Rule of thumb: Never call 311 on your own building.
A landlord and property manager of rent-stabilized buildings for more than 20 years tweeted that he called the city’s complaint line to report that 12 people were living in one of his three-bedroom apartments.
He was seeking a violation from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. “And then out of nowhere National Grid showed up for that same apartment,” the owner reported.
Coincidence? Not likely. There’s no way to know for sure.
What we do know is that the utility tested the cooking gas lines and shut down gas to half of the building. His repair bill came to $20,000. “And of course the overcrowding violation was never issued,” he added.
That was the last time the owner called 311 on one of his own buildings.
Building inspections are likely to increase during the Mamdani administration.
The mayor’s housing plan promises “a major overhaul of the city’s response to code and heat complaints, including allowing tenants to schedule some HPD inspections and coordinating ‘roof-to-cellar’ inspection days at buildings with organized tenants. The city will also launch an interagency planning effort in the Bronx to proactively address persistent issues around housing quality, public health and economic inequality in the borough.”
Of course, HPD and DOB inspectors only work so many hours per day, and I wouldn’t expect their numbers to increase significantly, given the city’s budget situation and the absurd civil service rules that make hiring municipal employees so difficult.
So it’s possible that inspections will increase for certain kinds of buildings — those with organized tenants or landlords whom the administration considers “bad” — while decreasing for others.
“I believe there will be more violations and bureaucracy (enforcement and local laws) but it will be more difficult to navigate NYC agencies and prove compliance,” Mark Hertz, a violations expeditor for 40 years, told me. “This is only a feeling from past experience.”
The administration claims it is trying to make it easier to deal with government and clear violations. But reducing bureaucracy is always harder than new mayors and commissioners realize. It seems to me that “roof-to-cellar inspection days” will create a backlog of violations that will prolong the process of clearing them.
What we’re thinking about: Sellers of certain apartment buildings in Washington, D.C., must first offer their tenants a chance to buy them, but tenants often waive this right in exchange for money, speeding up the sale. Will a similar dynamic unfold in New York if the City Council passes the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act? Send your thoughts to eengquist@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: King Kullen, a supermarket chain with 24 Long Island locations, was founded in 1930 by Michael J. Cullen. His great-granddaughter, Tracy Cullen, was just named the company’s first female president and chief operating officer.
Elsewhere…
Power outages in New York City are big news. Reports from the New York Independent Systems Operator, not so much.
But if people don’t pay attention to NYISO reports, blackouts will come.
The agency, which operates the electric grid and administers the wholesale power market, has been issuing increasingly dire warnings in recent years about the future power supply. The latest one, its annual report on the grid and markets, came out Tuesday, noting increased demand for electricity from data centers, heating systems and electric vehicles.
“Electrification of the building and transportation sectors, along with the growth of large energy-intensive projects, is accelerating demand and placing new strains on the grid,” it said.
At the same time, old generating stations are being closed and aging infrastructure is creating “performance challenges,” reducing the margin for error. The ISO called for “timely and sustained investment across a broad range of resource types.”
NYISO also reported some good news: June 3 from noon to 1 p.m. was a record hour for solar power production in the state. During that time, solar provided 29 percent of the state’s electricity.
Closing time
Residential: The most expensive residential sale recorded Tuesday was $23.6 million for a triplex at 39 East 79th Street on the Upper East Side.
Commercial: The most expensive commercial transaction was $275 million for 250 West 57th Street. Empire State Realty sold the 540,000-square-foot office building to Namdar Realty Group. The Real Deal reported in February that ESRT was seeking $350 million for the property.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market was $10 million for a 5,346-square-foot house at 222 East 61st Street in Lenox Hill. Charlie Attias with Compass has the listing.
— Matthew Elo
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