Court Orders DOB to Revoke Permit and Compel Owner to Remove Floors in Upper West Side Condominium Development

Advocates applaud decision while developers find decision deeply flawed. On February 15, 2020, the Committee for Environmentally Sound Development and the Municipal Art Society of New York,  won an Article 78 case regarding the construction of a 668 foot, 52-story condominium building located at 200 Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. New York County Supreme Court Justice W. Franc Perry’s ruling requires the Department of Buildings to revoke the building permit … <Read More>


City’s Airbnb Law Upheld

Broadway Hotel sued New York City claiming the Airbnb law was unconstitutional. The City served a summons on the Broadway Hotel on the Upper West Side of Manhattan for illegal transient occupancy. The New York City Airbnb law prohibited a class A dwelling from renting out rooms on a temporary basis. The City alleged that the Hotel was a Class A dwelling and was therefore prohibited from renting out rooms on a temporary basis for … <Read More>


City Council Creating Pilot Program to Create Apartments in East New York

The program will bring currently illegal basement and cellar apartments up to code, and allow for additional basement and cellar apartments to be created. On February 13, 2019, the New York City Council passed legislation, titled Introduction 1004, establishing a pilot program which allows for the creation and alteration of habitable apartments in basements and cellars in one and two-family dwellings in East New York. The program seeks to address the lack of affordable housing … <Read More>


City Planning Approves City-Initiated Special Garment Center District Rezoning

Zoning changes will bring many buildings into compliance and will lift manufacturing space preservation requirements. City officials step in to ensure garment manufacturing has a continuing place in the district. On September 26, 2018, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing on a proposed rezoning of the Special Garment Center District by the Department of City Planning, in conjunction with the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC). The Special Garment Center District encompasses … <Read More>



Owner Fined $1200 for SRO Use

Owner leased space to non-profit providing services under contract with the State Department of Mental Health. The current certificate of occupancy for a three story building located at 101-36 104th St., Queens, provided for three residential units, one per floor. The owner of the building leased the third floor to Promoting Specialized Care and Health, a non-profit. The non-profit, under contract with the New York State Department of Mental Health, provides assistance to individuals with … <Read More>