Philadelphia City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier and residents of the Mason on Chestnut allege that mismanagement by the building’s owners has led to unsafe conditions that have forced nearly all tenants to leave the off-campus apartment complex.
The Mason — located at 3701 Chestnut St. — which serves as an off-campus housing option for Penn students, has faced reports of resident dissatisfaction since 2020. In a June 18 social media post on X, Gauthier stated that she visited the building with police officers to demand immediate action from CSC Real Estate Partners, a New York City-based real estate firm that owns the building.
“I will never let out-of-town slumlords come into our community and treat our neighbors like trash,” Gauthier wrote in a July 18 statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian. "Landlords have a responsibility to maintain their buildings to the standards outlined by law, and the City must hold them responsible if they refuse."
Gauthier, who represents Philadelphia City Council's third district — which includes University City — described the current situation as "one nightmare after another" in a written statement to the DP.
"The Mason remains out of compliance with City law and minimum habitability standards," Gauthier wrote. "Water was restored, but last we heard, there is still no hot water, no air conditioning, and most recently, trash collection appears to have stopped."
Gauthier noted that, as of July 18, her office "believe[s] there are three families still living in the Mason." Two families have already been contacted for assistance, according to Gauthier.
CSC disputes these criticisms.
In a statement to the DP, Mattioni, Ltd. — the law firm representing CSC — wrote that following “significant water damage in the summer of 2024,” CSC has “worked with the building’s tenants in assisting them in finding new housing.”
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“To date, ownership has assisted in moving out over 275 occupants of the building,” CSC’s lawyer wrote, adding that the remaining units are “occupied by holdover tenants whose leases have long since expired and been terminated.”
CSC Chief Financial Officer Shlomo Rosenfeld wrote to the DP that building management has attempted to “help these [residents] relocate” in light of the “need to repair the building and specifically the air conditioning.”
“We can’t do that until the building is vacant,” Rosenfeld wrote. “We are looking to have this building serve the entire Philadelphia area and be able to house hundreds of students.”
Mason resident Katherine Dow — who has previously spoken to the DP about negative living conditions in the building — said that she had called the Philadelphia Police Department, who forced the building’s management to return water services to tenants.
In response to a request for comment from the DP, Philadelphia Police could not confirm the incident.
Dow told the DP that she would soon be moving out of the Mason, but that as of July 3, the building’s air conditioning remained inconsistent, and that the elevator had not worked in several days.
Dow expressed the view that the Mason’s “living conditions are deplorable.” She said that the amount of garbage is "unbelievable," residents have "no hot water … no air conditioner," and they "can't get ventilation."
Dow described her "several attempts" to contact CSC, but claimed that “they're not responding to citizens like me.”
Gauthier emphasized the responsibility of landlords "to maintain their buildings to the standards outlined by law," noting the refusal of CSC to respond to complaints.
"The City must hold them responsible if they refuse," she wrote. "I will continue to watch CSC's actions until the remaining tenants find new housing and the compensation they deserve for the trauma they have experienced."
Despite complaints from Gauthier and residents, Rosenfelt wrote that the building’s staff clean “the trash on a daily basis.”
Another tenant that previously resided in the Mason is relocating, according to Dow — after which the building will house only one family.
In April, residents claimed the Mason locked its doors after building management issued lease termination notices. An April 1 lease termination notice acquired by the DP instructed tenants to “vacate and relinquish possession” of the Mason by the end of the month. Three days later, a "Closed for Business" sign appeared on the building's front door.
The Mason's management told Dow that the city had closed the building down.
However, when Dow called 2013 Engineering graduate and Pennsylvania state Rep. Rick Krajewski (D-Philadelphia) — who represents the area that the Mason is located in — his office told her they had no knowledge of the city shutting down the building. Philly311, the city's non-emergency contact center, repeated a similar message.
Mason residents have previously expressed frustrations due to the building management's lack of communication and repeated failure to return their security deposits.
The Department of Licenses and Inspections has cited the property for 131 city code violations over its history.
Rosenfeld noted CSC’s intention to construct an addiction rehabilitation center “behind the building,” a plan first announced in July 2024. The building’s designs include a 517,000-square-foot hub for both inpatient and outpatient services. If developed, the 40-story building will be the largest addiction rehabilitation center in the Northeast.
He told the DP, however, that CSC’s “immediate attention is on bring[ing] the Mason on Chestnut back online to serve the Philadelphia community.”
