“Sausage King” to Sell Run Down West Pullman Complex

One of Chicago’s most neglected subsidized housing complexes is poised for new ownership, ending a turbulent run under a pair of out-of-state investors who branded their company after a Ferris Bueller joke.

Indian Trails Apartments — a 180-unit Section 8 development at 221 East 121st Place in West Pullman — is under contract to be sold as tenants recount years of unsafe conditions, revolving management and broken promises of repairs, WBEZ reported in partnership with the Chicago Sun-Times.

The property’s current owner, the Sausage King of Chicago, is primarily controlled by California investors Alan Smolinisky and Brian Chien-Chih Chen, best known for a portfolio of HUD-subsidized buildings held through companies named after 1980s movies. Public records show entities linked to their businesses collected more than $37 million in federal rent subsidies last year across 24 properties in 13 states. Indian Trails alone brought in over $2 million in HUD payments.

Residents say the revenue hasn’t shown up in their buildings. Since the complex was acquired in 2017 for $16.6 million — from longtime owner Kenneth Ringbloom, whose era is remembered for on-site maintenance and responsive management — conditions have deteriorated rapidly.

The Sausage King is now preparing to cut and run. Minority owner Robert Budman confirmed to WBEZ that the complex is being sold to another California developer, the Transcend Group, with closing expected by year-end. A prior financing application shows Transcend attempted to buy the property in 2023 for $27 million — a markup of more than $10 million over the 2017 sale price.

Chicago’s City Council has already approved up to $31 million in loans for Transcend to rehabilitate apartments, upgrade common areas and enhance security. The firm has also requested additional HUD subsidies to support the rehab. But tenants worry about displacement and say trust has been eroded after years of neglect.

That comes after Indian Trails spent more than two years in building court for repeated violations: failing heat and hot water, electrical issues, nonfunctioning fire safety equipment and plumbing failures. Tenants describe flooded basements, sewage leaks, rodent infestations and maintenance requests ignored for months.

Multiple renovation plans announced by ownership never materialized, including two failed applications for state financing through the Illinois Housing Development Authority. The property cycled through managers before landing with a Conquest Housing affiliate, which residents and organizers say has been the least responsive yet.

Advocates warn the saga is emblematic of a broader business model in which investors extract HUD-backed rents while allowing buildings to decay.

As one organizer told the council, “The Sausage King is trying to cash out … If we don’t talk about what happened, the Transcend Group becomes the next Sausage King.”

— Eric Weilbacher