1 Metrotech Center

The Brooklyn Paper is waiting with baited breath to see whether its 1 Metrotech Center office in Downtown Brooklyn is the latest victim in a series of bedbug infestations, the publication said today. The paper’s publisher, Community Newspaper Group, brought in a bedbug-sniffing dog over the weekend, after its office neighbor National Grid reported evidence of bedbugs in its own office. While the paper is still waiting confirmation on the bedbug tests, if the results came up positive, it would join a long line of news publications to be stricken with the blood-sucking scourge. Food Network Magazine and Elle magazine have both reported infestations in recent weeks. [Brooklyn Paper]

Governor Paterson

Governor David Paterson signed legislation into effect today requiring landlords to disclose any history of bedbug activity in a building to possible tenants. The move comes on the heels of an increasing number of bedbug complaint calls to 311 in New York City — 11,000 such calls were made last year, compared to just 537 in 2004. The “Bedbug Disclosure Act” was sponsored by New York State Assembly member Linda Rosenthal, whose district includes the Upper West Side and portions of Hell’s Kitchen. Rosenthal said that the legislation is key to helping city residents avoid an increasingly prevalent problem. “New York City tenants have been living in fear of bedbugs,” Rosenthal said. “Nothing is more horrifying than signing a lease after a lengthy apartment search, only to discover that your new apartment is bedbug-infested.” New York City has seen several high-profile locations succumb to infestation in recent weeks, including the Empire State Building and the AMC movie theater in Times Square. TRD

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NYC has the most bedbugs nationwide: study
New York City ranks number one on a list of the nation’s 15 most bedbug-infested cities, according to a new report from Terminix, a leading pest control company, NBC reported. Philadelphia and Detroit round out the top three, and several Ohio cities — Cincinatti, Columbus and Dayton — are in the top 10. New York City fielded 11,000 complaints about bedbugs last year, the study shows. Scientists say bedbugs are appearing on a scale not seen since before World War II, when they were nearly eradicated. Increased international travel, among other factors, has allowed these pests to regain a foothold in the country. High-traffic areas such as hotels, airplanes and cruise ships are especially prone to infestations, Terminix says. The insects have invaded practically every area of New York City; most recently they were found in the basement of the Empire State Building and in the AMC movie theater in Times Square. [NBC]

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As was probably bound to happen, the city’s bedbug plague has hit its tallest and most famous building. An official for the Empire State Building told the Daily News that the nocturnal pests were discovered in an employee changing room in the building’s basement last week. Exterminators were summoned, and building officials said in a statement that the infestation was isolated to the basement area, which has since “been treated and fully cleared.” The incident is the latest in a string of critter-sightings citywide, including at the AMC movie theater in Times Square, the Time Warner Center and a number of retail stores and offices. [NYDN] 

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Bedbugs have been discovered at One Time Warner Center, the Manhattan offices of Time Warner in Columbus Square, and at the headquarters of the Brooklyn district attorney, at 350 Jay Street, the Wall Street Journal reported. The bugs were found last week and were to be exterminated by today. This latest outbreak follows a summer-long bedbug infestation around the city, including at the Hollister store in Soho, Abercrombie & Fitch at the South Street Seaport, a triage room at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn and at a Victoria’s Secret on the East Side. In the past, the critters have been found in such offices as the Department of Health, the Human Resources Administration and at the City University of New York’s John Jay College, but the government is “usually pretty fast” to resolve the problem, said Council member Gale Brewer, who represents the Upper West Side. Brewer has asked the city to look at other prevention efforts in the battle against the bugs, including buying bug-sniffing dogs. [WSJ]

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The city’s Bed Bug Advisory Board has released its 39-page bedbug combat plan (see the full document below) and the city has responded with $500,000 in funding to step up its insect-fighting efforts.
The major points of the city’s plan include an informational campaign
for city dwellers, including an educational online portal, and new
staffers whose job it will be to help property owners who have infestations.
The city is urging residents to use professional exterminators, seal
cracks and get rid of clutter. In the past, said City Council member
Gale Brewer, of the Upper West Side, “the city administration has said
it is not a health issue and, therefore, not a problem.” But the new
efforts mark a shift in that philosophy. Still, city officials said
there are no firm benchmarks yet by which success will be measured on
the bedbug front. [NYT] and [WSJ] Bed Bug Advisory Board Report

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The struggling publishing industry is the latest to fall victim to the city’s tireless bedbug population,
which has been taking hold of the news cycle in recent weeks with
outbreaks in clothing stores, hospitals and offices (not to mention apartment buildings).
Hachette Book Group, whose offices are at 237 Park Avenue, has been
treating its three floors for bedbugs this week. The offices were open
until this afternoon, when they closed for the final round of
treatment. A company spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal that
doors would reopen Monday. Other recent bedbug-related closures include
a triage room at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, the offices of Euro RSCG Worldwide downtown, an east side Victoria’s Secret, an Abercrombie & Fitch at the South Street Seaport and the Hollister Epic store in Soho. [WSJ]

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A bill requiring landlords to disclose a building’s bedbug history to prospective tenants passed in both the state Senate and Assembly yesterday and will become law once signed by Gov. David Paterson, the New York Times reported. The new regulations would stipulate that landlords include disclosure forms — about bedbugs either in the particular apartment in question or in any other apartment in the building — with their leases. The city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development has seen bedbug complaints balloon in the city to almost 11,000 in 2009 from 537 in 2004. Still, some Republicans had argued against the measure because they said it would depreciate property values. [NYT]

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A bill requiring landlords to disclose a building’s bedbug history to prospective tenants passed in both the state Senate and Assembly yesterday and will become law once signed by Gov. David Paterson, the New York Times reported. The new regulations would stipulate that landlords include disclosure forms — about bedbugs either in the particular apartment in question or in any other apartment in the building — with their leases. The city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development has seen bedbug complaints balloon in the city to almost 11,000 in 2009 from 537 in 2004. Still, some Republicans had argued against the measure because they said it would depreciate property values. [NYT]

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New York State Assembly member Linda Rosenthal, whose district includes the Upper West Side and Hell’s Kitchen, is leading the charge against bedbugs, according to the Wall Street Journal, with legislation that would hold building owners accountable for not warning their tenants of infestation. The legislation would mandate that building owners disclose any bedbug activity within the last five years to potential renters before they move in. The bill also proposes a $750 tax credit to residents who have been afflicted with a bedbug infestation. … [more]