Riddle me this....

Why does Jay Johnson, or the group he is general partner of, own any buildings at all? According to the Chicago Tribune article, there were some working smoke detectors in the Marshfield building, and I have read elsewhere that the Fire Department has yet to find evidence of detectors in the Ramirez apartment. So, despite Joe Moore's spirited defense of his pal, things were not good over at Marshfield.

But wait! Jay is a good guy. The Reverend Jerry Wise said so;

"This is not a sleaze guy, slumlord person," said Rev. Jerry Wise, pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Woodlawn, which is planning to develop affordable housing with Johnson in its South Side neighborhood. "We checked out Jay a lot before we decided to go into business with him."

Are we talking about the same Jay Johnson? The Jay Johnson who is fighting foreclosure on the Ashland/Jonquil building because of an unpaid $1M+ mortgage balance? That Jay Johnson? The mortgage is unpaid for 13 months, which is a lot more sufferance than most folks I know would get. Are we talking about the Jay Johnson who was taken to court by the city because;

There, living conditions became so dangerous city officials last year forced Johnson's company into a compliance agreement that requires fixing several porches that are close to crumbling, putting locks on security doors and repairing dilapidated stairways and doors, court records show. Additionally, Johnson and other members of his development group were ordered to attend a city landlord training program, the records show.

The same Jay Johnson? I have to ask: who is doing due diligence for the Reverend and his flock? He is absolutely certain he wants to do business with this Jay Johnson?

However, all is not lost. Jay has plans to rehab the Ashland/Jonquil building. Really? With what money? He hasn't paid the mortgage and if I read the article correctly the bank wants the building back. Plans are a wonderful thing. As shelf liners and dust catchers they have no peer.

Back when I was in training to be a Revenue Officer (30 years ago), one of the things we learned is that many people have the American dream of being their own boss and owning their own business. Jay Johnson is evidently one of those people. However, the biggest reason that folks failed as business owners was under-capitalization. They couldn't get through the rough economic times, and weren't willing to let go of the dream until the bank, the IRS, and other creditors, arrived on their doorstep and pried the dream out of their fingers.

Whether Jay realizes it or not, he has come to that point. He should do everyone a favor, especially his low income tenants, and get out of the business while he can. It would be a lot more dignified than having it pried loose by the city, the IRS, the bank, and anyone else with a lien.