11 Oct 16th-Oct 22nd, 2025 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | No Buenas (Again) Mesa sues landlord of crime-ridden apartment complex. BY MATTHEW BIRD I n early August, a middle-aged woman called Mesa police. According to court records, she said she felt unsafe in her apartment complex, known as Buenas Riverview on University. She had been followed around the complex several times. The woman was far from alone. According to a lawsuit filed last month against the complex by the city of Mesa, Buenas Riverview is “a hotbed for criminal activity.” The suit says police are called to the complex, which is located at the corner of Dobson Road and University Drive in Mesa, on a near-nightly basis. What’s more, the building’s owners have allegedly done little to crack down on criminal activity and ensure the safety of tenants. “Both residents and neighbors have voiced fear for their safety and frustration with the ongoing criminal activity,” the city wrote in its complaint, which was filed in Maricopa County Superior Court. Mesa is asking the court to require the owner of the apartment complex, identified as Brookview Apartment Enterprise LLC, to make changes to improve safety. Notably, the Arizona Corporation Commission lists Angela Chiang as the manager of that LLC. Chiang also owns Buenas Communities, which is currently being sued by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office for leaving tenants at one of its Phoenix properties, Buenas on 32nd, without air conditioning in the summer of 2024. Neither Chiang nor Brookview returned requests for comment from Phoenix New Times. According to Mesa, the scale of the illicit activity at the Buenas Riverview apartments is staggering. In an affidavit submitted to the court, Mesa police commander Dominique Sterlin said police have arrested 366 people at the apartments between the beginning of 2023 to June 30 of this year. During the same period, police made only eight arrests at the Saratoga Apartments, a property with a similar number of units that is located only 0.2 miles away. Most of the 366 arrests at Buenas Riverview were for drug and drug paraphernalia charges, but there have also been assaults — including one on an officer — thefts and two arsons over that span, according to the city’s complaint. The city says police arrested about one person at the complex every three days for two and a half years. There have been more than 2,000 calls for service since the start of 2023, according to court documents submitted by the city. Those have included fights, people with knives and guns, shoot- ings, thefts and dead bodies. Per the city, responding to those calls has required a minimum of 1,836 man-hours from Mesa police. Dispatching officers to the property cost the department $775,850.50 during those two and a half years, the city claims. “The ongoing condition of the property has resulted in a continuous drain on public resources,” the lawsuit says. “The City should not be forced to mitigate hazards and activity resulting from the (property owner’s) failure to maintain the property in a safe and lawful condition.” Mesa police said it was unable to comment due to the pending litigation. The city wants the court to require Brookview Apartment Enterprise to have at least two staff members on site during busi- ness hours and one apartment manager who lives on-site. It also wants the court to require Brookview to hire professional secu- rity and install security cameras, among other measures. Mesa said it has asked Brookview to make these changes, The Buenas Riverview apartments, also known as Buenas on University. (Matthew Bird) >> p 12 | NEWS |
