Fourteen tenants of the Luenrit community, an old-town area next to Bangkok's Chinatown, are fighting a court battle to maintain their tenancy rights.
Chumchon Luenrit Company, which won community management rights from the Crown Property Bureau (CPB), has filed a legal suit against the 14 tenants as they have refused to leave their houses which are to be renovated under a community regeneration plan.
The tenants have complained about the company not being transparent in how it handles financial matters in the plan.
The community, which is home to sets of shophouses built during the reign of King Rama V, earlier thought it was doomed as it received an eviction order in 2003 from the CPB which had given the tenancy rights to a private firm, Metro Regent.
Staunch protests by community members, however, forced the bureau to shift its policy in favour of the old tenants on condition that they preserve the old structure of the 231 shophouses, regarded as city heritage.
A group of community leaders then formed Chumchon Luenrit Company which began to raise funds in the form of shares, worth 50,000 baht each, from the tenants for operational costs as well as conservation work, now in its second phase. The work requires every tenant to leave the community for about two years until the renovation is completed in 2016.
One of the 14 tenants who asked not to be named said she bought the shares but began to question the company's transparency as the fund-raising continued.
The tenants have paid about 1.5 million baht each. They are upset that they have not had a chance to see the contract the company signed with the CPB, or the conservation blueprint while they have had to continue paying.
"We cannot keep paying without knowing anything," she said.
The shareholders' meeting yesterday almost descended into disarray as the 14 tenants challenged the committee.
The company said it is required to keep the tenancy contract confidential. But it said the tenants can sign a petition to ask for permission from the CPB for the deal to be made public.
It also said the rents might appear to be high but that this would help secure a long-term tenancy deal. Initially, the CPB agreed to eight years but if the community proves it can maintain the heritage, it could win another 30-year arrangement.
The company insisted it has cleared up all suspicions with the tenants while those challenging it are just a minority.