Rapscallion repellent

Queens Building Uses
'Mosquito' To Quiet Teens
Emits High-Pitched Sound Only Audible To Youth
WCBS-TV

Teenagers who hang out inside one apartment building in Jamaica, Queens are getting an earful these days.

A new security device called "The Mosquito" has been installed in the lobby of a building on 170th Street where there have been chronic problems with noisy teens.

The wall-mounted device emits a high-frequency screech that can only be heard by people aged 13 to 25. Most older people cannot hear it.

"It sounds like when you put a microphone close to the TV," said Jerry Brown, one of the younger residents, who admits the noise bothers him "a little bit."

Another teen added, "it's annoying."

But one young adult said, "it doesn't bother me."

The building superintendent said the mosquito has kept the lobby free of loitering teenagers, so far.

Queens Building Uses 'Mosquito' To Quiet Teens

Building collapse shuts down Metro North

Metro-North Service Suspended After Building Collapse

By Sewell Chan, NY Times

Service on all three of the Metro-North Railroad’s lines — the Hudson, Harlem and New Haven lines — was suspended at 3:15 p.m. after a vacant building collapsed at 124th Street and Park Avenue, one block from the 125th Street station in Harlem, where all three lines stop on their way to and from Grand Central Terminal. An untold number of trains and passengers were left waiting for service to resume. Passengers on trains at stations were told to leave and find alternative means of travel.

There were no reports of any injuries. A wall of the building, at 102 East 124th Street, collapsed around 1 p.m., and after city workers responded to the scene, the rest of the building fell, officials said. The stability of an adjacent vacant building, at 100 East 124th Street, has been compromised, and the building will be demolished imminently as a precaution, officials said.

According to property records, both properties are owned by Kushner Companies, a property management firm based in Manhattan and Florham Park, N.J. Jared C. Kushner, a principal of the firm, is the owner and publisher of The New York Observer.

The Police and Fire Departments directed the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to suspend service, out of concern that the vibrations of the moving trains could lead to further damage, M.T.A. officials said.

Consolidated Edison has cut power to the site and the Department of Environmental Protection has cut water to the site.

Northbound traffic on the east side of Park Avenue from 123rd to 125th has been suspended, as has traffic on East 124th Street between Park and Lexington Avenues.

“They don’t want rumbling to weaken the parts of the building that are still standing,” said Marjorie S. Anders, a Metro-North spokeswoman. “So far we don’t have any debris on the tracks but I’ve been told if the building collapses further, we might.”

Passengers on what was to have been the 3:10 p.m. Hudson Line train reported heard announcements directing them to leave the train and find alternative means of travel.

Kevin Flynn contributed reporting.

Photo from NY Sun

Survivors' stairway being preserved

Something astonishing is now visible on Vesey Street: the Vesey Street staircase.

Also known as the “Survivors’ Stairway” for its vital role in the evacuation of hundreds of people from the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, the staircase has been largely obscured by fencing, equipment and its design.

A Last Glimpse of the 9/11 Stairway, Before It Moves

The stairs seem to come to an abrupt end in midair. That was the level of the Austin J. Tobin Plaza, which was higher than the sidewalk around much of the complex. Evacuees from the north tower made their way along the plaza’s edge and down these stairs after the terrorist attack.

Eventually, the stairway will be reinstalled in the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center.

LPC to vote on UES crap

Landmarks Panel May End East Side Clash
By PETER KIEFER
Staff Reporter of the Sun

The city's Landmarks Preservation Commission may end a months-long clash that has pitted residents and preservationists against a developer seeking to erect a 14-story apartment tower in the Upper East Side Historic District.

At a meeting today, the commission is scheduled to vote on Friedland Properties' plan to tear down a two-story structure that currently houses a number of businesses, including a hair salon and the Parisian bistro La Goulue, at Madison Avenue near 72nd Street, to make room for luxury condominiums.

The proposal has outraged local resident groups, which say its height and density would dilute Madison Avenue's unique character. Last month, dozens of residents and preservationists turned out at a public hearing to testify against the plan.

According to the executive director of Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts, Seri Worden, the proposal to tear down the structure is a nonstarter.

"Tearing down what is a contributing building in a historic district is inappropriate and sets a terrible precedent for other historic districts," she said.

The building was constructed in 1885 by the synagogue of Congregation B'nai Jeshurun, which sold it in 1910. It then went through several makeovers before assuming its present two-story, neo-Georgian form in 1938.

Ms. Worden said she expects a strong turnout at today's meeting, at which the 11-member landmarks commission will likely discuss the proposal and the pubic comments. The panel can then vote to reject the proposal, propose modifications, or approve it outright.

"We think the size and the design is simply at odds with the location. There is nothing really like this building in the area," Ms. Worden said. The developer and the architect for the project, Page Ayres Cowley, declined to comment.

Hopefully, LPC will vote in favor of the plan. When the Upper East Side starts looking like Corona, then we'll have equal protection under the law. It's only fair.

Bloomberg vs. Spitzer in 2010

Mayor Bloomberg - who just took himself out of the presidential running - handed the state's top Republican a $500,000 campaign contribution last month to keep open the option of running for governor in 2010, GOP sources said yesterday.

Bloomberg was openly encouraged to run by Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Rensselaer) during their meeting in City Hall Thursday, the day Hizzoner finally flatly declared that he would not try to run for president as an independent candidate, The Post has learned.

BIG-GIVER BLOOMY MULLS GOV RUN

Don't expect to hear much talk from the Bloomberg camp about running for governor. The nonstop talk about running for president was a requirement to make Mr. Bloomberg a viable candidate. The concept of Mr. Bloomberg entering the presidential race seemed absurd when the rumors first began two years ago. A coordinated pre-campaign was required to make plausible a campaign that now is not happening. Convincing voters and opinion makers that Mr. Bloomberg is a reasonable gubernatorial candidate with a reasonable chance of winning isn't an issue. Polls at this early date — nearly three years before the election — even show Mr. Bloomberg ahead of Mr. Spitzer. So in terms of running for governor, talk would only hurt Mr. Bloomberg's chances, as it could cause trouble with the current governor.

The mayor does not want any trouble with the governor, and vice versa. From Mr. Bloomberg's perspective, Albany has a say in almost every big idea any mayor wants to pursue. From Mr. Spitzer's perspective, last summer's Troopergate troubles make it imperative to avoid any new high-profile enemies.

Bloomberg: Next Stop, Albany?

Photo from Gothamist

Saturday's SJU protest

Concerned Residents of Jamaica Estates held a rally with Senator Padavan during the SJU basketball game this past Saturday. They have also set up their own blog, which is here.

City proud of overdevelopment, plans more

From an HPD press release:

Mayor Bloomberg has fostered a climate that encourages housing construction, including changes to the building and tax codes and an ambitious series of rezonings. Since the Mayor came to office, the City has moved to right the imbalance between population growth and housing construction. Since 2002 permits have been issued for 159,370 housing units, while the population has increased by only around 58,000 households. Continuing these kinds of surpluses is important to our efforts to close the current housing gap and prepare for the city to add another one million people over the next 25 years.

Seventy percent of the permits issued in 2007 were for units in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island. Thirty percent were for units in Manhattan. Since Mayor Bloomberg came to office seventy-four percent of new housing permits have been in the outer boroughs, compared to only sixty-two percent in the previous three decades. In addition, much of the new construction in the outer boroughs includes market-rate homes affordable to middle-income families.

The 2007 figures show that the number of permits issued for housing units in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens increased from 2006. Manhattan saw 9,520 permits in 2007 versus 8,790 in 2006; Brooklyn saw 10,930 permits in 2007—its highest total ever—compared to 9,191 in 2006; and Queens saw 7,625 permits in 2007—also its highest total ever—up from 7,252 in 2006. While the Bronx and Staten Island saw permit numbers decline, the Bronx still posted the fourth highest total in more than three decades.

LGA to get AirTrain?

MTA: Plans May Include Train to LaGuardia

Freight rail lines could be converted into subway lines and a train could take passengers directly to LaGuardia Airport under a plan proposed by the head of the region's transit agency.

In a "State of the MTA" speech Monday, Metropolitan Transportation Authority executive director Elliot Sander proposed several long-range projects for the agency that runs New York City's subways, buses and suburban train lines.

Sander also said the MTA would explore creating a second AirTrain service to connect LaGuardia Airport to Long Island Rail Road service in Woodside, Queens. He said the MTA will add $30 million worth of promised new service [New York Times] this year, increasing service on 11 subway lines and extending several bus routes.

The rest of the plan is here: State of the MTA Address Unveils 40-Year Transportation Vision

Lost City translates developer talk

Having listened to a good share of Utopian bullshit over the past few years, I've learned how to decrypt the real estate man and pro-developer pol's special brand of Pollyanna-ish doublespeak. Here, for your guidance, is a brief primer:

Statement: "Our design is meant to respect the historical and architectural context of the neighborhood."
Translation: "This building is not as big and ugly as we'd like it to be."

Much more here: The Language of Developers, and How to Understand It

Saving Bayside Blunder tree

Queens Crap ensign Ken Klinger first brought our attention to this McMansion in Bayside back in December of 2007. Well, as you can see, it ain't finished yet.
What caught my eye (after the anti-Rip Torn graffiti) was that sign on the tree. Why is the Parks Department preserving this tree and how do they do so on private land?

More proof that LPC is a joke

From the LPC designation report for Tifereth Israel:

the synagogue is a two-story wood-frame building that was originally clad with horizontal clapboard siding. The original wood stoop and railing have been replaced with a brick porch with an iron railing, and the wood clapboard siding has been covered with stucco. Despite these alterations, the Congregation Tifereth Israel remains a rare survivor as what is likely the oldest purpose-built synagogue in Queens and a striking representative of a regional vernacular style.

Good for Tifereth Israel. However, the official reason for St. Saviour's being rejected by LPC was because it has aluminum siding (which is more temporary than stucco...) The real reason is because the Bloomberg administration wants to shoehorn hundreds more people into a full block in Maspeth. Saving community landmarks in red-lined areas takes a back seat to the "million more people by 2030", after all. The Bloomberg Legacy in Queens will be one of neighborhood destruction via overdevelopment. Mark my words.

Poster protest at St. Saviour's

This morning residents of 57th Drive woke up to find a poster protest across the street from them along the fence at St. Saviour's.
Here are some photos. - Christina Wilkinson


Hey some of that artwork looks familiar!

Charges against self-cert engineer

The Bronx district attorney’s office has decided to pursue criminal charges against an engineer whose failure to fully inspect a Bronx construction job was cited in a Fire Department report on the deaths of two firefighters, according to a person who has been briefed on the investigation.

Engineer Faces Perjury Charge After Fatal Bronx Fire in ’06

Firefighter Michael C. Reilly and his boss, Lt. Howard J. Carpluk Jr., were fighting a fire in a Walton Avenue discount store in August 2006 when rotting support columns gave way, the floor collapsed and they were trapped, a Fire Department report concluded.

The engineer’s lawyer said on Sunday that the Fire Department’s conclusions about the construction were wrong, and that there was no connection between the plans approved by his client, Jose D. Vargas, and the fatal collapse. The lawyer, Armando Montano, also said that in bringing criminal charges alleging that his client lied to investigators, prosecutors were taking advantage of the lapsed memory of an 82-year-old man.

The charges represent the most significant law enforcement action taken against a professional involved in a program that gives engineers and architects the authority to approve construction projects without city oversight.

The program is essentially an honor system in which the city has transferred many of its inspection responsibilities to architects and engineers and relies on their integrity to ensure building safety. But the city has found widespread abuses in recent years and is working to increase oversight and penalties.

Photo from NY Times

Sniffing out bedbugs

Meet the dogs of war - the war against bedbugs, that is.

Radar the beagle and Taz the Australian kelpie are part of a crack team of sniffer dogs sweeping apartments and hotel rooms across the city to combat an infestation that has reached plaguelike proportions.

The animals are specially trained to root out the pesky, blood-sucking insects, which nest in mattresses, upholstery and other furniture.


Noses of trained dogs hunting bedbugs in city hotels and apartments

Photo from Daily News

Concern over large projects

After years of sustained growth marked by grandiose, ambitious plans for the city, the real estate development industry is displaying troubling symptoms.

Unease Erodes Ambition in Real Estate

The number of citywide building permits is expected to drop, public and private funding for projects is drying up, and a stream of multibillion-dollar plans is coming in over budget and behind schedule, with many designs being scaled back or scrapped altogether.

A professor of urban policy and planning at New York University, Mitchell Moss, said the current situation is the result of a glut of projects that have been pushed through without enough reflection by elected officials.

Pete's new priority

Daredevils who parachute from tall buildings could land in jail if a bill introduced by Council Member Peter Vallone Jr. of Queens becomes law.

Vallone Bill Could Land Daredevil Jumpers in Jail

Mr. Vallone said in an interview he is attempting "to protect citizens from being landed on." The legislation would outlaw climbing and jumping off any structure taller than 25 feet and punish offenders with up to a year of imprisonment and $1,000 in fines.

"I don't know if it's a recurring problem, but one time is too many," Mr. Vallone said. "It could endanger the lives of the jumper and of the people on the street."

I'm much more concerned with other things falling off of tall buildings and onto my head. Where's the legislation on that?

Something's missing

Hey can you point out the two things that are missing in this photo? Here's a clue.

Marge will have an opponent

Maspeth business owner and activist Tony Nunziato announced last week that he will be running against incumbent Assemblywoman Marge Markey who has never had an opponent and who has been in office since 1999. Let's review his qualifications:

Vice President of the Maspeth Chamber of Commerce
Executive board member of the Juniper Park Civic Association
Member of CB5 for 10 years, chair of environmental committee
Co-founder of the Newtown Historical Society
At the forefront of issues such as the Elmhurst Gas Tank park fight, Cross Harbor Tunnel fight, getting trucks off of Grand Avenue, preserving St. Saviour's Church and a community representative for the Kosciuszko Bridge project.

Marge Markey's qualifications:
Wife of a clubhouse judge, Director of Marketing & Tourism under Claire Shulman

Baby tale gets stranger

Illegal immigration, statutory rape...who thought the baby tale would be so sordid?

Baby's mom found! Livery cab driver arrested in scheme to ditch infant

City settles Parks bias case

Moving to close the books on a long and ugly chapter in New York’s employment history, the city has agreed to pay more than $20 million to settle a federal class-action lawsuit charging that the Department of Parks and Recreation systematically discriminated against black and Hispanic employees in awarding jobs and setting salaries, lawyers for the plaintiffs said Tuesday.

City Agrees to Settlement in Parks Dept. Bias Case

In announcing the agreement, lawyers and the plaintiffs painted a portrait of an agency that under its long-serving commissioner, Henry J. Stern, routinely rewarded a handpicked coterie of inexperienced white workers with plum assignments at the expense of experienced black and Hispanic employees.

From the original complaint:

Dorothy Lewandowski, a white employee, was promoted to Chief of Operations for the Bronx when then-Parks Commissioner Henry Stern called her and informed her that she was being promoted from Deputy Chief of Operations for Queens. Again, Parks promoted Lewandowski to this position without ever having posted a vacancy notice, solicited applications, or conducted a formal interview process. (Lewandowski is now the Queens Parks Commissioner.)

Whenever you see something stupid happening in a Queens park, remember that may be because the person in charge is not qualified.

Photo from Bronx Times

Atlantic Yards costs us more than Ratner

Last October 9, Forest City Enterprises (FCE) held an Investor Day meeting at the New York Times Tower, built by subsidiary Forest City Ratner (FCR) in tandem with the New York Times Company. The developer shared several important pieces of news about the Atlantic Yards project that have not been aired publicly.

Among the highlights, thanks to the transcript:

The developer has invested $250 million in the $4 billion project, its largest single investment, but that's only 25% more than its developer fee, and less than the direct public investment of $305 million

Translation: The taxpayers of NYC are ponying up a lot more to get this thing done than the developer is.

More here.

In the Gotham Gazette, Councilman David Yassky said the following:

Of course, the single biggest example of corporate welfare is the proposed Atlantic Yards development. The Bloomberg administration has agreed to give the project's developer at least $100 million in direct subsidies, plus another $400 million to $500 million in tax breaks. In the current financial climate, this handout is impossible to justify.

Photo from Streetsblog

7 line to get electric platform signs

No. 7 line riders in the upcoming years may be able to tell when their trains are arriving under a proposal to be unveiled Wednesday to install electronic signs on platforms, according to transit officials familiar with the plan.

L train technology headed for No. 7?

The computer-based technology, which is already rolling out on the L line, would eventually lead to trains being largely guided by computers, thereby allowing them to run closer together.

Photo from NY Times

Criminal illegals burdening Suffolk County

Up to 95 percent of undocumented immigrants recommended for deportation by the Suffolk probation department remain in the county, placing the financial burden of monitoring them on the county, Suffolk's probation director said Thursday.

The probation department spends up to $375,000 annually to supervise as many as 225 undocumented immigrants, including 36 sex offenders, John Desmond told the Suffolk Legislature's Public Safety Committee.

Undocumented immigrants on probation cost Suffolk $350G

Legislators reacted with outrage at hearing undocumented immigrants are being monitored by the county's probation department rather than being deported by federal officials.

Wow, what a difference between Suffolk and Queens.

Citizen starts pothole patrol

The Daily Gotham's Dan Jacoby has created a Pothole Patrol.

It's simple, really. When you see a pothole, jot down where it is (in front of what address), and about how big it is. Then call 311 to report it. At the end of your report, they'll give you a complaint number -- write it down. Finally, e-mail me at dan --at-- danjacoby.com and let me know all the details, including the complaint number.

SJU on-campus nightmare

Hey Queens Crap, I'm Dan over at GerritsenBeach.net (a Brooklyn blog), I've been following all of your St. John's stuff and now I'm a fan of your site. I'm not a student there but my girlfriend is and she is having nothing but bad experiences at SJU over this construction. She used to dorm but now shes lives in the Fresh Meadows and I now follow some Queens blogs to see what's going on in the area.

You well know about the SJU dorm construction which in my opinion has taken away hundreds of parking spots, forcing commuter students to park further into the local communities, but there is lots of construction going on all over the campus of St. John's and no one knows why.

Here are a few of the things happening around the campus:

You cannot enter safely enter though with out sinking through the grass/mud. There is no walking path, and if they do decided to make one, it's better off if they didn't make one.

There are piles of dust from their digging, which is blowing all over the campus, cars and nearby homes.

They are blocking multiple emergency exits of busy buildings all day long.

They have hired people, only wearing St. John's jackets, to direct the flow of students. They basically send people back and forth saying you can go this way. They constantly contradict each other.

The whole campus is buzzing about it, you could hear everyone talking about it. Including most staff.

They are driving heavy equipment all over the campus at peak times forcing people to walk elsewhere.

You can see by the pictures how disgusting and unsafe this all is.

Dan

Abandoned cab baby story a hoax

I wish I could say I am surprised...

Livery Driver Arrested in Baby Case

My heart goes out to the poor child.

Photo from NY Times

Report on St. Saviour's Protest

Present at the St. Saviour's rally yesterday were Councilman Tony Avella, citywide and boroughwide preservationists, the Queens press corps, about 35-40 townspeople and 6 police officers.

Notably absent were every elected official that represents the district - they didn't even send representatives or statements to be read. These include U.S. Rep Nydia Velazquez, State Senator Serphin Maltese, Assemblywoman Marge Markey and Councilman Dennis Gallagher.

Here are more photos from the Committee to Save St. Saviour's.

Work is expected to be shut down at the site through the weekend. In the meantime, Councilman Gallagher has been busy producing a mock flyer blaming the protesters for the impending demolition of the church. Can he get any lower than this?

Weird news from around the world

A video made by four white students in South Africa showing middle-aged black hostel cleaning employees duped into eating food that had been urinated on, caused angry protests across the country.

Video shows black South Africans forced to eat urine-laced stew

"He was sprawled out on the bed in just a pair of shorts that were covered in blood when I walked in,” Rothery said. “The sack around his left testicle was completely detached and he had two big gashes in his penis.”

Tourist has penis chopped in D.R.

Toilets on Indian trains usually have holes that open directly onto the tracks...

Premature Baby Survives Fall Through Train Toilet

Open letter to Jim Gennaro

We read with great interest Councilman Jim Gennaro's response (which appeared in all Queens weekly newspapers in mid-February) to the open letter we wrote to Governor Spitzer, published in the Fresh Meadows Times on January 17, 2008 and we wish to reply as follows.

Your answer highlights in great detail the many attempts you made at addressing the SJU Henley Road dorm project, and included quotes from our local newspapers attesting to your commitment. Unfortunately, you failed to address our principal question relating to the ethics of your accepting campaign donations from the Kamali Organization, the developers that are building the St. John's dorm. It is a fact that the same weekly newspapers that documented your efforts, questioned your judgment when accepting donations from this very same organization, the one from which you were allegedly defending the community.

In an article entitled "Gennaro Likes Dinero" Queens Chronicle, September 13,2007, the same quotes constituents stating "that you talk out of both sides of your mouth" and when questioned, you defended accepting Kamali's donation by pointing out that every elected official in New York City takes contributions from developers. "Pricey Politicians" which appeared in the Times Ledger, September 8, 2007, disclosed that the single biggest donor to your campaign was the Kamali Organization. The Queens Courier September 27, 2007 article "St. John's Dorm has Neighbors Seeing Red" states that when you were asked about Kamali Developers' donations to your campaign you dismissively replied "we all have to raise campaign funds."

We understand that raising funds is important to all politicians, but you can not be an "ardent opponent to the dorm project and vigorously advocate for what is in the best interest of the community" and claim to be "working on changing the zoning laws so as to discourage dorm projects in residential communities" all the while accepting donations from the developers.

We personally feel that this is a conflict of interest. Why would the Kamali Organization, a Great Neck based firm, make campaign donations to a Queens politician, unless they were expecting favors in return?

Sincerely,

Maria and Louis Collier

Rockaway pissed at Bloomberg

Mayor Michael Bloomberg to skip Rockaway's St. Patrick's Day parade
BY BRENDAN BROSH
DAILY NEWS WRITER

Rockaway residents who are unhappy with Mayor Bloomberg won't get a chance to turn their backs to him at Friday's St. Patrick's Day parade.

Bloomberg, who has been a fixture in previous years, "sent regrets to the parade organizers" saying he could not make this year's festivities, according to his spokesman, John Gallagher.

Many locals have accused the mayor of ignoring their pleas for more money to expand the YMCA at the Arverne by the Sea development.

"The mayor has shown a lot of disrespect to the community," said Kevin Callaghan, one of dozens of residents who were planning to protest Bloomberg's appearance.

Some locals have been pushing to expand the $13 million project, which includes plans for a four-lane swimming pool and outdoor basketball court.

Local residents and lawmakers have been trying to raise an additional $5 million to enlarge the facility and build an eight-lane pool and indoor gym before the groundbreaking in late spring.

"I'm sorry we won't have the opportunity to turn our backs on the mayor," said Callaghan.

Gallagher did not offer a reason why Bloomberg wouldn't attend.

"We usually don't discuss scheduling matters," he said. In a written response, he added: "It's important to note that in this difficult budget climate, the administration has provided $1.5 million in funding for the Y."

The Rockaway parade, now in its 33rd year, bills itself as the second-largest St. Patrick's Day parade in the state and draws thousands of marchers and onlookers. The parade will begin at 1 p.m. on Beach 129th St. and end at 4 p.m. at Beach 92nd St.

Photo from About.com

Slim and silver in LIC

Does this excite or disgust you?

The teeny tiny 25X100sqft lot is going to host a 200FT, 14 story, mixed residential and commercial loft building.

The scoop on the Silver Sliver, aka Kimaya Lofts, LIC's first finger building

Crappy gives a thumbs down to "the finger".

Toby has an opponent this time

Last time State Senator Toby Stavisky ran for election, she ran unopposed. This time, local pharmacist Peter Koo will challenge her as a Republican. If you're unhappy with the Stavisky dynasty, take heed that she has an opponent this time. Here's her district map. His run is being given serious support by state GOP leaders including Senate Speaker Joe Bruno. Here are some of his qualifications:

- President and CEO of the Starside Pharmacy chain
- Chairman of Program Services for the Flushing Business Improvement District
- President of the Flushing Chinese Business Association
- Member of Community Board 7
- Member of the Queens General Hospital Community Advisory Board
- Trustee of the LaGuardia Community College Foundation, Flushing Lions and American Cancer Society.

Toby Stavisky's qualifications:
- was married to Sen. Leonard Stavisky

DOB's "increased enforcement tools"

From the NY Observer:

Patricia Lancaster, commissioner of the city’s Department of Buildings, is seeking to tighten the leash a bit on builders, pushing for new legislation for “increased enforcement tools” in coming weeks.

The department says it is increasing staff dedicated to inspecting sites and plans, increasing the cost of violating “stop work” orders, and beefing up inspections of sidewalk sheds.

Also of note, the department wants to put the architectural plans of new buildings online by 2009, allowing anyone and everyone to see what’s in store when a developer applies for a building permit.

City Wants Tougher Enforcement on Construction, Architectural Plans for All

Harassment via Craigslist

Miss Heather is being attacked by a seller because she dared to post this opinion piece about 37 North Henry Street back in September. Face it, clown, you're peddling one ugly, steaming pile of Fedders doo doo.

Castle owner sends photos

I am sending you these Pictures so you can have accurate photos of the property for you're web site.

Thanks.

Matthew M. Foglia

Before:




After: