Debra Lacava Campbell, aka “goodmom” (among zillions of other anonymous names), is one sharp cookie all right and now, with her former partner, Doug Campbell, they are our most recent inductees to the infamous list of Pottstown slumlords: http://goldencockroach.wordpress.com/current-list-of-slumlords-heads-up-for-renters/ Almost daily, for the past month, we’ve been hearing from homeowners, former tenants and good tenants who have lived in or live nearby the Campbell’s rental properties. They are not happy campers and they have asked us to post the phone numbers and address so you can let them know of any problems you are having because of their tenants behavior or how the neglect of their properties is impacting your life.
Giving them the benefit of the doubt, (we know times are tough for them), Deb and Doug can’t seem to manage to clean up the yard and porch at their rental house at 440 Chestnut St., a task that would take not more than 20 minutes. We’ve also received complaints about another property on Beech St. It’s been over a month since the tenants at 440 Chestnut packed up and moved in the middle of the night. Instead of taking care of business, goodmom seems is glued to the keyboard, taking out her frustration by posting tasteless comments on the Ptown Patch. We don’t know where Doug has gone but at least he doesn’t appear to be having a public melt-down. We suspect that Doug may no longer reside at the following address but the address below is how the civil judgements are listed.
We show the photo, where possible, of the slumlord’s own living conditions, as well as the conditions of their rental properties. Our objective is to let you, the observer, draw your own conclusions about the disparities between them. We are still reeling from the comments made by goodmom, (lack of ethics on display), when she encourages slumlords to rent to sex offenders, ex-criminals, etc….and we wonder how she acquired a heart 3 sizes too small or how she’d feel if her neighbors chose to populate her neighborhood with sex offenders. We wonder how she’d feel if her neighbors piled their discarded mattresses, and such, beside their homes like they do in our neighborhoods and, finally, we wonder how long the Township of Limerick would allow it to go on. 
- Owners of Record: Douglas J. Campbell & Debra L Lacava-Campbell
440 Chestnut St. Owners of Record: Deb & Doug Campbell
Deb and Doug Campbell
136 BAYBERRY DRIVE
LIMERICK, PA 19468
610-247-4910
(484) 624-8415 High St. Rentals 540 E. High St., Pottstown
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IT’S GOOD TO KNOW WHEN ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. PREDATORY RENTAL PROPERTY OWNERS DEFAULT ON THEIR MORTGAGES BUT CONTINUE TO COLLECT SECTION 8 PAYMENTS AND POCKET THE RENT MONIES. Thanks to a commenter at the Pottstown Patch, we discovered a very useful web page:
http://webapp.montcopa.org/PSI/Viewer/Search.aspx?c=CaseSearch&panel=CaseParties
Type the names Debra or Douglas Campbell, (or your own rental property owner), it’s an eye full. Isn’t it interesting how many judgements there are for money owed on their properties from school tax liens to municipal fees, mortgage default judgements …and yet, “goodmom” continues to boast about how hugely endowed and powerful she is – HEAR HER ROAR - **squeek**.
“THAR SHE BLOWS AGAIN”… goodmom, maryjames, GC Buster, MJ, Eric, GC Buster 1, gcb, R.Pauislast, gcb1, Mittwins, (and they just keep rolling). The machinations of a frustrated Pottstown slumlady. She seems to have found a home on the Pottstown Patch. While we feel just a tad sorry for her circumstances, (anyone with an ounce of compassion would), her mean-spirited, vitriolic comments are a poor reflection on herself and the investors she often claims to represent. Can you smell desperation in the wind?
http://pottstown.patch.com/articles/pottstown-tenant-listings-due-by-tuesday?ncid=following_comment
BLOW HARD
As a matter of principal and in the best interests of our objectives we don’t publish rumors or innuendo. All of the information in these pages is already public and verifiable. The photo’s are factual and unadulterated. Rather than using up her resources threatening everyone with nasty comments goodmom could, instead, think of ways to make a positive impact in Pottstown. Simple things like: Stop, give a kid a hug or drop in on an elderly homeowner – special delivery – brighten their day. Pick up some trash around her rentals and make a neighbor euphorically happy!!
“Pennsylvania law does not impose liability for publication of factually accurate information that is “newsworthy”or of legitimate public concern. Pennsylvania courts consider information newsworthy when it concerns “relatively current events such as in the common experience are likely to be of public interest.” Jenkins v. Dell Publ’g Co., 251 F.2d 447, 451 (3d Cir. 1958).
In most states, you can be sued for publishing private facts about another person, even if those facts are true. The term “private facts” refers to information about someone’s personal life that has not previously been revealed to the public, that is not of legitimate public concern, and the publication of which would be offensive to a reasonable person. For example, writing about a person’s HIV status, sexual orientation, or financial troubles could lead to liability for publication of private facts”. Source: Citizen Media Law Project
goodmom update: (goodness has nothing to do with it). 12/1/2011
It seems likely, if there’s a “stereotype” or psychological profile of common traits found among slum property owners, compassion wouldn’t rank high. Pushing the envelope of indecency and contempt. goodmom, an anonymous commenter known to many as a slumlady herself, had this to say in the Mercury Newspaper:
“For you non activists, here are some facts. There are activists who posts landlord names, addresses, phone numbers on their blogs. They also mention they will picket these homes. Homes with there children playing in the front yard. Comments made which are derogatory and defamatory spelling the name of the person and their employment….”
That just might be the first time we’ve ever read an utterance of concern for children, (even though the name “goodmom” conjures up images of Sponge Bob bandaids on boo-boo’s, a cup of hot cocoa and bedtime Dr. Seuss stories). Maybe there’s HOPE. Starting with her concern for the children of slum property owners, and their neighbors children, who might be subjected to demonstrators picketing in front of their tidy little suburban McMansions.
We’re concerned about children too, specifically the children that live and play in the neighborhoods that are most impacted by slum properties. Our goal for these children is that the worst they ever have to experience is demonstrators picketing. We do what we do on this blog site with the goal that one day, children here can play freely and the truly GOOD mom’s and dad’s won’t have to limit them from walking to the corner store or over to a friend’s house, or even playing in their front yards. One nice, sunny day last month, a little neighborhood boy stopped on his way home from school to talk with a neighbor. He told him that when his mama puts the dinner on the table the mice in his apartment eat the food before they do and he wishes they would go away.
SLUMLORD’S FEED THEIR GREED AT THE TABLE OF INNOCENT CHILDREN WHO HAVE NO POWER TO CONTROL THEIR CIRCUMSTANCES.
For as long as slumlords proliferate in our community, the unhealthy living environments, drug dealers, junkies, hookers, gun shooters and child molesters pose a much bigger threat to many more children. Yet, in her base comments and desire to put the “fear of God” into the people who write this blog, goodmom ENCOURAGED slumlords to rent to whomever they choose because it is their right. Need we say more.
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Our friend, and admirer, Joe Zolmek, over at The Pottstown Post says we’re his #1 read of the day when he spots a new post from the Cockroach in his ‘very full of reads’ mailbox. Although this made us blush, we are going to shamelessly “milk it” for all it’s worth — *insert dancing cockroaches gettin’ jiggy with it*— JOE ZOLMEK LIKES OUR WRITING STYLE.
Back to our usual, humble m.o….
Joe doesn’t always agree with the content of our message. We’re good with that. We’re inspired to meet the kindly challenge to PROVE to Joe that we are right and he’s ummmmm……shall we say, just a hair off-center from reality. Just kidding Joe, (kinda). We have the advantage because all of us live next door to at least one slum property, (unfair advantage)? Perhaps, but who’s stopping you from buying a home in da ‘hood too? (Just jivin’ Joe).
Every day that we spend in the trenches we affirm our oh-so-rightness, and we learn more than we ever thought possible, we SEE more, (HEAR and SMELL more), than we ever thought possible. Are we politically correct? Hell no. But then, we haven’t met a slumlord who is either, so it’s not hard to meet or exceed the bar on this one. When the bar gets raised, we’ll be out of work – no more blogs. When that time comes, and it will come, we can get back to communing with nature, twirling our antennae, snacking on delicious things all day long, procreating like crazy, thinking deep thoughts and other worthy pursuits.
**snort**
But now, there’s work to do. If you’ve never experienced the mystifying whirled of comments at the Mercury, or, more recently on the Pottstown Patch: http://pottstown.patch.com/articles/pottstown-tenant-listings-due-by-tuesday, where goodmom becomes “CG BUSTER” aided and abetted by her trusty herd of slumlords and those who serve them. We encourage you to take that journey but be safe and come back with all your limbs attached and your head screwed on straight or you’ll end up being one of her tenants. We know what side of the coin this rental property owner’s on because we’ve conversed with a couple of former tenants who rented from goodmom and her husband, shall we call him; goodad? These two incredibly goodparents are likely to be raising little FSOA’s (Future Slumlords Of America). We know who they are, many people in the community do, but we’re not spilling the beans here, not yet. With all the decorum we can muster, we’ll let you decide for yourselves what side of the coin she is on.
Goodmom believes, with all her – itty bitty – pea sized heart, that there is a bias against Section 8 in Pottstown – NO really? We’ll be damned. She is more than eager to explain why Section 8 is like manna from heaven to slumlords, and we ought to be damn grateful for it. We should be grateful because without Section 8 slumlords we would have NOTHING but vacant rentals. Read it and weep, yes, it would be devastating to have vacant rentals and no slum properties in Pottstown. ***PSYCH***
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Goomom, (that was an honest typo), asks, somewhat rhetorically ….”why would I choose Section 8 instead of regular pay”?
Direct from the “HANDBOOK of INFAMOUS SLUMLORD RETORTS” we bring you the answers from one of Pottstowns Finest, (goodmom wrote this chapter, we’re pretty sure):
Because, WE, the proud, hardworking taxpayers of our fair borough, DID IT TO OURSELVES. Yes, that’s right. Rental property owners choose Section 8 vouchers because we – the voters – elected judges that don’t see things her way, and we’ve elected a borough council that has a spine and the gall to re-write the rental ordinances in favor of the borough. We also have a Codes and Police department that are gaining keen insight, new tools and they are putting them into practice – but, most of all, we are up to our eyeballs in Section 8 all because our esteemed borough manager, Jason Bobst, lives and breathes, (all while making noteworthy strides to get this borough upright and taking sustenance again). “Naive” and misguided activists, (moi?), think he’s doing a really amazing job too, just for the record. Greed and slovenly business practices among slumlords are a figment of our imaginations.
Way Down Upon the Swine-y River, Not So Far Away. Where We Shall Hear the Slumlords Groaning, Down in Our Good Old Home.
Avaricious rental property owners choose tenants based on one of two criteria: they must be Section 8 voucher holders or a steady Social Security check recipient. If the latter can function independently, or not, is largely a crap shoot dependent on weather or not their med’s are administered in a timely fashion. This is of no concern, however, to a good slumlord. Slumlords are home, in McMansionsville napping on the devan or sipping a martini when their tenants, “one sandwich shy of a picnic”, forget where they live and walk into the neighbors house demanding a beer, (true story). Or walk into the kitchen of a dear cockroach friends apartment, (after sucking down brown fluid from a paper bag while sitting in the middle of the alley), and yelled at the little granddaughter to “get out of his house”, (true story). These are the “cream of the crop” tenants for a slumlord because:
1. S.S. renters ,(not all but more of them than not), don’t know their dwelling is unsafe, unsanitary and on the verge of imploding so they’ll never complain. (If they weren’t totally crazy before moving in they soon will be). Voucher tenants are frightened. They don’t know who will help them and so they live in fear of losing their shelter and, they are (alarmingly) ignorant of their rights. We know some really good voucher holders that live in squalor because they fear their slumlords will kick them out for insisting that they make repairs.
2. Neither MontCo Voucher Housing or Social Security know that these rentals are unsafe hell holes because those government agencies don’t care – it’s Pottstown. They’ve put these people here, turned their backs, wiped their hooves and shut the door. They must figure they are paying very good money to slumlords to warehouse the unfortunate, so let the them deal with it, (only they don’t deal with it), WE DO, and we’re sinking here, really, truly sinking an entire borough. We got the short end of the stick. But they’re not gonna go out of their way to find out how bad things are, no sir. So, slovenly rental owner’s do as they please unabated by messy rules and meaty inspections. They simply open their sows ear purses and the money falls in, just like manna from heaven.
A Nice Strong Martini and A Sandwich...Life is Good.
Enough now. We’ll tackle part 2 after our blood pressure returns to normal…Martini? Be a Goodmom and go fetch a Martini for the Roaches.
