Search Results for: Buildings

Architect suspended from self-certification program

Architect’s self-certified plans omitted mapped street and did not disclose need for BSA approvals. Between September 2008 and April 2009 architect Jose A. Velasquez self-certified applications to convert two buildings into three-family homes and to build two new three-family homes on a zoning lot at the corner of 103rd Street and Alstyne Avenue in Corona, Queens. The lot was occupied by four unfinished buildings partially within the bed of an unused mapped street.

Buildings audited … <Read More>

NOV for falling glass at One Bryant Park upheld

The Bank of America Tower at One Bryant

Board found that prior corrected violations justified increased penalty for glass panel broken by snapped cable. On December 10, 2008 a glass panel fell from the 50th floor of One Bryant Park in Midtown, Manhattan after being struck by a steel safety netting cable. Buildings issued a notice of violation to the contractor, Tishman Construction Corporation, for failing to safeguard persons and property while working on … <Read More>

ECB dismissed charge against architect

Board found that Buildings retroactively applied building code provision after architect allegedly self-certified non-conforming plans. In 2006, architect David Millner submitted to Buildings self-certified alteration plans depicting the replacement of a 69 sq.ft. rear deck and the enlargement of a basement bathroom in a three-story home built in the 1930s at 1-69 Beach 91st Street in Rockaway Beach, Queens. Buildings audited the plans and in February 2010 issued Millner a notice of violation for submitting … <Read More>

ECB dismissed falsified facade report charge

Building’s facade buckled two-and one- half-years after engineer’s report. Richard Lefever, a licensed engineer, examined the facade of a building and filed a report with Buildings in February 2007. In the report, Lefever had the option of designating the facade as safe, unsafe, or safe with a repair and maintenance program (SWARMP). Lefever chose the third option, because he identified facade conditions that required repairs within two years to avoid deteriorating into unsafe conditions. The … <Read More>

Artist studio NOV defeated

Four-story building containing artist studios at 56 Bogart Street in Brooklyn. Image: CityLand

Building owner allowed artist studios on floor designated for factory use. The owner of 56 Bogart Street in Brooklyn rented several fourth-floor units to artists. The artists produced items such as canvas, paper and wood objects, jewelry, lighting, and skateboards. A Buildings officer issued the owner a notice of violation for allowing occupancies contrary to what was permitted by the certificate of … <Read More>

Owner relied on C of O to defeat NOV

Owner had built non-conforming roofed terrace in one side yard and a roofed side-entrance porch in the other. Buildings approved plans for the construction of a residential building at 74 Amherst Street in Brooklyn. The approved plans showed a roofed terrace on the south side yard of the home and a roofed side-entrance porch on the north side. The home was built in 2004, Buildings inspectors signed off on the final construction, and the owner … <Read More>