People fed up with junk-filled property

From Cleanup Jamaica Queens:

In a relatively nice area off of Merrick Blvd (as can be seem by the above photo), sits some nice houses with yards, most of which are well taken care of, but directly near these homes not only sits the garbage strewn abandoned playground/vacant lot which I posted earlier, but another major eyesore, a vacant house at 108-50 171st Place owned by Bangladeshi slumlord Mahbubur Rahman (why am I not surprised). I point out this individual's ethnicity because more and more Bangladeshi slumlords have been causing many issues in Jamaica like this, while living in another community and allowing their property to fall apart and not give a shit who they rent to. Can you imaging them doing this in Forest Hills but yet they pull this shit in a predominately black community and they get away with this and our black leaders do shit.

Residents told me that the house has been vacant for about two months, but before that, was filled will possible squatters, while this slumlord did nothing, allowing the house to deteriorate. Over the years residents filed complaints about abandoned cars in the yard, illegal conversions, many families living in a house not set up for that. The owner was fined $2500 by DOB for illegal use of a residence with the cars in 2008. To this day that fined has not been paid. Before that the previous owner had complaints filed against him, but DOB did nothing in that matter.

Astoria landlord accused of tenant harassment

From the Queens Courier:

Some residents of one rent-stabilized Astoria apartment building say they are tired of having to fight for what should be their basic rights as tenants.

Sally Aponte has been living at 28-28 35th St. since 1995 and said she started having issues with the building’s landlord, Peter Hiotis of P & T Management CO LLC, when it came to getting repairs completed within her apartment.

At first, Aponte decided to verbally ask her landlord for help with regard to these repairs, such as fixing a kitchen stove or repairing broken bathroom tiles, but after receiving what she calls “patchwork repairs,” she decided to finally file a formal complaint to 311 in 2007.

“He tends to always blame the tenants whenever you ask for repairs and I think he uses that to discourage you to ask for repairs,” Aponte said.

During this time, an attorney for the landlord also sent Aponte a letter advising her that if she made any further complaints, Hiotis would have to pursue eviction because she was allegedly violating the “rent stabilization code.”

Aponte added that the stove was fixed because Hiotis was fined by the FDNY but the rest of the problems in her home remained ignored until an inspector from the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) went to the home.

The inspector found nine violations within the home, such as exposed and sparking electrical wiring, defective and broken plastered surfaces on walls and ceilings, and a defective smoke detector.

And although some of the repairs have since been completed, albeit improperly, Aponte is facing eviction.

According to court documents, Aponte is facing eviction because she is being accused of withholding rent, harassing other tenants, and defacing vehicles of her landlord and other tenants. However, Aponte says she has evidence proving all those accusations as false and believes the eviction comes as a form of retaliation for reporting past and present neglected repairs.

Bad zoning - is it a racial thing?

From a letter to the editor of the Times Ledger:

The New York City Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA) has a final say on land use issues throughout the five boroughs. They wield a lot of power over our communities. Too much power in my opinion. The BSA needs to be accountable to the taxpayers. The City Council should have the power to review BSA decisions and overturn those that harm our neighborhoods. Conditions adopted into BSA decisions have to be monitored by the Department of Buildings. From what I have seen, the DOB is highly ineffective.

In my neighborhood of Bayside Clear Spring, we have far too many auto related businesses that show no respect for their neighbors. Star Nissan parks more cars than permitted on their back lot. Despite repeated complaints, the Department of Buildings has failed to resolve the problem.

Helms Brothers built an extension of their building into the residential area through various loopholes, in coordination with the BSA and other city agencies. Did anyone in city government think of the residents?

The Getty gas station on Northern Boulevard near 204th Street neglected to renew their variance for years some time back. A letter was written to BSA about this by a civic association. The BSA’s executive director at the time wrote a letter to Getty giving them sixty days to renew or they would have to undergo the variance procedure all over again under the current zoning resolution. The sixty days passed without renewal. When Getty sought to renew, the BSA went back on their word and allowed Getty to get their variance renewal.

Why does my community have such an overabundance of auto related businesses? One does not see this degree of infiltration in adjacent areas. Does the city allow this because of the ethnicity of the people who live in my community? What else can one think but that African American neighborhoods are targeted for the least desirable businesses?

My people will not accept this treatment. We demand fairness and justice.

Mandingo Osceola Tshaka
Bayside

NYPD cracks down on Jamaica trucks

In response to community complaints regarding tractor trailers operating off the designated truck routes, the following enforcement has been conducted by our TRAFFIC SAFETY OFFICERS. This enforcement was conducted between the dates January 15th, 2015 to June 19th, 2015.

On behalf of the 103rd Precinct, I would like to thank you, the community members of South Jamaica, for working with us on this issue.

Off Truck Route Summons Locations

· 99 Ave = 81 Summonses Issued

· 170 St = 58 Summonses Issued

· 175 St = 7 Summonses Issued

· 179 St = 4 Summonses Issued

· Other locations = 12 Summonses Issued

· Total Off Truck Route Summonses issued = 162

Sincerely,

Detective Marc Costa
Community Affairs
103rd Precinct
New York City Police Department
168-02 91st Avenue, Jamaica, NY 11432

LPC has new procedure for reducing calendar backlog

From the Wall Street Journal:

Public hearings for each application are now to be held this fall, and final decisions on most of the historic properties are due by the end of next year.

“We have received considerable feedback regarding the backlog, and have formulated a plan that will ensure fairness and transparency, and allow significant public input,” Ms. Srinivasan said.

Many of the long-forgotten potential landmarks had continued to stir passions—by those who wanted them saved and others who didn’t—and the commission’s new backlog plan drew applause from both the real-estate industry and the preservation community.

“We will be there,” said Tara Kelly, executive director of the Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts, pressing for historic designation of a 19th- century wood-frame farm house at 412 E. 85th St.

The Real Estate Board of New York, an industry group that often has testified against what it has characterized as overbroad landmark proposals, said it welcomed the commission’s “efforts to provide greater clarity and increased transparency.”

After the initial uproar in December over the commission’s first backlog plan, Ms. Srinivasan delayed action. She set aside a three-month comment period, during which the commission received 200 comments. Most called for hearings on each landmark.

After the hearings, the commission plans to review the testimony given at the individual landmark hearings, draft designation reports and in most cases vote each item up or down.

A third option would be to issue a so-called no-action letter, removing an item from the commission’s calendar, but allow supporters to reapply in the future.