Taveras---who owns both Jacquez Automotive Center at 1941A Jerome Ave. and another, smaller shop in the northeast Bronx---said his problems began in the spring, when, per city property records, his former landlord, Richard Cisternas, sold the building to Manhattan-based Atlantic Development Group for $6.9 million.

A flurry of notices followed: one from Cisternas, Taveras said, informing him of the coming sale. Then, week after week, he said, bundles of certified letters from his new landlord---sometimes a dozen in one day---started showing up at the shop, notifying Taveras that the new ownership planned to terminate his tenancy.

Jacquez Automotive needed to be out of the building by Oct. 31, the notices said in bold, or face eviction.

In recent weeks, the situation has escalated: On Oct. 2, electricity at the shop was cut off without notice, Taveras said. Since then, he’s been running his auto shop---and every piece of equipment in it---using multiple diesel generators. The first one he tried had just enough capacity to turn on the lights; then he found one capable of powering a car-lifting jack. On Oct. 7, he rented a generator capable of supporting all the equipment.

“I can’t stop my business because there is no electricity,” Taveras said.

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This article was republished from City Limits, an independent, investigative news source.