ADM. REVIEW DOCKET NO. DA 130220-RO
STATE OF NEW YORK
DIVISION OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY RENEWAL
OFFICE OF RENT ADMINISTRATION
GERTZ PLAZA
92-31 UNION HALL STREET
JAMAICA, NEW YORK 11433
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IN THE MATTER OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE : ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
APPEAL OF DOCKET NO.:
DA 130220-RO
:
DRO ORDER NO.:
BG-110018-B
KREISEL COMPANY, INC.
PETITIONER :
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ORDER AND OPINION DENYING PETITION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
On January 10, 1989, the above-named petitioner-owner filed
a Petition for Administrative Review PAR) against an order issued
on December 8, 1988 by the Rent Administrator at Gertz Plaza,
Jamaica, New York, concerning the housing accommodations known as
215-43 48th Avenue, Bayside, New York, wherein the Administrator
determined the tenants' complaint of a reduction of building-wide
services. An amended order was issued on November 20, 1990 to
include a tenant omitted from the prior orders; all other parts
of the order remained unchanged.
The Administrator's order granted rent reductions based on
the results of inspections conducted on March 8, 1988 and
September 16, 1988, which found that the owner had removed
certain washers and dryers from separate laundry rooms, that
metal nosings on stairways were bent, and that public access
sidewalks surrounding the buildings were uneven and cracked.
On appeal, the owner reiterates assertions below that there
was only one laundry room servicing these units on the base date
and that, therefore, there was no decease in services within the
meaning of the Rent Stabilization Law. The owner also concedes,
as below the allocation of three laundry rooms rather than one in
the early eighties, characterizing them as temporary, and
insufficient to create a required service.
The owner also argues that the conditions pertaining to the
stairway nosings, could best be described as de minimis, not
warranting a rent reduction. Photographs depicting the
stairwells are attached.
The applicable law is Section 2520.6(r) and 2523.4 of the
Rent Stabilization Code.
ADM. REVIEW DOCKET NO. DA 130220-RO
After careful consideration, the Commissioner is of the
opinion that the petition should be denied.
Section 2520.6(r) of the Rent Stabilization Code describes
required services as follows:
(r) Required services
(1) That space and those services
which the owner was maintaining or
was required to maintain on the
applicable base dates set forth
below, and any additional space
or services provided or required
to be provided thereafter by
applicable law. (Emphasis added)
While the owner describes the allocation of three laundry
rooms servicing the units as temporary, the owner failed to
provide information as to the length of time they were provided,
or to the circumstances surrounding their installation and
removal. The owner's failure to establish that the installations
were temporary, as alleged, despite adequate opportunity to do
so, mandates that the owner's bare characterization of the
facilities as temporary be rejected.
The owner's further argument that since there was only one
laundry room servicing these units, the allocation of three
laundry facilities "at some time after the base date, does not
create a required service" must similarly fail. Section
2520.6(r), cited above, specifically provides that services
initiated after the base date do become required services.
With regard to the owner's argument that rent reductions
predicated on the laundry room and sidewalk conditions were
improper because the conditions were rectified prior to the
issuance of the order, the Commissioner notes that the record
fails to reflect any notice from the owner to the Administrator
before the order was issued that services were restored or
conditions corrected. The Administrator's findings were,
therefore, proper based on the record presented.
The Commissioner also finds that the Administrator properly
determined that the bent stairways nosings condition warranted a
rent reduction. Stairway nosings not flush with the stairway
treads constitute a serious tripping hazard, and are not de
minimis.
The Commissioner also notes that an appeal is strictly
limited to a review of the record below. Therefore, the owner's
claim of repairs allegedly completed prior to the
Administrator's order and evidence submitted in support thereof,
may not be considered herein. However, the owner may apply for a
rent restoration predicated on a restoration of service, if not
already done.
Lastly, the Commissioner finds that the Administrator
properly amended the initial order (dated December 3, 1988) on
November 21, 1990 to include a tenant not previously served with
ADM. REVIEW DOCKET NO. DA 130220-RO
the order.
THEREFORE, in accordance with the provisions of the Rent
Stabilization Law and Code, it is
ORDERED, that the owner's petition be denied and that the
Administrator's order be affirmed.
ISSUED:
JOSEPH A. D'AGOSTA
Acting Deputy Commissioner
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