the lack of heat and hot water complaints on a regular basis, mostly late fall and wintertime. Not only did I have to hear them, but I was a victim of lack of heat, too, because with no heat in apartments, there was no heat in the main office, either, and I spent many days there with a jacket and a ski hat on, trying to stay warm.
Greg H. St. Paul
A Former employee…for a short time
I too was an on-site employee for Mr. Zarbalas. The living conditions for my family and the residents were above and beyond horrible. Having to use our oven in the winter to heat a two bedroom apt. was pathetic…the roaches liked it. Every building on-site was infested with roaches and mice. Once I found out that UPi was operating a property without a license, that had no heat, roaches, lack of hot water and many other major problems, it was time to GO! If you treat your employees like that, what does that say about you as a person. The residents look upto the managers for support, but we can’t give it to them since we don’t have the support either. No matter where you chose to live, document and take pictures( not digital), digital pictures can be altered. Make sure that you date the pictures and please fill out your move-in condition sheet. Lastly, make a copy of it for your records.