On Wednesday afternoon, The Boston City Council Housing Committee will convene to question notorious Boston landlord Anwar Faisal on the condition of apartments he leases to students, his master leas agreement with Northeastern University and allegations of discrimination towards potential renters.

Faisal was summoned before the Council when Councilor Josh Zakim filed an ordinance at the end of July to bring the owner of Alpha Management Corporation to the City Hall hearing to testify. This marks the third attempt, and likely the last, for the City of Boston to hear from Faisal’s own mouth what kind of real estate company he’s truly running.

The previous two invitations extended to Faisal to testify were met with a flat refusal to attend, as well as an acceptance, followed by a last-minute renege.

The City Council unanimously agreed to Councilor Zakim’s motion for a summons.

As of Tuesday evening it seems Faisal will comply with the summons and attend the housing hearing. Councilor Zakim’s Chief of Staff, Dan Sibor, told BostInno in an email that while they haven’t communicated with Faisal directly, his lawyer has indicated that Faisal will, indeed, adhere to the summons.

“If he is not, we will immediately seek a civil contempt order in Suffolk Superior Court,” acknowledged Sibor. “I can’t imagine that will be necessary.”

This entire ordeal dates back to May when Councilor Zakim filed an ordinance “regarding the master lease agreement between Northeastern University and Alpha Management,” in the wake of two raw and revealing exposés published by Boston magazine and the Boston Globe.

The idea being, of course, to gauge why exactly Northeastern would consent to letting its students reside in decrepit situations and why Faisal has continuously dodged legal action as a result of his subpar properties.

“I expect an open and honest discussion, along with the participation of all the parties involved,” said Councilor Zakim in a statement back in May.

This was no witch hunt, no inquisition; simply an open dialogue of which the overriding question was “why?”

But Faisal’s attendance refusal raised eyebrows. Why, after all, would he refuse such a transparent request?

Some of his properties, in fact, weren’t even inspected by City of Boston personnel. So what’s he got to hide?

Cue the accusations of racial discrimination.

Councilor Zakim’s request for a summons included language indicating that these alleged acts of discrimination would also be a topic of discussion, assuming Faisal even shows up this time.

But it’s important to remember that no legal action is being taken at this meeting, that is unless Faisal wants to test the Council’s threat for a civil contempt order.

The Housing Committee meeting is slated to kick off Wednesday, August 13 at 11 a.m. Stay tuned to BostInno for updates on the hearing.

Image via Shutterstock/jiawangkun