de Blasio's Buildings Department is as absent minded as him.

 

NY Post

Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Buildings Department blew deadlines or failed to reinspect structures with dangerous conditions that threatened public safety more than 5,400 times, according to a blistering new audit from City Comptroller Scott Stringer.

Stringer’s investigation revealed that the DOB failed to conduct 2,986 of the nearly 6,381 required reinspections within the 60-day timeline required under the administrative code — and that it never scheduled another 596 reviews.

Additionally, the Comptroller’s office discovered that the DOB busted its 60-day deadline with another 1,819 subsequent followups.

“No one should have to live or work in fear of debris or unstable scaffolding crashing down on them in a home, place of work, or at any other site in this city,” said Stringer.

“Our audit of DOB’s internal procedures uncovered multiple failures that pose a direct risk to public safety,” he added. “DOB has a responsibility to protect the public – and it absolutely must live up to that promise.”

The probe focused on the violations that have been “identified as posing a threat of imminent danger to public safety or property.”

Stringer’s office also uncovered that the Buildings Department frequently misses its internal goals when it comes to reviewing paperwork to ensure repairs are properly completed, hitting the 21-day self-imposed deadline just 42 percent of the time.

City officials said in a formal reply to Stringer that they agree with the recommendations to redouble their efforts on the 60-day reinspections and to formalize the 21-day goal for processing certifications of repairs. In a statement, they broadly defended the agency’s performance.

“We’re improving our service levels across the agency to meet our other legally required timelines, all while handling a significantly expanded workload,” said DOB spokesman Andrew Rudansky. “New York City deserves safe communities, and we’ll do our part by holding our inspection work to the highest standards in the country.”

Inspector finds no problem where there clearly is one

From the Queens Chronicle:

When Mary Ann Giammarco sees the empty house at 73-36 179 St. in Fresh Meadows, she isn’t happy.

A graffiti-stained commercial truck sits in the driveway, with lumber languishing behind it. A sign on the door urges passersby to stay out.

“The whole property is just an eyesore,” Giammarco told the Chronicle last week. “And the homes around here are beautiful.”

A resident of the same street, she is a member of the Utopia Estates Civic Association and a block captain.

Giammarco penned a letter to the editor about the site that the Chronicle ran last week. It also doubled as an open letter to Councilman Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows), who then reached out to the 107th Precinct, Community Board 8 and the Department of Buildings about the location.

Earlier this month, multiple 311 complaints were issued about the property, leading a DOB inspector to visit it on Aug. 21. But no conditions contrary to the zoning and construction codes were discovered, so no violations were issued.

Plans had been filed last year to gut renovate the single-family house and add a second floor to it. But they were rejected.

The house wasn't looking so bad a few years ago, as you can see in the Google Street View above from 2013. The Chronicle photo shows how fast a property can go downhill without maintenance. How did a DOB inspector not find a problem? The presence of the truck alone is a zoning violation.

Building inspectors arrested for accepting bribes

From Eyewitness News:

Working in tandem with the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office the Department of Investigation recently uncovered three different construction schemes involving more than a dozen property managers, developers, and inspectors.

"There is an unquestionable, unbreakable link between construction integrity and safety," said DOI Commissioner Mark Peters.

According to indictments released Wednesday, two New York City buildings inspectors, 55-year-old Hiram Beza and 53-year-old Dean Mulzac, allegedly overlooked violations approving properties under construction in Brooklyn and Queens in exchange for cash and gifts. Beza also allegedly received a new kitchen and driveway for his write-offs.

Illegal conversions being taken more seriously

From PIX11:

Illegal home conversions are a key issue in several city council races among the five boroughs.

The New York City Department of Buildings has thousands of open complaints, which is why each week, several marshals investigate the complaints with one goal in mind: keeping New Yorkers safe.

Many doors have been closed on federal agents such as Marshal Ryan Gobin as they investigate homes for the Department of Buildings.

Gobin is part of a team that responds to the thousands of complaints of illegal conversions across the five boroughs.

Many times, it’s unknowing homeowners putting their families at risk. Other times, it’s landlords jeopardizing tenants.

Inspectors warn workers seconds before Fresh Meadows house collapse

From PIX11:

Half a dozen construction workers were within seconds of disaster when the sharp eyes of two building inspectors noticed the top of the Queens building was about to collapse.

Building inspectors Joseph Martucci and Johnny Mendez were examining gas lines in a house across the street when their eyes shifted to the house being renovated. They quickly spotted movement that could trap a worker.

"Suddenly the building began to shift with one worker narrowly escaping," Martucci said.

He and Mendez dashed to the site and shouted for the other workers to get out of the way.

"When I saw that coming down, my goal was to see everybody was safe," Mendez said.

Work on the 2-story house on 181st street in Fresh Meadows began at the beginning of the month and workers were demolishing a portion of the house so they could add an extension.

Investigators from the Department of Investigation were on the scene to determine if any wrongdoing was involved.

Even before a full investigation is completed, the Buildings Department has filed four violations, including failure to safeguard the site. Each violation carries a potential fine of $25,000.

Poor safety measures cited at Briarwood accident site

From the Daily News:

A Queens construction worker stood precariously atop a dangling I-beam before the 3-ton steel piece dropped without warning, killing him and a colleague, sources said.

City investigators were checking Wednesday whether Elizandro Enrique Ramos, 43, was wearing a harness or some other protection when he plunged to his death at the six-story building in Briarwood.

Building Department inspectors shut down the Queens project on Wednesday, citing the owners for failure to provide a safe work site — and for inadequate fall protection for workers.

Briarwood MP LLC was also rapped for failure to provide adequate exits on the unfinished building’s three lowest floors.

FDNY inspector charged with bribery

From the Daily News:

An FDNY inspector was busted Monday for trying to bribe a buildings inspector to look the other way about violations at his home, the Department of Investigation announced.

Angelo Young was arrested and charged with two counts of bribery and one count of obstructing governmental administration after he allegedly offered cash in exchange for ignoring work being done without a permit at his Brooklyn home.

Young, 47, was slapped with a stop work order and a notice of violation for construction work without a permit at the home in Marine Park, a criminal complaint charges.

He called an undercover investigator posing as a Department of Buildings inspector and asked for a meeting - where he said that as an FDNY inspector he “squashes summonses” and requested the same “courtesy,” prosecutors charge.

Then the pair met at a Brooklyn coffee shop where Young offered $300 to scrap the violation, according to the complaint. Five days later, Young arrived for another meeting with a passenger in his car who handed the undercover an envelope that said “Happy Birthday,” with a card and three $100 bills inside.

What the city charter says about building inspections

§ 649. Inspection. The commissioner, any deputy commissioner, borough superintendents, inspectors, or any officer of the department authorized in writing by the commissioner or a borough superintendent to act in his borough may, in accordance with law, for the purpose of performing their respective official duties, enter and inspect any building, structure, enclosure, premises or any part thereof or anything therein or attached thereto; and any refusal to permit such entry or inspection shall be a misdemeanor triable in criminal court and punishable upon conviction by not more than thirty days imprisonment or by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars, or both.

Full charter

So why does the DOB knock twice and then list a complaint "RESOLVED" if there's no answer and no affidavit or they are refused entry?

A lot fewer vacate orders

From DNA Info:

The number of vacate orders issued to homes with often-dangerous illegal conversions has dropped by more than half in the past three years, according to the Department of Buildings.

In 2012, inspectors from the DOB's Quality of Life Unit, who investigate illegal conversions, issued 1,032 vacate orders to owners of units that had been illegally subdivided into a warren of smaller apartments, according to the department — shutting down life-threatening partitions like the one that led to the deaths of two firefighters during the "Black Friday" blaze of 2005.

The number of vacate orders dropped to 1,012 the following year. By 2014, that number dipped to 911. And in 2015, inspectors sent out only 630 vacate orders, although DOB officials said the number could change as more complaints are processed.

A DOB spokesman blamed the drop in orders to vacate — which were accompanied by a drop in the overall number of inspections — on a number of veteran inspectors retiring, as well as a change in approach.

“The Quality of Life Unit, which is primarily responsible for investigating illegal conversions, went through a staff shift last year resulting in a number of long-time inspectors moving into different roles or retiring,” the spokesman said in an email.

“Additionally, where possible, we are encouraging owners to correct illegal conversions without evicting people from their homes — issuing vacate orders only as a last resort when conditions pose a danger to the life of a tenant.”

Department of Bribery

From the Daily News:

A top agency official was caught on tape explaining how he regularly killed code violations as a favor to the guy who got him his cushy job.

On Wednesday Daniel Cornwell, 31, the $105,000-a-year chief of the Emergency Response Unit that responds to building collapses, became the 12th DOB employee busted in the city Department of Investigation’s probe of corruption at the troubled agency.

In a criminal complaint filed Wednesday, DOI revealed how Cornwell was caught on tape discussing killing a code violation as a favor to Donald O'Connor, the agency’s chief of development for Manhattan.

Prosecutors say O’Connor – who was busted in February – who was regularly pocketing bribes from contractors to ignore or kill their many code citations.

On Aug. 12, 2014, someone filed a complaint with the agency about a contractor working without a permit at a Bayside, Queens jobsite.

DOI says they overheard O’Connor – who had no jurisdiction in Queens – call Cornwell to say his contractor friend “Mike” needed a favor. He asked Cornwell to kill the complaint, and Cornwell had O’Connor send him the complaint number.

DOI checked and discovered the contractor was, in fact, working without a permit, but discovered that the complaint had nevertheless been dismissed.

Crooked housing inspector heading to the pokey

Jefferson Seigel/Daily News

From the Daily News:

A crooked city housing inspector was sentenced to up to 7 1/2 years in prison Thursday after being found guilty of taking cash bribes in return for the dismissal of code violations.

Luis Soto, 52, a former inspector with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), was sentenced to 2 1/2/ to 7 1/2 years in prison for accepting bribes of up to $2,500 per property to remove housing code violations, prosecutors said.

Soto, of Staten Island, and Oliver Ortiz, 51, received more than $41,000 in bribes in total, prosecutors said.

Worker didn't have to die

From the Daily News:

A worker who fell to his death at a Midtown construction site was riding an elevator powered by an “unsafe” jerry-rigged electrical system, the Daily News has learned.

Christian Ginesi and a co-worker were on a temporary hoist — common at construction sites — headed to the top of a hotel being built on Eighth Ave. on May 5 when the lift stalled between the 24th and 25th floors.

Ginesi’s colleague successfully jumped from the lift to the lower floor, but Ginesi slipped and plummeted 24 stories to his death.

Since then, city building inspectors looking into the cause of the accident discovered the lift suddenly lost power that day, and the electrical system that powered it was installed without a permit.

The elevator relied on “unapproved, unsafe, unsuitable electrical equipment” that shouldn’t have been in use, documents show.

The whole East Village is illegally converted

From the Wall Street Journal:

City inspections of more than 50 buildings in the East Village following the fatal March 26 explosion and fire at 121 Second Ave. have turned up violations related to gas lines, fire safety and illegal construction, city records show.

The blast, which leveled three buildings and killed two people, is being treated as a case of suspected gas diversion, officials have said. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office is investigating to determine if any criminal charges are warranted.

Two weeks after the blast, area residents remain concerned that problems that bedeviled 121 Second Ave. leading up to the explosion—a record of unlicensed construction work and building and housing violations—could be mirrored in their own buildings, some of which have records of complaints and violations going back years.

At one building across the street from the blast, gas has been shut off after inspections revealed construction without a permit and potentially illegal gas siphoning, records and interviews show. At another, Department of Buildings records show a violation for an improperly placed gas meter and new complaints alleging illegal boiler work, among other concerns.

Since March 26, the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development has issued violations at a number of buildings on the block, ranging from faulty locks, doors, handrails and windows to blocked fire escapes, lack of gas and failure to register as a multiple family dwelling with the department. One building was cited by the department for illegal use of the cellar as residential space, records show.

Recent complaints to the Department of Buildings for buildings on the block show concerns about unlicensed construction, fire hazards, and illegal conversion of space for bedrooms.

Avella asks DOB commissioner for answers

Original article is here.

(Aren't you folks glad I read more than just the Queens weeklies?)

Civic leader demands answer for DOB inspector shift

Letter to the Editor from the Times Ledger:

Queens Borough President Katz, State Senator Avella, NYC Mayor DeBlasio, Assemblywoman Rozic, Councilman Weprin and Assembyman Braunstein:

The Bayside Hills Civic Association is greatly disturbed to find out, via the Brooklyn Daily newspaper, that last summer building inspectors had been shifted from Queens to Brooklyn. It is no wonder that the real estate stock in the Borough of Queens is a mess and there is a proliferation of illegal and hazardous construction, renovations, and conversions of properties.

While people in Queens who want to follow the standards of the building code wait an inordinate amount of time for permits and inspections, the unscrupulous plow ahead with illegal and unsafe construction, renovations, and conversions.

The Bayside Hills Civic Association and the other civics that make up the Queens Civic Congress have repeatedly made it known to each of you and your staff that we desire quick and strict enforcement of the New York City building code. With this in mind I ask of you; “How could you let this happen on your watch?” and “What are you going to do to ensure that the Department of Buildings in the Borough of Queens is adequately staffed and that the Building Code is strictly enforced here?”

Your prompt attention to this situation is greatly appreciated.

Michael Feiner
Bayside Hills

Queens building inspectors sent to Brooklyn

From Brooklyn Daily:

The city is taking steps to put Brooklyn’s illegal home conversion problem on ice, but locals say the battle is just heating up.

The Department of Buildings is sending more inspectors to Brooklyn, and Borough President Adams introduced a multi-pronged bill to fight illegal home conversions, officials announced at a town hall meeting on Feb. 26. But residents who see their neighborhood being crowded and endangered by shady building practices say they’ll only rest when they see results.

The city shifted more building inspectors to Brooklyn last summer to step up enforcement in response to a rise in complaints, an official said.

“The vast majority of illegal conversions were in Queens [before 2009],” said Tim Hogan, a deputy commissioner with the buildings department. “The numbers are changing now, and as recently as July of last year, we transferred some of the Queens unit into Brooklyn. In doing so we have increased fourfold the number of access warrants that we have applied for and received in Brooklyn.”

The borough president and two Brooklyn councilmen are now pushing a law to give those additional inspectors more teeth.

Adams and councilmen Vincent Gentile (D–Bay Ridge) and Jumaane Wiliams (D–East Flatbush) have introduced legislation to create a new building code violation for illegal subdivisions and a minimum $45,000 fine for landlords who turn a single unit into three or more. It would also relax criteria for obtaining warrants to inspect suspicious properties.

Critics have long panned the city for failing to collect fines form landlords, which currently total $640 million in uncollected cash, Marrone said.

Currently, the main leverage the buildings department has to collect fines for doing work without a permit comes only if a scofflaw landlord eventually comes to the agency to ask for one.

But under the proposed bill, the city could put a lien against homes with unpaid conversion violations, allowing it collect when the property is sold.

The bill also stipulates that the revenue from the fines would be earmarked for a fund to provide three months of housing to tenants booted from subdivided homes by enforcement actions, a spokesman for Adams said.

Whole lotta DOB inspectors busted for bribery

From the Daily News:

Nearly 50 city building inspectors, construction contractors and two alleged mob associates surrendered to authorities early Tuesday as part of a massive pay-to-play scheme where builders are accused of paying city employees to fast-track their projects.

A solemn stream of suspects, a mix of men and women, were led out of the 1st Precinct stationhouse in Tribeca early Tuesday in handcuffs and loaded into four vans as dawn broke across the city and a light snow fell.

The suspects said nothing as they were paraded past reporters. Most lowered their heads and tried to cover their faces with their coats as they were taken to court, where bribery charges are expected to be filed against them Tuesday afternoon.

The arrests come as construction in the city has dramatically increased in recent years.The arrests come as construction in the city has dramatically increased in recent years.

Some of the suspected schemers tried to hide their faces while being escorted by police. The arrests come as construction in the city has dramatically increased in recent years. The scheme had been playing out for years, officials said. E

About a dozen of the suspects are city building inspectors, and the rest are private and contractors scooped up in yearlong probe led by the Department of Investigation and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office Rackets Division, a police source told the Daily News.

Two suspects have mob links, the source said.

Illegal conversions are number one DOB complaint

From the Forum:

It seems that Queens continues to keep the city Department of Buildings very busy.

That was the story Tuesday night at the Community Board 9 meeting as DOB officials detailed how active the borough is with complaints, inspections and penalties.

“In the city, there were 278 access warrants [filed] last fiscal year,” said Anthony Iuliano, director of intergovernmental affairs for the DOB, referring to building-inspection documents, “Two hundred seventy two were in Queens.”

Iuliano also noted that illegal curb cuts remain an issue throughout the borough.

“[Homeowners] have to correct the condition,” he explained, adding that property owners can have curb cuts installed as long as they adhere to codes or resolutions. “Legalize it, or remove it.”

Still, the most pressing DOB issue in Queens is illegal dwelling conversions, Iuliano said. Of all borough building-condition complaints made via the city’s 311 system, more than half are for illegal conversions.

They faked it

From the NY Times:

A building inspector visited a scaffolding last summer on East 90th Street in Manhattan, where workers were restoring the exterior of an apartment building. The inspector noticed something amiss in the site’s safety log: The safety manager who had supposedly signed the log that day could not have done so; he had recently died.

That oddity led New York City officials to investigate, and on Wednesday criminal charges were filed against two companies that provide safety managers at construction sites. The companies, Avanti Building Consultants and NYCB Engineering Group, were accused of hiring unqualified people to pose as licensed site safety managers.

The companies hired people through Craigslist — hairdressers, short-order cooks, musicians, day laborers — to pretend to be safety managers, court papers said. In dozens of cases, the employees skipped the inspections and forged the signatures of real site safety managers on logs, the papers said.

The Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., said the companies compromised safety at 43 sites in New York City over two years, mostly older scaffolded buildings where workers were restoring facades. Three managers and four employees were arrested on Wednesday.

Liu audit finds DOB lax on illegal conversions

From the Daily News:

Years after the city promised to crack down on illegal firetraps, a new audit has found the problem has become much worse in Queens — the borough where the chopped-up apartments are most prevalent.

In a report to be released Friday, Controller John Liu’s auditors charge the city Buildings Department has done a poor job of going after Queens landlords who ignore fire safety rules and divide up apartments to increase profits.

And statistics show this is a citywide trend, with inspectors’ success at gaining access to suspected illegal units diminishing. The rate of gaining access dipped from about 50% in 2010 to 46% last year.

“The Buildings Department is just dysfunctional and incapable of improving itself,” Liu said. “Its inability to perform basic tasks like these bode poorly not just for the department, but for residents and neighborhoods too.”

Liu said the problem got worse since a 2009 audit uncovered lax enforcement: “DOB has made little progress in improving its response to quality-of-life complaints.”

Liu’s auditors found the two-knock rule got much worse in Queens between 2009 and 2011 — the year a fire tore through illegal apartments in a Woodside building, killing one tenant and severely injuring three others.

In a response to Liu’s audit, DOB blamed landlords, who the department said have become “more vigilant in barring DOB inspectors access to their properties.”

Auditors noted that DOB can obtain warrants from a judge to force landlords to open up, and the buildings department did hike the number of warrant requests from 13 in 2008 to 80 in 2011. But that was still only 1.4% of the 5,577 cases where inspectors responding to complaints couldn’t get inside in 2010-11.

In three cases, DOB gave up even after obtaining warrants. Although they can call in cops to enforce the warrant, DOB officials said they chose not to.

Auditors also noted that when DOB was able to gain access and cited a landlord for an illegal unit, the agency inconsistently followed up to see if that apartment was later reoccupied.