Luke Crabtree had a “challenging meeting” last week at Chestnut Hill Village.

Management representatives have decided not to renew any of the leases held by Project Transition, a psychiatric treatment program that seeks to reintegrate its patients into society and promote self-sufficiency. But Crabtree, the program’s CEO, doesn’t think his patients should have to leave.

“Honestly, we would prefer to stay,” Crabtree said in a phone interview last week. “[Eleven] folks are gainfully employed or going to school. It would be hard for me to duplicate that [elsewhere.] It’s getting more and more difficult for us.”

Cindy Duffy, director of corporate communications for AIMCO, the Denver-based corporation that owns Chestnut Hill Village, initially told the Local that Chestnut Hill Village would stop renting to Project Transition as of June 30. She later acknowledged that the last Project Transition lease was due to expire in March 2010 and said that Crabtree had been speaking with a regional representative about “expediting that timetable.”

“I never agreed to June 30 for all our folks,” Crabtree said. “In fact, that had never been discussed.”

Nor has AIMCO explained why Chestnut Hill Village won’t renew the leases, and that puts Crabtree in a bind.

If Chestnut Hill Village were refusing to renew the leases to address alleged incidents between program participants and other tenants, then Crabtree would be more understanding. But Crabtree first heard of the allegations from the Local, and AIMCO representatives contend that it’s impossible to tell if Project Transition participants had harassed other residents, according to Crabtree.

“They didn’t have locations or descriptions [of the incidents],” Crabtree said.

Crabtree has said on more than one occasion that he would immediately remove any program participant who was proven to have harassed a resident.

AIMCO’s representatives at the meeting included assistant community manager Alicia Waters, resident relations manager Mariangela Lerario, regional manager Nora Myers and a new interim community manager, Ian P. Douglas, who is also AIMCO’s director of talent and human resources, according to his profile on Linked In, a business networking Web site.

When asked to comment about the meeting with Crabtree, Douglas made it seem as if phasing out the leases was Crabtree’s idea.

Chestnut Hill Village has had a “good relationship” with Project Transition, he said, but Crabtree wants to focus on expanding his program elsewhere.

When Douglas learned that Crabtree had told the Local a different story, he mentioned that it was only his eighth day on the job.

“I’m obviously misinformed,” he said.

Douglas was reluctant to speak about AIMCO’s reasons for not wanting to renew the Project Transition leases.

“This is a resident-tenant issue,” he said. “I can’t discuss.”

Douglas also was reluctant to speak about the allegations of harassment made against Project Transition participants. He suggested that the Local review city police reports to see if there had been any documented assaults.

Three residents have alleged that Waters lied about the Project Transition presence at Chestnut Hill Village after being told of incidents of harassment. Waters has declined to comment on the issue, and so it is not clear what records she may have kept.

Douglas said he was not familiar with the stories of alleged harassment.

“I’m not trying to be evasive with you,” he said, adding that he hadn’t had the chance to “wrap his arms around” the issues yet.

In a follow-up interview, Crabtree said he was confused by what Douglas had told the Local.

“If there have been no complaints against my members, I don’t see why they have to leave,” he said.

Crabtree also took issue with Douglas’ suggestion that Crabtree had eagerly agreed to terminate the leases.

He is concerned that those residents who have found gainful employment will be deeply unsettled by the move. It took a long time to find them a suitable work environments, he said, and now they will have to start all over again.

Crabtree said he is reconsidering his decision to go along with AIMCO’s plans to terminate all of the leases. He would like to keep the 11 units that will remain in Project Transition’s name as of June 30, and he believes that he could work with AIMCO and the Chestnut Hill Village residents association to establish a positive working relationship.

Crabtree would like to avoid litigation, but he hasn’t ruled it out. The mentally disabled are a protected class under the law, he said, and no court would stand for the eviction of such tenants if they have paid their bills on time and respected the rights of other tenants.