Queens, New York – Orthodox Jewish residents of the massive 4,605 apartment complex in Lefrak City, Queens have filed a “discrimination” suit against the buildings’ owners over the installation of key fobs and other electronic renovations that are causing major problems for them during the Sabbath.
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NYPOST.com (http://bit.ly/1StwuQN) reports that according to the suit filed in Brooklyn federal court, the new key fobs—which provide entry for renters through an electronic signal—are merely the tip of the iceberg, as electronically controlled lighting systems triggered by motion sensors have been installed in all of the 20-buildings’ stairwells.
Jewish residents who customarily opted for the stairs to avoid using the elevators on the Sabbath are now often left stranded both inside and outside the building.
Sulaymon Ibragimov, a plaintiff in the suit, said the renovations have often left Jewish residents stranded outside during the Sabbath, and that there has been no effort by the buildings’ owners, The Lefrak Organization, to accommodate them.
“I stand around and hope for a miracle every single time,” Ibragimov said.
Hope no lawyer takes this ridiculous case. Less than 50 orthodox families and the other 4500 families should not have these safety upgrades? This is America not the Williamsburg Hilton.
First and foremost genius poster #1 Williamsburg is in the USA. And Second it is not unreasonable to ask for and expect a certain level of cooperation and accommodation for Shabbat Observance. Every minority group routinely gets accommodation and orthodox Jews should as well
Landlords should try to accommodate all their tenants
I don’t think people know this case very well. As an attorney there’s a lot of talk going around that the LeFrak Org was never informed about the issue but that an attorney came to these couples and told them there’s a great case to be made here. The LeFraks have one of the best records in NYC when it comes to accommodating tenants and I guarantee that they would install traditional locks for said tenants. This is a group of people and a lawyer who see the potential to make $$$.