Tenants of the Lock Vista Apartments say they will fight the potential conversion of their building to condominiums.

Dozens of tenants, many of them senior citizens, showed up at a community meeting last week along with more than a 100 community members. It was standing room only as they crammed into the bottom level of the Ballard Works building off Market Street.

Residents spilled out into the parking lot and peered through upper floor windows to listen in. On the agenda; organize to stop the sale and conversion of one of the few low-rent buildings left in Ballard.

John Fox, coordinator of the housing advocacy group the Seattle Displacement Coalition, was on hand to explain what "limited rights" tenants have when faced with a conversion.

"Our primary goal is to save the housing and guarantee you adequate housing and assistance if that larger effort fails," said Fox.

Tenants were informed a few weeks ago by Lock Vista management, Dominion Real Estate Services, that it would be inspected for possible sale. The Northlake Group, a development company that is already converting more than 100 units in Ballard to condos, is in negotiations to buy the Lock Vista.

Lauren Martin, a representative for Northlake, declined to comment on the potential sale last week. Martin has said converted Northlake units will range in price from $249,900 to $899,900.

A glossy postcard showed up at the Lock Vista earlier this month inviting tenants to celebrate the Northlake Groups' "Ballard Collection." Resident Mona Lang was shocked and angry to see her address on the card even though there had been no formal announcement of the sale.

By law tenants must first receive a building inspection report along with a notice of their first right to purchase, said Fox. From there, they would have 90 days to find alternative housing.

The displaced are also entitled to a $500 relocation allowance, "hardly enough to cover a move," Fox said.

Many at the meeting said they still had 10 months left on a lease. Someone else had just moved into Lock Vista two weeks ago on a month-to-month basis.

Those with leases cannot be asked to vacate before it's expired, but some may have the option of breaking out of them without penalty, said Chris McCarty, owner of Dominion. Tenants will receive full refunds for security deposits, he said at the meeting.

In what was clearly a divisive interaction between he and the tenants, McCarty said his company was committed to helping the elderly find new homes and would even contribute financially. He also told the residents that the deal has not been finalized yet, but that it was too late to consider other options.

"The deal is not done," McCarty said. "I don't think anyone here should get scared."

Kathryn Trigg, a resident of the apartment complex who helped organize the meeting, scoffed at that notion.

"We're all really afraid," said Trigg. "Not just that we won't be able to find somewhere else to live here, we're afraid of the continuing momentum of this."

Ballard is one of the fastest growing neighborhoods outside of downtown and more homes are being built here, but affordable rentals are becoming harder to find, largely due to conversions.

There have been 242 apartment-to-condo conversions in Ballard in the past two years, according to Fox's group, and 900 citywide since the beginning of the year. There are nearly 200 units at the Lock Vista, which would make it one of the largest conversions in the city.

In recent years, there's been an effort to change laws concerning conversions, but it currently falls under the state Legislature's jurisdiction.

A bill that would have required landlords to give tenants better relocation compensation and five months notice, rather than 90 days, failed this past legislative session.

Ballard's state Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson and state Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles said at the meeting they would push the bill next session.

"You are in a very big bind and I want to do what I can to help," said Dickerson. "There may be other things that can be done prior to the next legislative session."

She suggested approaching the Seattle Housing Authority to intervene or asking the City Council to issue an emergency moratorium on condo conversions.

Often, developers will start construction while tenants are still living in the building. Fox encouraged residents to ask the owner for a guarantee that construction won't disrupt their lives if the conversion moves forward. Call City Council members and other elected officials and ask them to "do something," he said.

"Demand they intervene to help save your building, and insist they call the owner on your behalf," said Fox.

Since learning of the potential sale, resident Emily McGinnis has been unable to find anything affordable in Ballard and the rest of Seattle. Open houses are "completely packed" and she's been turned down time and again because someone else was faster filling out an application and handing over a deposit check.

"It is becoming very, very difficult to find housing in the city anymore," said McGinnis.

Renters all over the city are having similar experiences. Ballard and citywide vacancy rates are down to 2.7 percent, according to city officials and local realtors.

One woman said she was "going through hell" with the conversion of her building, Cleopatra Apartments in Ballard. Construction is incessant from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. She said she felt "harassed" by the owners to move out early.

Another Lock Vista resident moved to Ballard three years ago and fell in love with the community. She doesn't want to move.

"But its seems the neighborhood and the city I love so much doesn't want me anymore, and that hurts more than anything," she said.

Rebekah Schilperoort may be reached at 783.1244 or rebekahs@robinsonnews.com