One Brooklyn
November 4, 2016
“Just four days after our aggravated illegal conversion legislation was heard by the Committee on Housing and Buildings, our city is faced with yet another case of the dangerous epidemic that continues to prey on vulnerable residents. Last night in Dyker Heights, a two-family house that was illegally converted into a five-family dwelling was issued an immediate vacate order by the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB). Frighteningly, 25 individuals were living in the property. The American Red Cross promptly arrived on scene and relocated nine individuals to a nearby hotel, with the remaining 16 individuals self-relocating. In addition to being strained by extreme overcrowding, the home had illegal gas lines that put the safety of its tenants and surrounding neighbors at serious risk.
“We have an unconscionable housing crisis that shows no signs of disappearing anytime soon without strong legislation to combat this ever-growing problem. Working together, we drafted a tough bill aimed directly at the most greedy landlords and profiteers of the most egregious illegal conversions occurring in this city, as we have here in this most recent case. In addition to establishing higher penalties and equipping DOB with strong enforcement tools to gain access to these buildings, perhaps the strongest deterrent for unscrupulous owners in our legislation is a tax lien that would be placed on the property if its penalties go unpaid, which is a common occurrence. To ensure payment of the fines and remediation of the property by the owner of the aggravated illegal conversion, the property can be sold by the City after one year if the penalty isn’t satisfied. The bottom line is this: Owners cannot fall back on the laborious bureaucratic process and a lack of enforcement on Environmental Control Board (ECB) fines in order to continue their flagrant monopoly game.
“The time is now for Intro. 1218 to be enacted in order to stem this viral outbreak of dangerous, substandard housing. This home could have easily been subject to a fire or explosion resulting in mass casualties. It is difficult not to envision first responders ambushed by confusion and hysteria when entering such a maze of subdivided units. We simply cannot allow this case to become another track on a broken record of hazards that date back decades and is only getting worse with time. We will continue to remain steadfast and committed to our bipartisan legislation reaching the floor of the City Council for an affirmative vote.”
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