Contractor liable for property damage

Contractor damaged neighboring building while excavating vacant lot in preparation for building parking garage. LIC Contracting, Inc. was hired by a company that owned a vacant lot located at 211-02 and 211-04 Northern Boulevard in Queens to construct a three-story commercial building with two-level underground parking on the premises. The project required that the lot be excavated to construct the parking structure.


Mayor Signs Executive Order for Small Business Violations Reform

The executive order requires agencies to evaluate their most common summonses issued. On January 4, 2022, Mayor Eric Adams signed the “Small Business Forward” Executive Order to help small businesses face fewer fines and penalties as they continue to recover from the impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The executive order requests that agencies like the Department of Buildings, Fire Department, Department of Consumer Worker and Protection, Department of Sanitation, Department of Environmental Protection and <Read More>


Advertising sign claim denied

Building owner challenged loss of advertising rights. In 1998, Astoria Landing purchased an existing four-story apartment building located in a residential zone at 24-59 32nd Street in Astoria, Queens. The building’s previous owner had obtained a permit to display commercial advertisements and begun to display advertisements in the 1940s. In 1961, the City adopted new zoning rules which banned the display of advertisements in residential areas. In 1981, the Department of Buildings erroneously renewed the … <Read More>


Fine for illegal awning upheld

Bodega owner fined $6,000 for unpermitted awning. In 2012, Krishna Tiwari installed a 4-foot by 20-foot illuminated awning on the store front of his bodega, Krishna Bazaar, located at 1220 Liberty Avenue in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn. Tiwari never received the required Department of Buildings permit to install this sign. In July 2018, Buildings issued a Notice of Violation to Tiwari for his unpermitted sign and imposed a fine of $6.000 which Tiwari paid. In response, … <Read More>


DOB Announces Results of Construction Safety Campaign

DOB inspectors visited almost 7,500 constructions sites over the summer. On September 13, 2021, Department of Buildings Commissioner, Melanie E. La Rocca released the results of the new Zero Tolerance Construction Safety campaign, where Department inspectors swept construction sites citywide to check for proper safeguards. The campaign launched in early June following seven construction-related fatalities between January and May 2021.


DOB Announces Homeowner Relief Program

Violations for illegal conversions or violations associated with injury or death will not qualify. On September 1, 2021, the Department of Buildings announced the first homeowner relief program in New York City to help property owners of one- and two-family houses. The program’s goal is to help small property owners avoid fines by giving them time to fix DOB violations. The program has education initiatives for homeowners about their legal requirements as property owners without … <Read More>