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Page 3of 5 are done. That's closer to the perfect scenario," said The Jaweeds have set up so many companies in Larkin. "That's not been the case connection with their rental business that it is hard (with the Jaweeds)." to track who owns certain buildings. They For Columbia Heights, each hour spent on a frequently move properties from one company to property eats up $150 in taxpayer money, Larkin another, which confuses city officials and others. said. He couldn't estimate how much time his staff spends on Jaweed properties, but records show Over the years, the Jaweeds have created at least 45 inspectors visit the Jaweeds' Peters Place apartments companies to buy rental properties, according to Minnesota secretary of state records. about 20 times a year, spending 30 to 60 minutes at each visit. At the most conservative end of that estimate, the city is spending $1,500 a year to Property records show that it's common for one inspect Peters Place.Jaweed company to buy a property, only to transfer it to another Jaweed company later — sometimes on Brooklyn Center's attempt to revoke a rental license the same day, sometimes months or years later. One on a Jaweed property in late 2007 is an example of property changed hands five times in six years. how hard it can be for cities to enforce housing . In addition to using a variety of company names, the regulations Jaweeds are known to use different personal names. Tenants say they know the brothers as "Jay" and After the city filed criminal charges against the "Lee," and lawyers and court officials have had to brothers, the Jaweeds fired back with a lawsuit untangle whether or not cases were filed against the accusing city officials of trying to run them out of right person, since Ali has a different name from his business because most tenants in their 252-unit brother but leads people to believe his last name is Center Pointe complex were minorities. Jaweed. Their lawsuit said the city conducted "unusually Attorneys for Dorglass Inc., a company that claimed aggressive inspections," including unannounced it hadn't been paid for work at two Jaweed visits by police officers, and imposed "maintenance properties, were perplexed when they couldn't find demands that were far more stringent than anything any trace of a person named Asgher Jaweed. Under required of other dwellings in Brooklyn Center." oath in a deposition, Asgher Ali confirmed his real name. But when asked why he had a different last The suit also alleged city officials "coerced, name from his brother, he said only, "I don't know," intimidated, threatened, and interfered with (the and wouldn't elaborate when pressed, said Harvey Jaweeds) because of the Jaweeds' national origin." Schmidt, president of Dorglass. An affidavit by Ali said he and his brother are of Mike Vraa of HOME Line, a Twin Cities-based tenant "Islamic heritage," and that Hyder Jaweed was born in India, then immigrated with his parents to the advertisement United States. Ali was born in the United States. In January 2008, the Jaweeds and Brooklyn Center reached a settlement. The city dropped its criminal charges and revocation proceedings. The Jaweeds dropped their lawsuit, and both sides agreed to a lengthy list of things the Jaweeds would do at Center Pointe. But six months later, the city asked a judge to find the brothers in default of the agreement. In April 2009, the judge ruled in the city's favor. The city revoked the rental license and the Jaweed-run company that owned the building filed for bankruptcy. A COMPLEX MAZE OF COMPANIES htt://www.twincities.com/fdc?uniue=131842761027210/12/2011 ppq