In four years, Buildings has enacted eight of sixty-five safety recommendations after spending $5.8 million on a study. On November 7, 2014, New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer released an audit finding the Department of Buildings has failed to act upon recommendations for crane safety that came from a report they commissioned, four years after the report was issued. (more…)
City Planning failed to prepare a waste prevention and recycling plan and failed to submit annual reports to Sanitation. On September 24, 2014, New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer released an audit finding that the New York City Department of City Planning did not comply with Local Law 36. Local Law 36 was enacted in 2010 to amend the City’s recycling provision in Local Law 19. (more…)
Public Design Commission rejected Comptroller’s recommendation for more efficient design review process. The New York City Public Design Commission (formerly known as the Art Commission) reviews permanent works of art, architecture, and landscape architecture proposed on or over City-owned property. The Commission is composed of 11 unpaid members, eight of whom are appointed by the mayor, and includes an architect, landscape architect, painter, and sculptor, as well as representatives of the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the New York Public Library.
The City agency with jurisdiction over the property on which a proposed project is located must submit its design to the Commission. Prior to submitting a proposal to the Commission, applicants must ensure compliance with the regulations of (more…)
Problems found in HPD’s administration, inspections, audits and cost calculation for tax abatement program. On March 22, 2007, City Comptroller William C. Thompson issued an audit report on the Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s implementation of a tax abatement program, the J-51 Tax Incentive Program. The audit found problems with HPD’s handling of the program, specifically concluding that errors in cost calculations led to improper awards of tax benefits and incorrect fee assessments.
The J-51 program allows HPD to issue tax exemptions and abatements to building owners that rehabilitate residential properties or convert commercial buildings to residential use. Of the 56 properties sampled by the Comptroller, HPD improperly certified costs by $2.5 million and awarded 25 ineligible properties with tax benefits. In 21 percent of the properties, HPD calculated costs and set fees incorrectly. With required inspections, HPD failed to make seven out of 51 required inspections and problems occurred on 23 percent of completed inspections. The Comptroller also uncovered problems with HPD’s audit procedures. (more…)
One of the buildings designated by the Department of Finance as a primarily residential Class 1 property. Image credit: Office of the New York City Comptroller
The audit report reveals that the misclassification of 140 properties has deprived the City of $1.7 million annually in lost property tax revenue. On February 18, 2016, the Office of the NYC Comptroller publicized the results from its audit of the New York City Department of Finance. The audit sought to investigate whether the Department of Finance had implemented procedures that adequately safeguard against the misclassification of Brooklyn property sites. The Comptroller’s Office and DOF ultimately seem to differ on the definition of “adequate.”
