Queens courthouse jail is in atrocious condition

NY Daily News  

Working conditions at the Queens Criminal Court complex’s detention center are so disgusting, correction officers have complained to state and federal workplace oversight agencies.

Rats scurry in the kitchen, roaches crawl in the locker room, and flies hover over hopelessly backed-up toilets, say filings with the state Public Employee Safety and Health Bureau and the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

“The appalling conditions in the Queens courts are consistent with the decaying infrastructure at our jail facilities,” said Benny Boscio, president of the Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association.

Photos obtained by the Daily News show an overflowing toilet, ripped-up flooring stained with water from leaks, peeling paint, black mold creeping up the walls, a trashed locker room, and a disheveled food storage area.

As if working conditions weren’t bad enough, the Correction Department’s staffing crisis has cut the number of officers regularly working at the Queens Detention Center in Kew Gardens.

Roughly 40 officers out of the center’s detachment of 173 were moved to Rikers Island, and an additional 12 officers have retired since May 2021, correction sources said.

On top of that, the Correction Department has been constantly “redeploying” or temporarily moving officers to Rikers from the Queens courts on a spot basis, further reducing available staff.

The complaint alleges a security entry gate in the intake area has been broken for months, forcing officers to leave the gate unsecured.

The complaint to state officials describes food being stored improperly, broken laundry machines and cleaning equipment, and a filthy kitchen and rest rooms. Devices that filter air and drinking water for the detainees have been broken for months, the complaint said.

A factor in keeping the facility clean is that those jobs are usually done by detainees from Rikers — but there hasn’t been such a work detail in months, said Correction Department sources.

The situation has slowed down court operations by delaying the production of detainees at court hearings, said the sources.

 

Queensbridge tenants draw up class action suit against NYCHA for purposeful neglect

 

 NY Daily News

 Fed-up tenants of the Queensbridge Houses sued the New York City Housing Authority on Tuesday, citing hazardous conditions in the nation’s largest public housing complex and what they describe as illegal harassment.

Pamela Wheeler, 72, and Marilyn Keller, 58, are among 11 plaintiffs named in two lawsuits — one representing residents of the complex’s northern section, the other representing its southern section — filed in Queens Housing Court.

The suits come after years — and for some residents, decades — of complaints about quality-of-life issues in their homes, including asbestos, lead, mold, severe leaking and flooding, vermin, and other biohazards.

“I am tired of living with mice, roaches, waterbugs, lack of heat, holes in my walls and sink, waterlogged and rotting cabinets, and many more repair issues that are a threat to my health and safety and an affront to my dignity,” said Wheeler at a press conference.

Keller, abreast cancer survivor who suffers chronic health issues, described exposed electrical wiring, a broken radiator, rotted kitchen cabinets, and a broken door in her apartment she said frequently gets jammed.

 Her calls to NYCHA rarely, if ever, result in action, Keller says.

“Any type of repairs that need to be done in my house — I have to wait forever to get them done,” said Keller. “I put the ticket in. Then NYCHA calls me back to tell me the date they are coming.

“So, I prepare for the appointment, take everything out of the closet and cabinets, and ask for the day off work. But then they never come. They are a bunch of no-shows.”

The plaintiffs further allege the city’s trouble-plagued housing authority declines to make repairs in the hope that the Queensbridge Houses can be handed over to “private entities who would receive federal money in exchange for their agreement to keep the units affordable” under federal housing regulations and laws.

The “private entities” could be for-profit companies, or new government entities, the lawsuit says. In any case, the lawsuit says, it’s not clear that handing the project to new public or private managers “will benefit low-income renters more than it will harm them.”

So they don't care much about the new basketball court de Blasio's NYPD built there?

NYCHA recidivist malfeasance continues with private sector developers

 

THE CITY  

 Last fall, city Housing Authority carpenters performing work at a public housing complex in Washington Heights made a disturbing discovery inside a tenant’s bathroom: black splotches flowering on what appeared to be a newly installed drop ceiling.

When they removed the ceiling, they found a thick coating of toxic black mold festering in the rafters behind it and covering the backside of the sheetrock.

A subsequent investigation revealed that a contractor had put up drywall over mold and water leaks in multiple apartments at the development. The examination found open mold and leak repair requests in 45 apartments — fixes the contractor had failed to address.

Another problem: The contractor who performed the inadequate work was affiliated with the private-sector developer that was about to take over management of the public housing development under a controversial program NYCHA is relying on known as Rental Assistance Demonstration — aka, RAD.

Behind the scenes, the alleged mold cover-up set off alarm bells. An investigation by THE CITY confirmed NYCHA officials quietly altered the authority’s protocols on all RAD transitions going forward, ratcheting up oversight of all properties that convert ,to private management under the program.

From now on, NYCHA said it would ensure that developers preparing a building for RAD conversion use only mold-resistant sheetrock. The developers will be provided with an apartment’s mold history — and NYCHA will follow up to make sure open repair requests are addressed.

“Due to this investigation, NYCHA has instituted better controls to protect against any confusion surrounding (RAD) conversions,” NYCHA management wrote in response to THE CITY’s questions about the mold issue.

NYCHA has made no public announcement about any of this, and it’s easy to see why: RAD has become a hot-button issue confronting the Housing Authority as it attempts to redress a history of negligence and remedy unsafe and unhealthy living conditions that have plagued many of its 400,000 tenants for decades.

Brand new subway station already falling apart

From the NY Post:

The brand-new Hudson Yards subway station has turned into the city’s largest water park — with the $2.4 billion 7-train terminus plagued by mold, leaks, flooded bathrooms and water damage that has shut nearly half the escalators.

The Hell’s Kitchen terminus has been open for just seven months, but due to flaws in its design and construction, it already has as many problems as much older stops in the MTA’s decaying subway system.

“They f- -ked up,” declared Louie Berkey, a plumber from Staten Island who said he saw right away that the work on the station was shoddy. “They didn’t install the ceiling here right. It’s not waterproof.”

Riders at the station can look up and see brown mold and drops seeping out of the ceiling, including right over the escalators.

The bathrooms are closed until further notice, and two of the five escalators have been out of commission since last month. The working escalators are often covered with water and slippery.

Moldy Sandy foreclosure still not cleaned up

From CBS2:

A Queens family is still trying to recover from Superstorm Sandy.

As CBS2’s Hazel Sanchez reported, cancer survivor Joyce Zoller said she’s devastated after being ordered by her doctors and attorneys to move from her Queens home to Florida.

Not because her house is unsafe, but because she said the abandoned home next door is hazardous to her health.

“The mold, the smell, the vermin inside, birds flying all over, it’s a disaster,” said Zoller. “I don’t know how much more I can take. It’s my home and I can’t even live in my own home.”

CBS2 met with the Zollers in June of 2014 and learned their neighbor at 145-08 Neponsit Ave. had abandoned the property after Superstorm Sandy.

Black mold had been growing inside the home.

City records show HSBC Mortgage took ownership after it went into foreclosure, but as owners did nothing to clean up the mold.

A Department of Buildings inspector stopped by the house Thursday morning, slapping HSBC with another violation for failing to maintain the building, Sanchez reported.

HSBC has been issued multiple building code violations since Superstorm Sandy and faces more than $20,000 in fines.

Abandoned, burned building causing problems

From NY1:

Almost two years ago, a fire burned out a house in East Elmhurst, and neighbors say the scorched structure has sat there mostly untouched ever since.

"Little by little, we got different agencies to come in, but no one could seem to give us the answer: when are they going to correct it, demolish it or possibly rebuild it?" says resident Jerii Durant.

Residents say the house is not just an eyesore but also a potential hazard to the neighborhood.

"There's rodents coming in and out of the house," Durant says. "The house is liable to collapse, and I'm sure there's mold inside."

"I'm afraid some pieces may fall off, which it has in the past fell on my car. I mean, we could be walking and a piece could fall on us, you know?" said neighbor Marion Moore.

Neighbors say the owners of the abandoned house died years ago, and after the fire, the house became a huge burden to the neighborhood, acting as a breading ground for rodents and a home to squatters.

Yikes. Imagine living in the house attached to that.

Promised NYCHA repairs are slow-going

From the Daily News:

Six months ago, Mayor de Blasio took office promising big changes for public housing, but that means little to Blanche Moore, who still has to deal with sickening black mold in her bathroom.

“It’s the same,” said Moore, 61, a retired home health aide, who lives in the DeWitt Clinton Houses in East Harlem. “I don’t have a problem talking to them or anything. I just can’t get anybody to come and do the work.”

Moore is one of 17 tenants who sued NYCHA in June on behalf of DeWitt Clinton’s 1,700 residents, demanding that the authority address dozens of repairs that date back years.

“We’re not going to wait,” said attorney Leah Goodridge of the Urban Justice Center’s Safety Net Project. “They can’t fix NYCHA overnight, but at the same time, the people who live in these conditions shouldn’t have to suffer.”

Before de Blasio’s arrival at City Hall, NYCHA was under fire for chronic mismanagement, including a huge backlog of repair requests. And de Blasio vowed to fire the agency’s chair, John Rhea, who resigned days before de Blasio arrived.

Since de Blasio took office, NYCHA has begun pulling down scaffolding that’s been up for years for no apparent reason. They began the year with a dramatic reduction in the repair backlog which they say continues.

Mold a problem at foreclosed homes in Rockaway

From CBS New York:

Some Rockaway Peninsula residents say a house damaged by Superstorm Sandy and then left abandoned is posing a health hazard in their neighborhood.

The former owner of the dilapidated home abandoned it immediately after Sandy, leaving everything behind. HSBC took over the house after it went into foreclosure.

The city’s Health Department received complaints and asked the bank to clean up the home.

HSBC told CBS 2 it is looking into the matter.

Photos taken last week showed that nothing had been done.

Politicians sweat the small stuff, ignore major issues

We are fortunate to live in this great America where we can express freedom of speech our (first Amendment rights).

It is unfortunate that the politicians can ignore voters' living conditions.

The outrage should be on South Jamaica's horrendous, unhealthy, oppressive conditions where mostly blacks live. For those who care about our health and well-being, here is how you all can help.

Call Mr. La Mura at (718) 286-2908. He is the liaison to Borough President, Melinda Katz.

Call Ms. Helena E. Williams at (718)558-8252. She is the president of LIRR. The trestle walls are covered with mold.

Don't forget Comrie/deputy for Katz. Comrie, former Councilman for 12 years in South Jamaica. - Pamela Hazel

Beware of developers that call themselves "Bad Ass"

From the Daily News:

A dozen first-time homeowners say a developer known as the Bad Ass Group steered them into purchasing shoddily-built homes that the city had not even cleared for permanent occupancy.

The group filed an $18 million class-action lawsuit in Bronx Supreme Court Friday against at least six companies — including real estate agents, attorneys, an architect and a builder — that collectively did business as an umbrella entity called the Bad Ass Group.

“Our American Dream has been stolen,” said one homeowner, Johanny De La Cruz, during a rally in front of the courthouse Friday, after they filed the court papers that sought damages for a litany of alleged offenses including breach of contract, fraud, conspiracy, negligence and attorney malpractice.

The residents complained they were rushed into buying the properties, and began having problems with heat, black mold, sewage backups, plumbing, leaky roofs and faulty boilers almost as soon as they moved in.

Another homeowner, Martha Diaz, sounded a similar tune.

“When it rained, the water came inside of the house,” said Diaz, a mother of seven who purchased her two-family house for $618,0000 in 2006.

On top of that, the plaintiffs said, the developer never obtained permanent certificates of occupancy for the houses of horror, which put the homeowners on the line for thousands in fines from the city.

When homeowners complained, they said the Bad Ass Group referred them to lawyers they now believe were in cahoots with the schemers, who did nothing to resolve the approvals or stop the city fines from accruing, said Andre Ramon Soleil, the homeowners’ attorney.

The group is also suing the city, charging that the Department of Buildings was negligent in issuing temporary approvals before the properties were inspected — a policy that has since changed.

That was nice of them...

From CBS New York:

New York City has agreed to deal more thoroughly with the removal of mold in public housing.

The New York Times reports that it’s part of an agreement by the Bloomberg administration to settle a federal lawsuit by tenants.

The city was accused of allowing mold to persist, aggravating tenants’ respiratory ailments.

“They would come and scrape the mold off the wall and then they would just paint over it, but the problem would come back again in three or four months because they never addressed the issue of moisture,” the Reverend Getulio Cruz told 1010 WINS. “Now they’re committed to not just dealing with the mold, but also addressing the issue of moisture.”

The settlement requires the city Housing Authority to remove the mold and fix leaks, insulate pipes and deal with other moisture issues. It covers all of the authority’s 400,000 tenants.

In most cases, the authority will have to fix the problem within seven to 15 days of a work order.

Water & bugs & mold - oh my!

From CBS New York:

Some residents at a Queens apartment building say they’ve been complaining to their landlord for months about water, bugs and mold.

Their landlord? It’s the city.

Erycka de Jesus showed CBS 2′s Dave Carlin her flooded second-floor apartment at the Ravenswood Houses in Astoria. She has moved her four children to her bother’s house an hour away because she fears for their health at her home, which has attracted insects and mold because of standing water.

“My asthmatic son definitely cannot stay in this environment,” de Jesus said.

She said a crew with the New York City Housing Authority, which manages the property, patched the wall in a way that did no good. De Jesus is now taking NYCHA to court.

She also contacted City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Queens), who had some choice worlds for the Housing Authority.

“When there are situations like this calling for immediate response, there is no excuse,” Van Bramer told Carlin.

CBS 2 repeatedly pressed NYCHA for an explanation, but the agency said only that it was “looking into it.”

DOE cleans up moldy trailers

From NY1:

Water leaking in through cracked walls. Mold growing in ceilings from vents.

The photo seen above was taken by a teacher at Richmond Hill High School of the ceiling of one of the nearly two dozen trailers where hundreds of students go to class.

"They're kept in deplorable conditions, where they don't clean them properly," said Charles diBenedetto, a teacher at Richmond Hill High School. "The floors sink in because the moisture seeps in through the sheet metal that's outside, seeping in through the walls, causing the floors to bevel and crack. Some of our trailers actually have metal plates where the floors should be, so that way, nobody falls through the floor."

DiBenedetto requested an inspection by the teachers' union's health unit. So did teachers at Cardoza High School. At Francis Lewis High School, teacher Arthur Goldstein called the union after being interviewed by NY1 for a previous report on trailer conditions.

The DOE responded quickly to the health reports, cleaning trailers at Francis Lewis and Cardozo in the days before school started. At Richmond Hill, the DOE said that students have been temporarily removed from the moldy units until they're made safe.

Mold still a major problem

From CBS 2:

Life after Superstorm Sandy includes a health hazard that is sometimes pesky, sometimes serious and continues to keep many out of their homes.

Now some are saying the city should be doing more to help get rid of it.

It’s the fungus you don’t want to find at home, yet Derek Casey is one of the many stuck with mold after Sandy’s waters flooded his Rockaway condominium, leaving him wondering if the government will ever come and help remove it.

“The mold is here and we’re what eight weeks later and it’s still growing. We should have had it removed by now,” Casey told CBS 2′s Sean Hennessey.

Casey’s uncertainty is spreading along with the mold.

“I’m very concerned about what we cannot see more so than what we can see,” he said.

City Hall is being accused of not doing enough.

A new survey by the New York Communities for Change said 65 percent of Rockaway residents still have mold or paid for its removal and that “..mold has been growing in thousands of households.”

The problem is so prevalent the survey said more than a third of the homes in the Rockaways have mold.

Storm damaged building gets worse

From NY1:

In a duplex in Jamaica, Queens, two families are still enduring damage from Hurricane Sandy.

"It's horrible no one should have to live like this," said renter Natasha Francis. "I feel like the hurricane is in my home."

Her building's second floor, which had been leaking since the storm hit on October 29, finally collapsed after Friday's rain and wind. Francis was left with soggy floors, ruined furniture, mold in a daughter's bedroom and constant scrubbing with bleach with little result.

The landlord told her he cannot afford to make repairs.

"I'm upset. I'm angry, because I've spoken to my landlord about this and now it's gotten so worse and now it's unliveable. I can't live here with my kids," Francis said.

Downstairs, Khaleeda Khan's family said they fear they will soon see damages. By Saturday night, their ceiling was cracking above the Christmas tree, so the decorations were coming down.

"It's not the Christmas I imagined," Khan said. "I did all my shopping, all the preparations to have a good Christmas for my kids, my family and we're not going to have it."

Rapid Repairs slow & excludes mold remediation

From the Daily News:

...mold has become one of the biggest health hazards after Sandy.

Volunteers working with the Met Council, a social service agency, found that only one in five families is hiring professional mold cleaning services, not surprising given that mold remediation can cost several thousands of dollars.

The rest are either painting over the mold or purchasing cheap and ineffective cleanup kits. Until local and federal relief agencies come up with a solution, people who, like the Gonzalos, can’t afford to have the mold removed are being left to live in toxic homes.

Religious leaders and elected officials are calling on Mayor Bloomberg to add mold remediation to the city’s Rapid Repairs program, which was established to help residential property owners affected by Sandy make emergency repairs including restoration of heat, power and hot water.

A report put out by QCUA says the administration’s relief response has been “slow and inadequate” in Queens: As of December 5 only 174 homes (out of 38,000 homes and businesses on the Rockaway Peninsula) had received help through Rapid Repairs. Over 8,000 more were still waiting to be inspected. Also, QCUA found that health conditions have deteriorated dangerously: “Contamination of homes and air caused by microbial growth due to flooding and a mold epidemic has led to pulmonary problems dubbed the ‘Rockaway Cough.’”

Even worse, the mold problem is not limited to the Rockaways, says Met Council CEO Willie Rapfogel.

HPD wants slumlord bill passed

From the Daily News:

Each year, city taxpayers pay again and again for emergency repairs on slumlord buildings because owners refuse to fix underlying problems.

Mold is painted over, or crumbling plaster is patched up, while the busted water pipe behind the wall that's causing the problem remains just that - busted.

Last year the city spent $26.3 million on Band-aid jobs like this, with inspectors often returning repeatedly to the same building to issue the same violations, according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

A City Council hearing Thursday took up a proposed new law that rejects the quick fix and holds landlords accountable for repairing underlying conditions.

The bill’s sponsor, Councilwoman Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan) said the quick fix frustrates tenants and the city.

Tired of slapping the same buildings with the same citations, HPD Deputy Commissioner Vito Mustaciuolo pressed for the bill’s passage at a hearing Thursday.

“Buildings where the symptom is treated without treating the cause typically have systemic leaks or water penetration,” he said. “The same conditions occur and reoccur in multiple apartments.”

HPD wants to target buildings with repeat water leaks, ferret out underlying causes, then require landlords to fix the cause or face a $1,000 per unit and $5,000 per building fine.

Landlords must sign affidavits swearing the problem is resolved and face criminal charges if they lie.

Short on help, long on pine needles

That's a long time to be suffering.

But, hey, cheer up! The Parks Department put a Christmas tree on the beach where the boardwalk used to be!

Mold found at Belle Harbor school

From the NY Post:

Department of Education officials found mold and asbestos in a storm-damaged Queens school that last week was cleared for students to return — but only after parents insisted that the officials check.

It took scores of complaints from parents and meetings at the school before officials agreed to conduct tests for moisture and other hazards at PS 114 in Belle Harbor, which had been shut for more than a month after Hurricane Sandy.

Late yesterday, DOE officials quietly posted findings of subsequent tests online showing that areas of mold and asbestos in the auditorium and a nearby stairwell require removal.

Additionally, two of 14 water fountains showed elevated levels of copper.

In a letter to parents, Deputy Chancellor Kathleen Grimm committed to removing the mold and asbestos over the coming two weekends.

City reopened Zone A school prematurely?