The New York City Department of Buildings (NYCDOB) has reported several disciplinary filings. See the October overall enforcement report here.
Here are some the major fines and penalties:
- The owner of 95-35 150th Rd., Queens was cited for using the property as a contractor’s yard and for commercial vehicle storage. An Order of Closure was issued in 2009 and the lot was padlocked. The illegal use was discontinued for nearly a decade when a recent inspection revealed that the illegal use had resumed, and the premises was padlocked.
- $268,625 in total penalties issued to Pedro A. Mateo, the owner of 27-01 Butler St., Queens, for illegal occupancy for transient use and safety violations due to the illegal conversion of a legal single-family home with the illegal addition of four single-room occupancy (SRO) units, which were found to have been advertised on Airbnb.
- $37,500 in total penalties issued to General Contractor Thind Builders NY, Inc., for six construction-safety violations issued due to a variety of unsafe conditions on a construction site located at 259-16 79th Ave., Queens. The violating conditions included workers on site without required OSHA cards, missing fall protection, unsafe operations on a scaffold, and working in violation of a stop-work order.
- $5,000 in penalties issued to Gregory Jones, the owner of 941 Washington Ave., Brooklyn, for filing a false statement on a permit application for the property. The owner falsely noted that the building would be unoccupied during construction.
- The department issued a Commissioner’s Order to revoke the registration of General Contractor Efstratios H. Benardis, effective Oct. 28, 2019. Benardis was disciplined after the department found that he failed to pay prevailing wages, which included falsification of payroll records, and failed to cooperate with the investigation into his misconduct.
- Master Plumber James Pepe was disciplined by the department for performing plumbing work without a permit, for performing work in violation of an active stop-work order, and for failing to be properly established. Pepe agreed to pay a $5,000 fine and to have his license put on probation for a period of one year, effective Oct. 1, 2019.
- NYCDOB publishes monthly bulletins detailing the agency’s efforts to sanction and deter bad actors in the construction industry.
