NYS Multiple Dwelling Law


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================================================================= NEW YORK STATE MULTIPLE DWELLING LAW Chapter 713 of the Laws of 1929, as amended ARTICLE 8 REQUIREMENTS AND REMEDIES Section 300. Permits. 301. Certificate of compliance or occupancy. 302. Unlawful occupation. 302a Abatement of rent in the case of serious violations. 302b Removal of violations by mortgagees. 302c Right of tenant to offset payments for heat failure; certain cases. 303. Enforcement. 304. Penalties for violations. 305. Violation of local laws and regulations. 306. Judicial procedure and orders. 307. Liens. 308. Notice of pendency of action. 309. Repairs, vacation and demolition of buildings. 309a Multiple dwelling; apartment prohibitions for certain employees. 310. Board of appeals. ================================================================= Sec. 300. Permits. 1. It shall be unlawful to commence the construction or alteration of a multiple dwelling or any part or section thereof, or of any building or structure on the same lot with such a dwelling, or the alteration or conversion of a building for use as a multiple dwelling, or the moving of a dwelling from one lot to another, until the issuance of a permit by the department upon compliance with all of the following requirements: a. The owner, or a registered architect or licensed professional engineer designated by the owner as his agent, shall file with the department, upon a form furnished by it, a detailed statement of the specifications for the construction, alteration, conversion or moving of such dwelling or structure and for its use and occupancy, together with as many complete copies of the plans of such work as may be required by the department. b. Such statement shall give the name and residence, by street and number, of the owner of such dwelling or structure. If such construction, alteration, conversion or moving is proposed to be done by any other person than the owner of the land in fee, such statement shall also contain the name and residence, by street and number, of every person interested in such land and dwelling, either as owner, as lessee or in any representative capacity. c. Such statement shall be verified by an affidavit of the person making it. Said affidavit shall allege that said specifications and plans are true and contain a correct description of such dwelling or structure, of the class and kind thereof, of its occupancy of the lot and of the proposed work. No architect or engineer shall be recognized as the agent of the owner unless he shall file with the department a written instrument, signed by the owner, designating him as such agent. Any false allegation in respect to a material point shall be deemed perjury. d. Such specifications, plans and statements shall be filed in the department, which shall cause them to be examined. If such plans and specifications conform to the provisions of this chapter, to the building code and regulations, and to all other applicable law, they shall be approved by the department, and a written certificate to that effect shall be issued to the person entitled thereto. 2. The construction, alteration, conversion or moving of such dwelling or structure or any section or part thereof shall be in accordance with such approved specifications, plans and statements. The department may approve changes in any plans, specifications and statements previously approved by it, provided that when so changed they are in conformity with law and with the provision of subdivision four. 3. Nothing contained in this section shall prevent the department from issuing a permit for the erection of the foundation or cellar walls of a dwelling, provided plans have been filed and approved in the department for the erection of such walls, but no construction above the first tier of beams shall be authorized under such permit. 4. Any permit or approval which may be issued by the department, but under which no work has been done above the foundation or cellar walls within two years from the time of the issuance of such permit or approval, shall expire. The department may reissue any permit or renew any approval that has so expired, but shall require, except as otherwise provided in subdivision one of section twenty-six, that the plans be made to conform with any amendments to any laws applicable thereto that may have been enacted after the approval of the original application. 5. Any permit or approval issued for plans filed prior to December fifteenth, nineteen hundred sixty-one, where such plans do not comply with the provisions of paragraph d of subdivision one of section twenty-six, shall expire on December fifteenth, nineteen hundred sixty-seven. 6. No room in a cellar or basement shall be occupied for living purposes unless the department shall issue a written permit for such occupancy after all the applicable provisions of law have been complied with. If such permit is refused or revoked, the reason for such action shall be stated by the department in writing and a copy of such statement shall be recorded by the department and be accessible to the public. In a tenement such permit shall be kept readily accessible in the main living room of the apartment containing such cellar or basement room. 7. The department shall have power to revoke or cancel any permit or approval in case of any failure to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter, or in case any false allegation or representation is made in any specifications, plans or statements submitted or filed for such permit or approval. 8. All specifications, plans, permits and statements filed in the department shall be public records and shall not be removed from the department. Sec. 301. Certificate of compliance or occupancy. 1. No multiple dwelling shall be occupied in whole or in part until the issuance of a certificate by the department that said dwelling conforms in all respects to the requirements of this chapter, to the building code and rules and to all other applicable law, except that no such certificate shall be required in the case of: a. Any class B multiple dwelling existing on April eighteenth, nineteen hundred twenty-nine, for which a certificate of occupancy was not required before such date and in which no changes or alterations have been made except in compliance with this chapter, and b. Any old-law tenement, or any class A multiple dwelling erected after April twelfth, nineteen hundred one, which was occupied for two years immediately before January first, nineteen hundred nine, and in which no changes or alterations have been made except in compliance with the tenement house law or this chapter, or wherein: (1) two or more apartments are combined creating larger residential units, and (2) the total legal number of families within the building is being decreased, and (3) the bulk of the buildings is not being increased These exceptions shall not be deemed to relieve any owner from the obligation to make every alteration required in any old-law tenement or other multiple dwelling in compliance with the applicable provisions of this chapter. 2. Except as above provided, no dwelling constructed as or altered or converted into a multiple dwelling after April eighteenth, nineteen hundred twenty-nine, shall be occupied in whole or in part until the issuance of a certificate of compliance or occupancy. 3. Such certificate shall be issued within ten days after written application therefor if the dwelling shall be entitled thereto. The department shall, on request of the owner or of his certified agent, issue a certificate of compliance or occupancy for any existing multiple dwelling not requiring such certificate, provided that, after an inspection by the department, no violations are found against such dwelling. 4. The head of the department may, on the request of the owner or his certified agent, issue a temporary certificate of compliance or occupancy for a multiple dwelling or a section or a part thereof for a period of ninety days or less, provided that such certificate shall bear the endorsement that the dwelling has been inspected by the department and complies with all the requirements of this chapter, and that such temporary occupancy will not jeopardize life, health or property. Such temporary certificate may be renewed at the discretion of the head of the department for similar periods but shall not extend, together with such renewals, beyond a total period of two years from the date of its original issuance. 5. A certificate, a record in the department, or a statement signed by the head of the department that a certificate has been issued, may be relied upon by every person who in good faith purchases a multiple dwelling or who in good faith lends money upon the security of a mortgage covering such a dwelling. Whenever any person has so relied upon such a certificate, no claim that such dwelling had not, prior to the issuance of such certificate, conformed in all respects to the provisions of this chapter shall be made against such person or against the interest of such person in a multiple dwelling to which such a certificate applies or concerning which such a statement has been issued. 6. Notwithstanding any general or local law to the contrary, a certificate issued for any multiple dwelling organized pursuant to the provisions of article nine-B of the real property law, shall be deemed issued for each dwelling unit contained within such multiple dwelling in full compliance with the requirements of this section. Sec. 302. Unlawful occupation. 1. a. If any dwelling or structure be occupied in whole or in part for human habitation in violation of section three hundred one, during such unlawful occupation any bond or note secured by a mortgage upon said dwelling or structure, or the lot upon which it stands, may be declared due at the option of the mortgagee. b. No rent shall be recovered by the owner of such premises for said period, and no action or special proceeding shall be maintained therefor, or for possession of said premises for nonpayment of such rent. c. During such period the department in charge of water supply shall not permit water to be furnished in any such dwelling or structure and said premises shall be deemed unfit for human habitation, and the department of health or the department charged with the enforcement of this chapter shall cause them to be vacated. 2. The department may cause to be vacated any dwelling or any part thereof which contains a nuisance as defined in section three hundred nine, or is occupied by more families or persons than permitted in this chapter, or is erected, altered or occupied contrary to law. Any such dwelling shall not again be occupied until it or its occupancy, as the case may be, has been made to conform to law. Sec. 302-a. Abatement of rent in the case of serious violations. 1. The provisions of this section shall apply to all cities with a population of four hundred thousand or more. 2. a. A "rent impairing" violation within the meaning of this section shall designate a condition in a multiple dwelling which, in the opinion of the department, constitutes, or if not promptly corrected, will constitute, a fire hazard or a serious threat to the life, health or safety of occupants thereof. b. The determination as to which violations are "rent impairing" shall be made in the following manner. Within six months after the enactment of this section, the department shall promulgate a list of conditions constituting violations of the provisions of this chapter and of any regulations promulgated pursuant to the provisions of subdivision four of section three of this chapter. Such list shall contain a brief description of the condition constituting the violation, the section of this chapter or regulation violated, and the order number assigned thereto. The department may from time to time change the number or description of violations on such list, as may seem appropriate to the department. Such list shall be available at all times to the public. c. At the time of the promulgation of the list of violations, the department shall also designate, by reference to the order number, those violations which it proposes to classify as rent impairing as above defined. Within thirty days thereafter, the department shall hold a public hearing at which all persons interested may be heard as to the propriety of the classification of such violations as rent impairing. At least twenty days' notice of such hearing shall be given by publication in the city record or other publication in which official notices of the city are regularly published. Within a reasonable time after the hearing, the department shall make and publish a list of those violations which are classified as rent impairing. Any person interested may, within four months thereafter, seek a review by the supreme court of the propriety of the classification of any of such violations as "Rent Impairing" by a special proceeding pursuant to article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules. No other body or officer shall have the power to review said classification. d. The department may at any time change the number or description of rent impairing violations but no such change shall be made except in the manner above set forth after notice and public hearing. 3. a. If (i) the official records of the department shall note that a rent impairing violation exists in respect to a multiple dwelling and that notice of such violation has been given by the department, by mail, to the owner last registered with the department and (ii) such note of the violation is not canceled or removed of record within six months after the date of such notice of such violation, then for the period that such violation remains uncorrected after the expiration of said six months, no rent shall be recovered by any owner for any premises in such multiple dwelling used by a resident thereof for human habitation in which the condition constituting such rent impairing violation exists, provided, however, that if the violation is one that requires approval of plans by the department for the corrective work and if plans for such corrective work shall have been duly filed within three months from the date of notice of such violation by the department to the owner last registered with the department, the six-months period aforementioned shall not begin to run until the date that plans for the corrective work are approved by the department; if plans are not filed within said three-months period or if so filed, they are disapproved and amendments are not duly filed within thirty days after the date of notification of the disapproval by the department to the person having filed the plans, the six-months period shall be computed as if no plans whatever had been filed under this proviso. If a condition constituting a rent impairing violation exists in the part of a multiple dwelling used in common by the residents or in the part under the control of the owner thereof, the violation shall be deemed to exist in the respective premises of each resident of the multiple dwelling. b. The provisions of subparagraph a shall not apply if (i) the condition referred to in the department's notice to the owner last registered with the department did not in fact exist, notwithstanding the notation thereof in the records of the department; (ii) the condition which is the subject of the violation has in fact been corrected, though the note thereof in the department has not been removed or canceled; (iii) the violation has been caused by the resident from whom rent is sought to be collected or by members of his family or by his guests or by another resident of the multiple dwelling or the members of the family of such other resident or by his guests, or (iv) the resident proceeded against for rent has refused entry to the owner for the purpose of correcting the condition giving rise to the violation. c. To raise a defense under subparagraph a in any action to recover rent or in any special proceeding for the recovery of possession because of non-payment of rent, the resident must affirmatively plead and prove the material facts under subparagraph a, and must also deposit with the clerk of the court in which the action or proceeding is pending at the time of filing of the resident's answer the amount of rent sought to be recovered in the action or upon which the proceeding to recover possession is based, to be held by the clerk of the court until final disposition of the action or proceeding at which time the rent deposited shall be paid to the owner, if the owner prevails, or be returned to the resident if the resident prevails. Such deposit of rent shall vitiate any right on the part of the owner to terminate the lease or rental agreement of the resident because of nonpayment of rent. d. If a resident voluntarily pays rent or an installment of rent when he would be privileged to withhold the same under subparagraph a, he shall not thereafter have any claim or cause of action to recover back the rent or installment of rent so paid. A voluntary payment within the meaning hereof shall mean payment other than one made pursuant to a judgment in an action or special proceeding. e. If upon the trial of any action to recover rent or any special proceeding for the recovery of possession because of non-payment of rent it shall appear that the resident has raised a defense under this section in bad faith, or has caused the violation or has refused entry to the owner for the purpose of correcting the condition giving rise to the violation, the court, in its discretion, may impose upon the resident the reasonable costs of the owner, including counsel fees, in maintaining the action or proceeding not to exceed one hundred dollars. Sec. 302-b. Removal of violations by mortgagees. 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, where a receiver has been appointed in foreclosure proceedings instituted by a mortgagee with respect to any multiple dwelling, such mortgagee may advance to such receiver funds necessary for the operation of such multiple dwelling and for the making of repairs therein necessary to remove conditions constituting violations of this chapter. Such receiver shall, to the extent possible, repay any and all such advances from income received by him with respect to the property and, if such income is insufficient to permit complete repayment of such advances, any amounts which cannot be so repaid, with interest, shall be added to the amount of the lien of such mortgagee upon entry of a foreclosure judgment, provided, however, that such amounts shall not be the basis for any additional personal liability on the part of the mortgagor. 2. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, a mortgagee advancing funds to a receiver pursuant to subdivision one of this section shall be liable only for gross and willful negligence with respect to any repair made at his direction and with funds so advanced. Sec. 302-c. Right of tenant to offset payments for heat failure; certain cases. 1. Any tenant acting alone or together with other tenants of a multiple dwelling employing an oil fired heating device for which the owner is responsible and wherein there exists a lack of heat due to the owner's failure to have oil supplied to the premises, may contract and pay for the delivery of such oil in accordance with the provisions of this section. Any payment so made shall be deductible from rent providing the following provisions have been substantially complied with by the tenant or someone acting on his behalf: a. Reasonable efforts were made to contact the owner or his agent to inform the owner of such failure to supply oil. b. Reasonable efforts were made to have the normal fuel supplier to the premises deliver the requested fuel. c. Delivery of fuel oil to the premises was secured from a fuel supplier regularly engaged in such business at a price within the range of prices listed by the department in the index provided for in subdivision three of this section. d. The fuel supplier from whom oil is secured provided a written statement containing the following: (1) The name of the person or persons who requested the delivery; and (2) The date, time of and premises to which delivery was made; and (3) The amount, grade and price of the oil delivered; and (4) A certification that the usable fuel supply before the delivery was exhausted; and (5) The charge, if any, for refiring the burner; and (6) The amounts and from whom any payments were received. e. A tenant shall not be required to comply with the provisions of paragraph a or b hereof unless the owner has continuously kept posted in a conspicuous place at the premises a notice containing his name, address and telephone number or that of his agent and the name, address and telephone number of the fuel supplier to the premises. f. For purposes of this section, a multiple dwelling shall be considered to lack heat if, during the months between October first and May thirty-first, while its usable fuel supply was exhausted, the outdoor temperature fell below fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit at any time during the hours between six o'clock in the morning and ten o'clock in the evening. 2. The deduction from rent allowed by this section shall also include a reasonable charge, if any, made by the supplier for refiring the oil burner at the premises. 3. The department charged with the enforcement of laws, ordinances and regulations in relation to multiple dwellings shall: a. Maintain and, to the extent practicable, update at least bi-weekly an index reflecting the range of prices of fuel oil according to grade and quantity paid per gallon on deliveries within the jurisdiction of the department during the last two week period for which statistics are available; and b. Maintain and keep current and available a list of suppliers which have agreed to make deliveries of fuel oil in the circumstances, and to render such assistance as is otherwise required hereby to enable tenants to obtain the benefits, contemplated by this section. 4. The payment for fuel oil at a price within the range of prices permitted by paragraph c of subdivision one of this section shall be conclusively presumed to have been a reasonable price. 5. The introduction into evidence in any action or proceeding of any statement rendered in compliance with the provisions of paragraph d of subdivision one of this section shall be presumptive of the facts stated therein. Sufficient foundation for the allowance into evidence of such statement shall consist of the oral testimony of any person named as a payer of all or part of the amount indicated thereon relating the facts and circumstances in which the statement was rendered. 6. Any tenant who has in good faith secured and paid for fuel oil otherwise in conformance with the provisions of this section and against whom an action or proceeding to recover possession of the premises for nonpayment of rent or any other action or proceeding attributable at least in part to the tenant seeking or taking a deduction from rent as allowed by this section shall, in addition to any other amounts, be entitled to recover reasonable costs and attorney's fees against an owner bringing such action or proceeding. 7. No owner or agent shall be entitled to recover any amounts in damages from any fuel oil supplier who attempts in good faith and acts reasonably to carry out the intendment of this section except damages arising out of gross negligence. 8. The remedy provided in this section shall not be exclusive and a court may provide such other relief as may be just and proper in the circumstances. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit or deny any existing constitutional, statutory, administrative or common law right of a tenant to contract and pay for the delivery of fuel oil for the multiple dwelling in which he resides or to pay for the cost of any other goods and services for such multiple dwelling. This section shall not be construed to preclude any defense, counterclaim or cause of action asserted by a tenant that may otherwise exist with respect to an owner's failure to provide heat or any other service. 9. Any agreement by a tenant of a dwelling waiving or modifying his rights as set forth in this section shall be void as contrary to public policy. 10. The provisions of this section shall be liberally construed so as to give effect to the purposes set forth herein. *11. Nothing contained in this section and no payment made pursuant to this section shall be deemed to discharge the liability of a renter with an interest in real property pursuant to subdivision two of section three hundred four of the real property tax law from taxes levied on such interest. * NB (Effective pending ruling by Commissioner of Internal Revenue) Sec. 303. Enforcement. 1. Except as herein otherwise provided, the provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by the department charged with the enforcement of laws, ordinances and regulations in relation to multiple dwellings. 1-a. For the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this chapter, the department shall have the power to subpoena witnesses, administer oaths and take testimony, compel the production of books, papers, records and documents and to hold public or private hearings, subject to the right of any person who shall appear hereunder to be represented by counsel of his own choosing, at any such hearing. The department may designate one or more of its members, officers or employees to exercise any one or more of such powers. 2. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to abrogate or impair the powers of any department or of the courts to enforce the provisions of any local law, ordinance, rule, regulation or charter not inconsistent with this chapter, or to prevent violations or punish violators thereof. Sec. 304. Penalties for violations. 1. Except as otherwise in this section specifically provided, every person who shall violate or assist in the violation of any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable, for a first offense, by a fine of not exceeding five hundred dollars or by imprisonment for a period of not exceeding thirty days, or by both such fine and imprisonment; for the second and any subsequent offense arising from the failure to remove the violation upon which the first offense was based, by a fine of not exceeding one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for a period of not exceeding six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment. 1-a. Every person who shall violate or assist in the violation of any provision of sections twenty-nine, thirty-seven, sixty- two, eighty eighty-one, eighty-three or three hundred twenty- five of this chapter shall be guilty of an offense. The maximum fine for a first violation of any provision of such sections hereinbefore in this subdivision set forth, with respect to a particular dwelling, shall be fifty dollars; the maximum fine for the second offense arising from the failure to remove the violation upon which the first offense was based shall be two hundred fifty dollars; the maximum fine for the third or any subsequent offense arising from the failure to remove the violation upon which the first and second offenses were based shall be five hundred dollars. Such a violation under this subdivision shall not be a crime and the penalty or punishment imposed therefor shall not be deemed for any purpose a penal or criminal penalty or punishment, and shall not impose any disability upon or affect or impair the credibility as a witness, or otherwise, of any person convicted thereof. 2. Any person who, having been served with a notice or order to remove any nuisance or violation, shall fail to comply therewith within five days after such service, or shall continue to violate any provision or requirement of this chapter in the respect named in such notice or order, shall also be subject to a civil penalty of two hundred fifty dollars. Such persons shall also be liable for all costs, expenses and disbursements incurred by any such department or its agent or contractor in the removal of any such nuisance or violation. 3. In case the notice required by section three hundred twenty- five is not filed, or the owner of a dwelling does not reside within the state or cannot after diligent effort be served with process therein, the existence of a nuisance or of any other violation of this chapter or of an order or a notice made by the department, shall subject the dwelling and lot to a penalty of two hundred fifty dollars. 4. An action may be brought in any court of competent civil jurisdiction for the recovery of any such penalties, costs and disbursements. 5. All penalties collected shall be paid into the treasury of the city, but no provision of this chapter shall prohibit the city from creating and maintaining out of such penalties a separate fund not in excess of twenty-five thousand dollars, out of which payment may be made for repairs made by any department charged with the enforcement of this chapter or its agents or contractors, as provided in section three hundred nine. 6. No civil or criminal liability or penalty shall attach to any person who has acquired or shall acquire any tenement or converted dwelling by foreclosure of a mortgage or deed in lieu of foreclosure of a mortgage, because of his failure for a period of six months after the delivery of the referee's deed in foreclosure or the delivery of such deed in lieu of foreclosure, to comply with the provisions of this chapter in reference to such tenement or converted dwelling, provided he remains the owner thereof. Upon the transfer of title by such person prior to the termination of the said six months, and in any event upon the termination of such period, such penalties shall apply as provided in this section. 6-a. No civil or criminal liability or penalty shall attach to any person who has, by an order of a court, been appointed as a receiver in a foreclosure action to collect rents, because of his failure for a period of six (6) months after he qualifies as such receiver, to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter. Upon the receiver's discharge by the court prior to the termination of such period, and in any event upon the termination of such period, the penalties provided in this section shall thereafter apply. 6-b. No civil or criminal liability or penalty shall attach to any person who shall by operation of law become an owner of a multiple dwelling then or thereafter certified and declared a public nuisance to any extent pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of section three hundred nine of this chapter, or the holder or beneficial owner of stock in such owner, if a corporation, because of his failure to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter for a period of six months after he acquires ownership of said multiple dwelling or the stock or beneficial interest in the stock of a corporation which is the owner. 7. None of the civil or criminal penalties provided in this section shall apply to any person because of his failure to comply with the provisions of section two hundred thirty- three, subdivision four of section two hundred thirty-eight, subdivision three of section two hundred forty or subdivisions two and three of section two hundred fifty in reference to any old-law tenement, if he agrees in writing with the department to comply with such provisions or to vacate or demolish such tenement, within a period not exceeding six months fixed by the department. Such agreement shall be in form satisfactory to the department, and shall contain provisions to secure the performance thereof and such other terms as may be mutually agreed upon. The transfer of title or control by such person, or the termination of such period by limitation, shall subject the person then directly or indirectly in control of such tenement to the penalties prescribed by this section, if violations of such provisions then exist. 8. Whenever a multiple dwelling shall have been declared a public nuisance to any extent pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of section three hundred nine of this chapter and such declaration shall have been filed as therein provided, all officers, directors and persons having an interest, as holder or beneficial owner thereof, in more than ten per cent of the issued and outstanding stock of any corporation, other than a banking organization as defined in section two of the banking law, a national banking association, a federal savings and loan association, The Mortgage Facilities Corporation, Savings Banks Life Insurance Fund, The Savings Banks Retirement System, an authorized insurer as defined in section one hundred seven of the insurance law, or a trust company or other corporation organized under the laws of this state all the capital stock of which is owned by at least twenty savings banks or a subsidiary corporation all of the capital stock of which is owned by such trust company or other corporation, then in operation and control of such multiple dwelling, shall, in addition to all other liabilities and penalties provided in this chapter and elsewhere, be jointly and severally liable for all injury to person or property thereafter sustained by any tenant of such multiple dwelling or any other person by reason of the condition constituting such public nuisance and for all costs and disbursements including attorneys' fees of any suit brought by such tenant or other person. 9. No civil or criminal liability or penalty shall attach to any person by reason of his ownership or beneficial ownership of stock in a corporation owning a multiple dwelling declared to be a public nuisance pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of section three hundred nine of this chapter because of his failure to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter, whose interest in such corporation is less than twenty-five per cent of the issued and outstanding stock thereof, as owner or beneficial owner thereof, and who has sustained the burden of proving that he has not participated directly or indirectly in the management, operation or control of such multiple dwelling. 10. No criminal liability or penalty shall attach to any person by reason of his ownership or beneficial ownership of stock in a corporation owning a multiple dwelling declared to be a public nuisance pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of section three hundred nine of this chapter because of his failure to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter unless and until he has had a reasonable period of time to comply following his having become an owner as defined in this chapter. 11. The term "person" as used in this section shall include the owner, mortgagee or vendee in possession, assignee of rents, receiver, executor, trustee, lessee, agent or any other person, firm or corporation directly or indirectly in control of a dwelling or part thereof. Whenever a multiple dwelling shall have been declared a public nuisance to any extent pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of section three hundred nine of this chapter and such declaration shall have been filed as therein provided, the term "person" shall be deemed to include, in addition to those mentioned hereinabove, all the officers, directors and persons having an interest in more than ten percent of the issued and outstanding stock of the owner as herein defined, as holder or beneficial owner thereof, if such person be a corporation other than a banking organization as defined in section two of the banking law, a national banking association, a federal savings and loan association, The Mortgage Facilities Corporation, Savings Banks Life Insurance Fund, The Savings Banks Retirement System, an authorized insurer as defined in section one hundred seven of the insurance law, or a trust company or other corporation organized under the laws of this state all the capital stock of which is owned by at least twenty savings banks or a subsidiary corporation all of the capital stock of which is owned by such trust company or other corporation. Sec. 305. Violation of local laws and regulations. Any owner, architect, builder, contractor, sub-contractor, construction superintendent or their agents who shall, in the construction or alteration of any building or structure intended to be occupied as a multiple dwelling, knowingly violate any of the provisions of local laws, ordinances, rules or regulations shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. Sec. 306. Judicial procedure and orders. 1. In case any multiple dwelling or structure or any part thereof or the lot on which it is situated is constructed, altered, converted or maintained in violation of any provision of this chapter or of any order or notice of the department, or in case a nuisance exists in any such dwelling or structure or part thereof or upon the lot on which it is situated, the department may institute any appropriate action or proceeding to prevent such unlawful construction, alteration, conversion or maintenance, to restrain, correct or abate such violation or nuisance, to prevent the occupation of said dwelling or structure or any part thereof, or to prevent any illegal act, conduct or business in or about such dwelling, structure or lot. 2. In any such action or proceeding the department may, by affidavit setting forth the facts, apply to the supreme court, or to any justice thereof, or, if the premises in respect to which the action is brought are situated in the city of New York, to the New York city civil court, for: a. An order granting the relief for which said action or proceeding is brought, or enjoining all persons from doing or permitting to be done any work in or about such dwelling, structure or lot or any part thereof, or from occupying or using the same for any purpose, until the entry of final judgment or order. b. An order authorizing the department to execute and carry out the provisions of any notice or order which is issued by the department and not complied with, to remove any violation specified in such notice or order, or to abate any nuisance in or about such dwelling, structure or lot. 3. In an action to establish a lien under this chapter, the service and procedure, except as otherwise provided in section three hundred nine, shall be as set forth in sections three hundred twenty-six and three hundred fifty- six to three hundred sixty, both inclusive. 4. The judgment in any such action may provide for the sale at public auction of the property affected, and for such other remedies to secure the enforcement thereof as the court may deem proper. 5. The court or any justice thereof is authorized to make any order specified in this section. 6. In no case shall the city, or the department or any officer or employee thereof, be liable for costs in any action or proceeding that may be commenced pursuant to this chapter. Sec. 307. Liens. Every fine imposed by judgment under section three hundred four upon an owner shall be a lien upon the premises in relation to which the fine is imposed from the time of the filing of a certified copy of said judgment in the office of the clerk of the county in which such premises are situated, subject only to taxes, assessments and water rates and to such mortgage and mechanics' liens as may exist thereon prior to such filing; and it shall be the duty of the department upon the entry of said judgment to file such certified copy forthwith, and such copy shall be forthwith indexed by such clerk in the index of mechanics' liens. Sec. 308. Notice of pendency of action. 1. In any action or proceeding instituted by the department the plaintiff or petitioner may file in the county clerk's office of the county where the premises affected by such action or proceeding are situated, a notice of the pendency of such action or proceeding. Such notice may be filed at any time after the service of any notice or order issued by the department, at the time of the commencement of the action or proceeding, or at any time afterwards, before final judgment or order. 2. Each county clerk with whom such a notice is filed shall record and index it to the name of each person specified in a direction subscribed by the corporation counsel or other legal officer of the city. 3. Any such notice may be vacated upon the order of a judge or justice of the court in which such action or proceeding was instituted or is pending, or upon the consent in writing of the corporation counsel or other legal officer of the city. The clerk of the county where such notice is filed shall mark such notice and any record or docket thereof as canceled of record upon the presentation and filing of such consent or of a certified copy of such order. Sec. 309. Repairs, vacation and demolition of buildings. 1. a. The term "nuisance" shall be held to embrace public nuisance as known at common law or in equity jurisprudence. Whatever is dangerous to human life or detrimental to health, and whatever dwelling is overcrowded with occupants or is not provided with adequate ingress and egress or is not sufficiently supported, ventilated, sewered, drained, cleaned, or lighted in reference to its intended or actual use, and whatever renders the air or human food or drink unwholesome, are also severally, in contemplation of this law, nuisances. All such nuisances are unlawful. b. Whenever the department shall certify that any multiple dwelling, or any part of its premises, or the plumbing, sewerage, drainage, lighting or ventilation thereof, is in a condition or in effect dangerous to life or health, the department may, after giving notice to the owner and an opportunity to be heard at a hearing held for such purpose declare the same, to the extent it may specify, a public nuisance. Such declaration shall be filed as provided by section three hundred twenty-eight of this chapter, if applicable, or as a public record in the department. The officers of a corporation upon which notice of such hearing has been served other than a banking organization as defined in section two of the banking law, a national banking association, a federal savings and loan association, The Mortgage Facilities Corporation, Savings Banks Life Insurance Fund, The Savings Banks Retirement System, an authorized insurer as defined in section one hundred seven of the insurance law, or a trust company or other corporation organized under the laws of this state all the capital stock of which is owned by at least twenty savings banks or a subsidiary corporation all of the capital stock of which is owned by such trust company or other corporation, shall serve similar notice on all stockholders of record of the corporation and other persons known to be stockholders or beneficial owners of the stock of the corporation. A stockholder upon whom such notice has been served shall serve similar notice upon any persons holding a beneficial interest in his stock. c. The department may order or cause such nuisance to be removed, abated, suspended, purified, altered, repaired or otherwise improved as the order shall specify. d. The department may order or cause any multiple dwelling or any part of its premises, or any excavation, structure, sewer, plumbing, pipe, passage, matter or thing in or about such premises to be purified, cleansed, disinfected, removed, altered, repaired or improved. e. Whenever the department shall certify that a nuisance exists in a multiple dwelling, or any part of its premises, which constitutes a serious fire hazard or is a serious threat to life, health or safety, the department may issue a written order to the owner directing the removal or remedying of such nuisance in the manner and within the time specified in such order which shall be not less than twenty-one days after the service thereof on the owner in the manner specified in subdivision one of section three hundred twenty-six of this chapter except that if the department shall determine that the condition is such that a delay of twenty-one days in remedying or removing the same may cause irreparable harm to the building or constitutes an imminent danger to its occupants, or the occupants of adjoining property or the general public, then the time specified for such remedy or removal may be less than twenty-one days. f. If any order of the department is not complied with or not so far complied with as the department may regard as reasonable, within the time therein designated, then such order may be executed by the department, its agents or contractors, or, as an alternative, if the multiple dwelling involved shall have been declared to be a public nuisance pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of section three hundred nine of this chapter and such declaration shall have been filed as therein provided, the department or a receiver appointed pursuant to subdivision five of this section or any tenant of such multiple dwelling may institute and maintain an action in the supreme court in the county where the multiple dwelling is located, or in the housing part of the New York city civil court, if the multiple dwelling is located in the city of New York, against any owner or owners to whom the order was issued pursuant to paragraph e of subdivision one of this section for an order compelling such owner of owners to comply with the department's order and, if such action be brought by such receiver or tenant, for payment of the costs and disbursements of the action including legal fees. Except as owners may have otherwise agreed, any owner who removes or remedies the nuisance in compliance with an order of the department or court shall de entitled to recover a proportionate share of the total expense of such compliance from all other owners to whom the department's order was issued or to whom such owner sent a copy of the department's order within thirty days of receipt of same by registered mail. g. The department may in its discretion let out contracts for the repairs to be done pursuant to this section in accordance with the provisions of local laws, ordinances, rules and regulations of the city applicable to the letting of contracts for public works. 2. a. An "untenanted hazard" is a multiple dwelling or any part thereof, or any structure on the same premises with a multiple dwelling, which has been untenanted for a period of sixty days or more and either is not guarded continuously by a resident caretaker or has any exterior openings which are not sealed in a manner approved by the department and is a fire hazard or in a condition dangerous or detrimental to human life, health or morals. b. Whenever an officer of the department shall certify that any multiple dwelling or part thereof is an untenanted hazard, the department shall so notify the owner by attaching a notice in a conspicuous place on the premises to such effect, and sending by registered mail a copy of such notice to such owner, at the address or addresses registered with the department, or, if no address is registered with the department and such owner cannot with due diligence be served personally, by sending a copy of such notice by registered mail to the last known address of such owner. The department shall also send a copy of such notice by registered mail to every owner of record of a mortgage upon such premises, at the address of such owner appearing in the record of such mortgage in the office in which mortgages are registered in the county in which such premises are located or, if no address appear therein, by sending such notice by registered mail to the person at whose request such instrument was recorded. c. Such notice shall contain a description of the dwelling, and a statement of the particulars in which the dwelling is deemed to be an untenanted hazard, and the order that the dwelling or part thereof be demolished. Such notice and order shall require the person thus served to certify within ten days thereafter to the department his assent or refusal to demolish the same. d. If such demolition is not commenced within twenty-one days after the mailing and posting of such notice and order, such department shall then serve all such aforementioned persons further notice to the effect that on a certain day it will apply to the special term of the supreme court for the hearing of motions for the county in which such premises are located, or to the housing part of the New York city civil court, if the premises are located in the city of New York, for an order declaring such untenanted hazard to exist and directing the demolition of such premises or part thereof. e. Such court shall, if it finds the statements in the notice to be true, direct that, if within five days after the order is entered it is not complied with, the department may proceed with the execution of such order through contractors in accordance with the provisions of local laws, ordinances, rules and regulations of the city applicable to the letting of contracts for public works, or through its own officers, agents or employees. f. The expenses and disbursements incurred by the department in carrying out such orders shall be met from any appropriation for such purpose or, to the extent that no such appropriation has been made or that any such appropriation is insufficient, from the proceeds of the sale of obligations pursuant to the local finance law. 3. Whenever the department has incurred any expense for which payment is due under the provisions of this section, the department may institute and maintain a suit against the owner of the dwelling in respect to which such expense shall have been incurred and may recover the amount of such expense as in this section provided. In any case where expenditures made or obligations incurred by a receiver appointed pursuant to subdivision five of this section in remedying a nuisance are not paid or reimbursed from the rents and income of the dwelling or where the receivership expenses, fees and commissions are not paid or reimbursed from the rents and income of the dwelling, the receiver may institute and maintain a suit against the owner of the dwelling to recover such deficiency. 4. a. The department or a receiver appointed pursuant to subdivision five of this section shall have a lien, for the expenses necessarily incurred in the execution of an order, upon the premises upon or in respect of which the work required by said order has been done or expenses incurred, which lien shall have priority over all other mortgages, liens and encumbrances of record, except taxes and assessments levied pursuant to law. In the event that a receiver having a lien, in favor of the department of real estate, is discharged and such lien is in effect at the time of such discharge, such lien shall continue to vest in the department of real estate. b. No such lien shall be valid for any purpose until the department or receiver, as the case may be, shall file where notices of mechanics' liens are required to be filed, a notice containing the same particulars as required to be stated with reference to mechanics' liens, with the further statement that the expense has been incurred in pursuance of the order of the department, and giving the date of the order, or in performance by the receiver of the work required to remedy a condition pursuant to an order of the court establishing the receivership and giving the date of the order, or that a deficiency has accrued with respect to the receivership established pursuant to an order of the court and giving the date of the order, as the case may be. Such notice shall be filed at any time during the progress of the work required by such order or undertaken by the receiver, or within four months after the completion of the contract, or the final performance of the work or the final furnishing of the materials, dating from the last item of work performed or materials furnished or, in the case of a deficiency, at any time before the discharge of the receiver. c. The officer with whom such notice is filed shall make the same entry on the book or index in which mechanics' liens are entered as he is required to enter in cases of mechanics' liens, together with a reference to such order by date; and thereafter such lien shall, except as herein otherwise provided, have the same effect in all respects as to all persons as a mechanics' lien; and all proceedings with reference to such lien, its enforcement and discharge, shall be carried on in the same manner as similar proceedings with reference to other mechanics' liens. d. Unless, within six months after actual notice of such filing, proceedings are taken by the party against whom or whose premises a lien is claimed, to discharge such lien, the filing shall, as to all persons having such actual notice, become conclusive evidence that the amount claimed in the notice of lien, with interest, is due, and is a just lien upon the premises. e. Such lien shall continue to be a lien for a period of one year from the time of its filing unless proceedings are in the meantime taken to enforce or discharge it, which may be done at any time during its continuance. In case proceedings are so taken, the lien shall remain in effect until the final termination of such proceedings; and if such proceedings shall result in a judgment for the amount claimed or any portion thereof, such judgment shall, to such extent, be a lien in the same manner and from the same time as the original lien. 5. a. If the department shall desire that a receiver be appointed as hereinafter provided to remove or remedy a nuisance described in paragraph e of subdivision one of this section and that such receiver shall obtain a lien for cost incurred in connection therewith in favor of the department of real estate, which shall have the priority with respect to existing mortgages or liens provided in paragraph e of this subdivision, it shall within five days after the service of the order upon the owner serve a copy of such order upon every mortgagee and lienor of record personally or by registered mail, return receipt requested, at the address set forth in the recorded mortgage or lien. Appended to the copy of such order shall be a notice addressed to such mortgagee and lienor stating that in the event the nuisance is not removed or remedied in the manner and within the time specified in the order, the department may apply to the supreme court, or to the housing part of the New York city civil court, if the premises are located in the city of New York, for an order to show cause why a receiver of the rents, issues and profits of the property shall not be appointed with rights therein superior to those of such owner, mortgagee or lienor. b. The department shall file a copy of such notice and order in the office of the county clerk in which mechanics liens affecting the property would be filed. c. 1. The department may thereafter apply to the supreme court in the county where the property is situated, or to the housing part of the civil court of the city of New York, if the property is situated in the city of New York, by verified petition for an order directing the owner and any mortgagees or lienors of record to show cause why the commissioner or chief executive of the bureau or department of real estate of the municipality should not be appointed receiver of the rents, issues and profits of the property and why said receiver should not remove or remedy such condition and obtain a lien in favor of the department of real estate against the property having the priority provided in paragraph e of this subdivision to secure repayment of the costs incurred by the receiver in removing or remedying such condition. Such application shall contain (a) proof by affidavit that an order of the department has been issued and served on the owner, mortgagees and lienors in accordance with and within the periods specified in paragraph e of subdivision one of this section and paragraph a of this subdivision and filed in accordance with the provisions of paragraph b of this subdivision; (b) a statement that a nuisance which constitutes a serious fire hazard or is a serious threat to life, health, or safety continued to exist in said property after the time fixed for the removal thereof in the department order and a description of the property and conditions constituting such nuisance; (c) a brief description of the nature of the work required to remove or remedy the condition and an estimate as to the cost thereof. Such order to show cause shall be returnable not less than five days after service is completed and shall provide for personal service of a copy thereof and the papers on which it is based on the owners and mortgagees of record and lienors. If any such owner, mortgagee or lienor cannot with due diligence be served personally within the city where the property is located and within the time fixed in such order, then service may be made on such persons by posting a copy thereof in a conspicuous place on the premises where the nuisance exists, and by sending a copy thereof by registered mail, return receipt requested, to the owner at the last address registered by him with the department, or in the absence of such registration, to the address set forth in the last recorded deed with respect to said premises, or, in the case of a mortgagee or lienor, to the address set forth in the recorded mortgage or lien and by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where such premises are located, which newspaper, if there is an official law paper for such county, shall be such official law paper. Service shall be deemed complete on filing proof of service thereof in the office of the clerk of the court in which such application is made. 2. If the condition constituting the nuisance is such that unless immediately cured irreparable damage may be caused to the building or it constitutes an imminent danger to its occupants, or the occupants of adjoining properties then the order to show cause may be returnable in the discretion of the court in less than five days, and in such case, service may be made on the owner, mortgagee and lienor by posting a copy thereof in a conspicuous place on the premises where the nuisance exists and by mailing a copy in the case of the owner to the address filed with the department and in the case of the mortgagee and lienor to the address recorded. If a receiver be appointed as hereinafter provided, and service shall not have been made in accordance with subparagraph one, then his appointment shall be temporary only and expire not more than thirty days thereafter unless, prior to the expiration of such thirty days, the department shall serve notice on the owner, mortgagees and lienors in the manner provided for in subparagraph one hereof of intention to apply to the court at a date fixed in such notice and not less than five days after the service of such notice, for an extension of said receivership. In such event the period of the appointment of the temporary receiver shall be deemed to be extended for a further period of fifteen days. In addition to the requirements set forth in subparagraph one, such notice shall also contain a statement of any expenditures made or obligations incurred by the receiver during the period of his temporary appointment. On the date fixed in such notice, the court shall determine whether or not to extend the period of receivership and such determination shall be made as if the application were an original one for the appointment of a receiver, pursuant to subparagraph one. 3. On the return of said order to show cause, determination shall have precedence over every other business of the court unless the court shall find that some other pending proceeding, having a similar statutory precedence, shall have priority. If the court shall find that the facts stated in such application warrant the granting thereof, then the commissioner or chief executive of the bureau or department of real estate of the municipality shall be appointed receiver of the rents, issues and profits of the property. However after determination of the issue if the owner or any mortgagee or lienor or other person having an interest in the property shall apply to the court to be permitted to remove or remedy the conditions constituting the nuisance and shall (1) demonstrate the ability promptly to undertake the work required; and (2) post security for the performance thereof within the time, and in the amount and manner, deemed necessary by the court, then the court may in lieu of appointing such receiver issue an order permitting such person to perform the work within a time fixed by the court. If at the time fixed in the order the conditions constituting the nuisance have not been satisfactorily remedied or removed, then the court shall appoint such receiver. If after the granting of an order permitting a person to perform the work but before the time fixed by the court for the completion thereof it shall appear to the department that the person permitted to do the same is not proceeding with due diligence, then the department may apply to the court on notice to those persons who have appeared in the proceeding for a hearing to determine whether such receiver shall be appointed immediately. On the failure of any such owner, mortgagee, lienor or other person having an interest in the property to complete the work in accordance with the provisions of said order, the department, or any such receiver thereafter appointed shall be reimbursed for costs incurred by him in removing or remedying the condition and other charges herein provided for out of such security. d. 1. Any receiver appointed pursuant to this subdivision shall have all of the powers and duties of a receiver appointed in an action to foreclose a mortgage on real property, together with such additional powers and duties as herein granted and imposed. The receiver shall with all reasonable speed remedy the nuisance and remove all the delinquent matters and deficiencies in the dwelling including those constituting a fire hazard or a threat to life, health or safety and may, in addition to ordinary repairs, maintenance and replacement, make other improvements to effect a rehabilitation of the property, in such fashion as is consistent with maintaining safe and habitable conditions over the remaining useful life of the dwelling. He shall have the power to let contracts therefor or incur expenses in accordance with the provisions of local laws, ordinances, rules and regulations applicable to contracts for public works except that advertisement shall not be required for each such contract. Notwithstanding any such laws, ordinances, rules or regulations, the receiver may let contracts or incur expenses for individual items of repairs, improvements or supplies without the procurement of competitive bids where the total amount of any such individual item does not exceed twenty-five hundred dollars. The receiver shall not be required to file any bond. He shall collect the accrued and accruing rents, issues and profits of the dwelling and apply the same to the cost of removing or remedying such nuisance, to the making of such other improvements as aforestated, to the payment of expenses reasonably necessary to the proper operation and management of the property, including insurance and the fees of the managing agent, and the necessary expenses of his office as receiver, the repayment of all monies advanced to the receiver by the department of real estate to cover the costs incurred by the receiver and interest thereon; and then, if there be a surplus, to unpaid taxes, assessments, water rents, sewer rents and penalties and interest thereon, and then to sums due to mortgagees or lienors. If the income of the property shall be insufficient to cover the cost of remedying or removing such nuisance, or to making of such other improvements as aforestated, or of the expenses reasonably necessary to the proper operation and management of the property and other necessary expenses of the receiver, the department of real estate shall advance to the receiver any sums required to cover such cost and expenses and thereupon shall have a lien against the property having the priority provided in paragraph e for any such sums so advanced with interest thereon. 2. Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to relieve the owner of any civil or criminal liability incurred or any duty imposed by this chapter by reason of acts or omissions of the owner prior to the appointment of any receiver hereunder, nor shall anything contained herein be construed to suspend during the receivership any obligation of the owner for the payment of taxes or other operating and maintenance expenses of the dwelling nor of the owner or any other person for the payment of mortgages or liens. 3. The receiver shall be entitled to the same fees, commissions and necessary expenses as receivers in actions to foreclose mortgages. Such fees and commissions shall be paid into the fund created pursuant to subdivision nine of this section. The receiver shall be liable only in his official capacity for injury to person and property by reason of conditions of the premises in a case where an owner would have been liable; he shall not have any liability in his personal capacity. The personnel and facilities of the bureau or department of real estate and the corporation counsel shall be availed of by the receiver for the purpose of carrying out his duties as such receiver and the cost of such services shall be deemed a necessary expense of the receiver. 4. The receiver shall be discharged upon rendering a full and complete accounting to the court when such condition has been removed and the cost thereof and all other costs authorized by this paragraph have been paid or reimbursed from the rents and income of the dwelling and the surplus money, if any, has been paid over to the owner or the mortgagee or lienor as the court may direct. However, at any time, the receiver may be discharged upon filing his account as receiver without affecting the right of the department of real estate to its lien. Upon the removal of such condition, the owner, the mortgagee or any lienor may apply for the discharge of the receiver upon payment to the receiver of all moneys expended by the receiver for removal of such condition and all other costs authorized by this paragraph which have not been paid or reimbursed from the rents and income of the dwelling. 5. Anything herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding, a temporary receiver appointed on the return of an order to show cause served only in accordance with subparagraph two of paragraph c of this subdivision shall not, without express order of the court, make any repairs or improvements to the property or incur any expenses in the operation thereof during the period of his temporary appointment except such as may be necessary to remedy or remove the immediate condition which called for his appointment and to the ordinary operation and maintenance of the property. For such specific purpose the receiver shall be entitled to let such contracts and undertake such expenses as may be necessary to accomplish the specific results without advertisements and without procuring competitive bids. e. Any lien of a receiver, in favor of the department of real estate, arising under this section shall have priority over all other mortgages, liens and encumbrances of record except taxes and assessments levied pursuant to law. f. Failure to serve a copy of the order and notice required in the manner specified by paragraph e of subdivision one and paragraph a of this subdivision, or failure to serve any mortgagee or lienor with a copy of the order to show cause as required by subparagraph one of paragraph c of this subdivision shall not affect the validity of the proceeding or the appointment of a receiver, but the rights of the department of real estate or of the receiver shall not in such event be superior in any way to the rights of any mortgagee or lienor who shall not have been served as provided herein. g. Any mortgagee or lienor who at his expense remedies or removes the nuisance to the satisfaction of the court pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph three of paragraph c of this subdivision shall have and be entitled to enforce a lien equivalent to the lien granted to the receiver in favor of the department of real estate hereunder. Any mortgagee or lienor who, following the appointment of a receiver by the court, shall reimburse the receiver and the department of real estate for all costs and charges as hereinabove provided shall be entitled to an assignment of the lien granted to the receiver in favor of the department of real estate. 6. When the department shall have executed any order so far as it may require, the department shall file among its records such order and an affidavit stating with fairness and accuracy in general terms the items of expense and the date of execution of such order. When it shall appear that such execution, or the expenses thereof, related to several premises belonging to different persons, such affidavit shall state what part belongs to or arose in respect to each of the premises as the department may direct. The department may revise the correctness of such apportionment of expenses as truth and justice may require. 7. a. Whenever the department shall sue for the expenses involved in the execution of any order, it may join in the same suit any claim for any penalty for the violation of any provisions of this chapter. Joint or several judgments may be had against one or more of the defendants in the suit, as they or any of them may be liable in respect of all or any of such claims. The expenses of executing such an order, and any judgment in any abatement suit provided for in this chapter, and the several judgments that may be recovered for any such penalties and expenses, until the same are paid or discharged shall be a lien like other judgments, and also a lien and charge upon rent and compensation due or then maturing from any tenant or occupant of the dwelling and premises or parts thereof to which any such order or judgment relates, or in respect of which any such expenses were incurred. b. The department may serve a copy of an order or a transcript of a judgment and any affidavit showing the expense of execution upon any person who owes or is about to owe any rent or compensation for the occupancy of any premises to which such order or judgment relates, and in respect of which such expenses were incurred. The department may, at any time after such service, demand in writing that such rent or compensation to the extent of such claim shall, when such rent or compensation becomes due and payable, be paid to the department and such person shall thereupon become obligated to pay the same. A receipt shall be given for each such payment stating on account of what order or judgment and expenses it has been received. The amount so received shall be deposited wherever other funds of the department are kept. If a special fund has been created and maintained, as provided in section three hundred four, such payments shall be deposited to the credit of such fund. c. Any person refusing or omitting to make such a payment after such service and demand may be sued therefor by the department. Such person shall not in such suit dispute the authority of the department to incur or order such expenses or the validity or correctness of such expenses or judgment in any particular, or the right of the department to have the same paid from such rent or compensation. The receipt of the department for any sum so paid shall, in all suits and proceedings and for every purpose, be as effectual in favor of any person holding the same as actual payment of the amount thereof to the owner or other person or persons who would, but for the provisions of this section and of such demand, have been entitled to receive the sum so paid. No tenant or occupant of any premises shall be dispossessed or disturbed, nor shall any lease or contract or rights be forfeited or impaired, nor any forfeiture or liability be incurred, by reason of any omission to pay to any owner, contractor or other person any sum so paid to the department. 8. The department shall retain any money so paid until twelve days after it has received evidence by satisfactory affidavit that the party or parties, or his or their agent, who but for the provisions hereof would have been entitled to receive the same, has had written notice of such payment being made, which notice shall be served in the manner provided by this chapter for the service of an order. If at the end of such twelve days the party or parties so notified have not instituted suit to recover such money the department shall pay it to the fiscal officer of the city. If a special fund has been created and maintained as provided in section three hundred four, the fiscal officer shall deposit such money to the credit of such fund. 9. The expenses incurred by the receiver in removing or remedying a condition pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be met from a fund to be known as the multiple dwelling section three hundred nine operating fund. Such fund shall consist of such amounts as may be appropriated by the board of estimate or other analogous appropriating body of the city. Such fund shall be maintained in a separate account by the department of real estate and expenditures therefrom may be made by the receiver to meet the costs of removing or remedying such conditions, subject to audit by the comptroller or chief fiscal officer of the city. The receiver shall repay the amounts so expended to such fund from the proceeds of any amounts recovered pursuant to the provisions of this section. In the event that the amount in such fund is insufficient for such purposes and if no appropriation or an insufficient appropriation has been made therefor, the expenses incurred by the receiver in removing or remedying such conditions may be met from the proceeds of the sale of bonds issued in accordance with the provisions of the local finance law. In the event that the amounts from time to time in such fund exceed two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000), such excess may be applied to the payment of the principal and interest due upon any bonds issued pursuant to this subdivision, or, if no such bonds are outstanding, any such excess may be transferred to the general fund of the city. 10. Reference in this section to a bureau or department of real estate or to a commissioner or chief executive of a bureau or department of real estate of a municipality, when used in connection with or affecting either a receiver or a multiple dwelling in the city of New York, shall be construed to mean the department or commissioner of housing preservation and development or the department or commissioner of buildings, or both such departments or commissioners, as the case may be, of the city of New York. 11. a. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, where a repair has been made by the department pursuant to this section, or any other law, to abate a hazardous condition or correct any violation of this chapter, or any other state or local law, which arises from the existence of lead based paint, the department may, in whole or in part, waive its right to a lien on the affected premises and repayment of such expenses and disbursements as were necessary to abate such hazardous conditions or correct such violation of law. The department shall promulgate rules setting forth the standards for such waivers. b. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, where there is a hazardous condition or violation of this chapter or other state or local law which arises from the existence of lead based paint, the department may make grants or loans to owners for the expenses, in whole or in part, of abating such hazardous condition or correcting such violation of law. The department shall promulgate rules setting forth the standards for such grants or loans. Sec. 309-a. Multiple dwelling; apartment prohibitions for certain employees. 1. No janitor, superintendent, manager, custodian, or the like, of a multiple dwelling shall be permitted to reside in an apartment unit in the multiple dwelling in which he is employed if the rental of such apartment unit to a tenant is prohibited by any general, special, or local law. 2. An owner, agent or operator of a multiple dwelling may apply to the department for a waiver of the provisions of this section on the ground that there is a bona fide unavailability of a suitable apartment unit for occupation by any of the above mentioned employees. Upon a determination that such unavailability does exist, the department may grant an exemption from the application of the provisions of subdivision one of this section upon such terms and conditions as it shall deem appropriate. 3. For the purposes of this section, the term "multiple dwelling" shall mean a building in which there is either rented, leased, let or hired out to be occupied, or is occupied as the residence or home of three of more families living independently of each other. Sec. 310. Board of appeals. 1. As used in this section "board" shall mean the agency of a city constituted as a board and authorized by law both to grant variances of the zoning resolution and to make rules supplemental to laws regulating construction, maintenance, use and area of buildings; provided, however, that where, in a city to which this chapter applies, there is no board as so described, then a board may be created by local law or ordinance to possess the powers, perform the functions and grant the variances as hereinafter in this section provided; and any board so created shall be deemed to be a "board" within the meaning of such term as hereinbefore in this subdivision described. 2. Where the compliance with the strict letter of this chapter causes any practical difficulties or any unnecessary hardships the board shall have the power, on satisfactory proof at a public hearing, provided the spirit and intent of this chapter are maintained and public health, safety and welfare preserved and substantial justice done, to vary or modify any provision or requirement of this chapter, or of any rule, regulation, supplementary regulation, ruling or order of the department with respect to the provisions of this chapter, as follows: a. For multiple dwellings and buildings existing on July first, nineteen hundred forty-eight, in cities with a population of one million or more, and for multiple dwellings and buildings existing on November first, nineteen hundred forty-nine, in cities with a population of five hundred thousand or more but less than one million, provisions relating to: (1) Height and bulk; (2) Required open spaces; (3) Minimum dimensions of yards or courts; (4) Means of egress; (5) Basements and cellars in tenements and converted dwellings. The population restrictions contained in this paragraph shall not apply to any multiple dwelling otherwise entitled to the variances herein pursuant to the provisions of subdivision seven of section fifty-six of this chapter. b. For multiple dwellings and buildings erected or to be erected or altered after July first, nineteen hundred forty-eight pursuant to plans filed prior to December fifteenth, nineteen hundred sixty-one, provisions relating to: (1) Required open spaces; or (2) Minimum dimensions of yards or courts. c. For multiple dwellings and buildings erected or to be erected or altered pursuant to plans filed on or after December fifteenth, nineteen hundred sixty-one, or before such date provided such plans comply with the provisions of paragraph d of subdivision one of section twenty-six, provisions relating to: (1) Height and bulk; (2) Required open spaces; or (3) Minimum dimensions of yards and courts. Variations or modifications may be granted pursuant to Paragraphs b and c only on condition that open areas for light and air are provided which are at least equivalent in area to those required by the applicable provisions of this chapter and pursuant to sub- paragraph one of paragraph c only on the further conditions that there are unique physical or topographical features, peculiar to and inherent in the particular premises, including irregularity, narrowness or shallowness of the lot size or shape and such variance would be permitted under any provision applicable thereto of the local zoning ordinance. d. In the city of Buffalo, until July first, nineteen hundred and sixty-four for frame multiple dwellings, existing on November first, nineteen hundred forty- nine, and for buildings on the same lot existing on such date or altered after such date, applicable provisions relating to sections nine, eleven, fifty- six, two hundred sixty-four and article six. e. In the city of Buffalo, until July first, nineteen hundred and sixty-four for dwellings three stories or less in height converted prior to November first, nineteen hundred forty-nine, applicable provisions of section one hundred eighty-five provided that (1) where such dwelling is occupied by three families, all the provisions of article six must be complied with and the cellar stairs enclosed with fire retarded materials with a one hour fire door; (2) where such dwelling is occupied by more than three families and there are two independent means of egress accessible on each story to each apartment, the cellar stairs must be enclosed with fire retarded materials with a one hour fire door and there must be automatic sprinklers in the public halls and stairways; (3) where such dwelling is occupied by more than three families and there are not two independent means of egress accessible from each story to each apartment, the cellar stairs must be enclosed with fire retarded materials with a one hour fire door, there must be automatic sprinklers in the public halls and stairways and there must be two independent means of egress accessible to each apartment on the third story. f. The variance authorized by paragraphs d or e of this subdivision may be granted only upon the prior approval of the fire, health and building departments of such city and certification by the heads of such departments that the variance sought is not against the public interest. g. The board may, as a condition of granting the variance authorized by paragraphs d or e of this subdivision, impose such additional requirements of health and safety as it may deem necessary or advisable for the proper protection of the occupants of the dwelling. *h. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the city of Buffalo may grant variances regarding subdivision twenty-five of section four and subdivision five of section one hundred one of this chapter only where such variances comply with the minimum standards set forth in the New York state building construction code which is applicable to multiple dwellings, and have been approved by the state division of housing and community renewal. * NB Expires 84/01/01 3. An application for such a variance or modification may be made by any person aggrieved or by the head of any public agency, within such time and under such procedure, conditions and rules as may be prescribed by the board. The board shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of an application and shall require that due notice be given of the time and place of such hearing to the applicant and to the department. Any person or a duly authorized representative of any public agency may appear at any such hearing and be heard on any such application. 4. In every case the board shall state the reason or reasons for its decision. All decisions of the board shall be subject to review in the same manner as is provided by law for review of decisions of such board respecting variances of the zoning resolution. 5. A record of all decisions of the board, indexed according to the section or sections of this chapter affected thereby, shall be kept in the office of the board. Such record shall be open to public inspection at all times during business hours. 6. The board shall have power to charge and collect reasonable fees and to make rules governing such charges. All moneys so collected shall be deposited in the general fund of the city. ================================================================= =================================================================

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