By Bob Harris
Soon after a police officer showed up at Councilman David Weprin’s (D-Hollis) town hall meeting on zoning, building violations and enforcement, Department of Buildings Deputy Commissioner Corrine Lindo said the DOB has penalized 10 builders and forbidden them to do certain activities.
There was no clarification on what this means. If a firm has two or three architects, then one not doing self-certification does not matter. Lindo said that sometimes Buildings obtains a search warrant to look for illegal building but did not explain that the residents must sign the papers.
Several years ago another Buildings commissioner was invited to a meeting in the basement of Barry Weinberg, who was president of the Jamaica Estates Association. The leaders of several civic associations complained about illegal or destructive building activities in Queens. I complained that the DOB does not issue press releases that reveal what is being done to protect the communities from speculators. They still do not because they are not doing anything effective.
About this time, Weprin said there is legislation to permit the City Council to review decisions of the Board of Standards and Appeals. He also stated that there will soon be a new BSA chairman. Magdi Mossad, Queens commissioner of the DOB, said that builders cannot work on Saturdays or Sundays without a special permit, which he must issue. On workdays builders are permitted to work from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. This was greeted with yells from homeowners, who complained about the builders’ illegal undertakings.
The officials kept telling of the right of owners to build on or use their property in a way they want to; however, the audience’s comments show that some builders do whatever they want whenever they want. This is why people have been referring to the DOB as dysfunctional.
Commissioners come and go, and the destruction of viable residential neighborhoods continues, building by building. Even when a builder is caught, he just goes to the BSA and gets permission to leave the illegal structure because he has “spent money.” The officials kept commenting that stopping these illegal buildings has to be done “according to the law” and that people have the “right to build on their property.”
Audience members kept reacting to these comments because they are honest homeowners who were not building illegal structures or trying to make a lot of money while violating the Zoning Resolution.
One person yelled out that if there are lights in a basement it is probably an illegal apartment and if commercial trucks are parked in the driveway the house most likely is being used as a business. People said that the State Department of Taxation or the IRS should be called. Others said that multiple electric meters indicate several apartments. These days Buildings leaves a notice on the door and mails a copy of a violation to the owner, but some owners play games concerning ownership.
The officials finally said there are 20 DOB inspectors in Queens. This is a laugh, considering all the buildings in Queens and that Buildings is a department which actually makes money for the city and could increase its funds were there more inspectors. People said that an initial fine of $800 for an illegal unit and $50 a day are not enough of a penalty. The fine was only increased a few years ago, so there is a little progress.
It was agreed that self-certification by builders is negative. It was introduced a few years ago because there were not enough inspectors to do inspections. It might work if the city punished violators with very stiff fines, loss of license and jail time as well as publication of the actions against violators.
Others who spoke were from 196th Place in the West Cunningham Park Civic Association in Fresh Meadows. They complained about a very large house being built in an R-2 area that received a J3 permit, which allows for a multiple-family house. When a complaint was made to Buildings last August, a hearing was scheduled for March 2004. Speaking of dysfunctional actions!
Tami Hirsch of the Civic Association of Utopia Estates also complained about Buildings.
One can see why the audience was angry and noisy. Unless changes are made, this could happen on your block.
