
Scaccia Realty. Image Credit: Google Maps.
New York City excused for default on a lawsuit regarding water allowance arrears. A&F Scaccia operates a concrete manufacturing plant at 104-17 148th Street in Jamaica, Queens. Between 2007 and 2015, the NYC Department of Environmental Protection charged A&F Scaccia Realty Corp. for low-estimated water readings due to a broken water meter on their commercial property. On discovery of the error, the DEP reassessed the concrete company’s water usage in 2016 and charged A&F Scaccia for $88,000. The fine reflected two years of unpaid usage fees for the access to the NYC’s water supply. (more…)
On October 8, 2020, the Conflicts of Interest Board adopted new and important changes to its post-employment rules that restrict former City employees from contacting their former City agencies. The Board, in addition, on May 21, 2021, adopted rules relating to the acceptance of gifts by City employees in certain recurring situations. This article examines these new rules. (more…)

500 Marlborough Road, Brooklyn. Image Credit: Google Maps
Brooklyn resident sought City funds to repair damages allegedly caused by Super Storm Sandy. Christopher McCollum applied to the Build it Back program through the Mayor’s Office of Housing Recovery Operations for financial help to repair his house at 500 Marlborough Rd in Brooklyn. McCollum claimed that Super Storm Sandy, which hit New York City on October 22, 2012, damaged his home. McCollum claimed funds were needed to repair broken and cracked windows and damage to the rear yard, chimney, facade, and roof tiles. (more…)

36 West 66th Street. Image Credit: Google Maps.
NOTE: This article was written for and previously appeared in an issue of CityLaw earlier this year, and was chosen for publication to CityLand prior to the issuance of a recent appeal decision that has now overturned this case. Please wait for future coverage of this issue.
Developer received permit to build record-setting skyscraper on the West Side of Manhattan. In November 2017, Extell Development Company unveiled plans to build a massive residential tower for luxury condominiums at 36 West 66th Street. The building, if completed at 775 feet tall, would be the tallest on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Extell applied for and received a permit from the Department of Buildings after making slight modifications to the structural design in order to accommodate, primarily, fire safety concerns. (more…)
Even though the Supreme Court struck down race-based land use controls over a hundred years ago in Buchanan v. Warley, 245 U.S. 60 (1917) it has long been known that zoning continues to create or increase racial and economic segregation. Today communities across the U.S. are reexamining their zoning regulations to create more equal, equitable, inclusive, and resilient communities by removing requirements, limitations, or prohibitions that disproportionately and negatively impact individuals based on race or class. (more…)