158 West 58th Street. Image Credit: Google Maps.
City approved homeless shelter for single men in former single-room-occupancy building on West 58th Street. As part of its “Turning the Tide on Homelessness” initiative, the City planned to operate a homeless shelter in a building at 158 West 58th Street, located on Manhattan’s “Billionaires’ Row.” The nine-story building was constructed in 1910. The building initially operated as single-room occupancy housing and later as the Park Savoy Hotel. The building’s new owner, New Hampton, LLC, partnered with the non-profit organization Westhab, Inc. to convert the building to a homeless shelter for 150 employed or job-seeking men. (read more…)
217 West 57th Street. Image Credit: Google Maps.
Ice fell from tall crane following ice storm. On December 17, 2019, a citizen complained that ice was falling from Central Park Tower, a 98-story building at 217 West 57th Street in Midtown, Manhattan. Upon arrival, the Department of Buildings officer witnessed ice formations on crane and hoisting equipment operated by Lend Lease Construction. With the assistance of the New York Police Department, the Buildings officer closed the streets around the crane and hoist after determining that the only way to remove the ice would be to move the crane and hoist, which would cause more ice to fall to the streets below. (read more…)
400 East 57th Street. Image Credit: Google Maps.
Building under construction sought judicial permission to enter into neighboring building to facilitate the construction. In October of 2020, Stonehedge Management, LLC was renovating their property at 400 E. 57th St. in Manhattan. Stonehedge’s building shared the roof with Sol Goldman Investment’s property at 405 E. 56th Street. Stonehedge sought a judicial entry order to Goldman’s property to stage materials and access to the roof in order to install protective roofing facades to Stonehedge’s building. (read more…)
Image credit: Jeff Hopkins.
***THIS ARTICLE ORIGINALLY RAN FOUR YEARS AGO IN CITYLAW*** The SAFE Act, the acronym for the Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act – New York State’s January, 2013 omnibus gun control law – provides an excellent opportunity to assess the potential impact of maximally politically feasible gun control, an exercise all the more relevant in the wake of the mass shooting in Las Vegas. The SAFE Act did not have to be negotiated or compromised. The New York legislature passed it without hearings, debate, or input from gun owners and their advocates. The Act included several of the top priorities of gun control proponents. While the SAFE Act was a political triumph, its implementation has been problematic and its enforcement practically non-existent. (read more…)
Filomio Truck Sales. Image Credit: Google Maps.
Trucking company fenced in and used City land that had been mapped as a City street. On July 27, 1967, the City condemned a parcel of land owned by the Filomio family and located at 3870 Boston Road in the Bronx. The City condemned the parcel, referred to as Damage Parcel 43, in order to complete a road expansion project. The family did not object to the taking and was compensated by the City. The Filomio family continued using the remaining property not condemned until February 1968, when the family transferred ownership of the property to the family business, Filomio Truck Sales. (read more…)
