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Posted by chelsea on July 31, 2001 at 18:29:17:

In Reply to: My Scary Staircase posted by Minty on July 31, 2001 at 18:09:36:

Yeah that would be a building department matter. If it's bad enough, they might issue a violation. If the landlord doesn't fix it, the case would go to the Environmental Control Board, which can impose fines and order him to fix it. Which the landlord might just ignore, but you never know. What is the staircase made of? Wood? The building code requires that public staircases be made of noncombustible materials. Carpeting is illegal on staircases too, though the building department doesn't seem to enforce that one.

By the way, complaints are supposed to be kept anonymous, if you want it that way. The landlord might have just put two and two together, since you had talked with him about it.

Keep us posted! Lots of other tenants have scary staircases too and will want to know what happens.

: (three unit residential building, Williamsburg, Brooklyn)

: A while back I posted about my deteriorating staircase. This is a ramp-like set of stairs leading to the 3rd floor, in the hallway (they are not in the apartment). I am not an architect, so I don't know what kind of support they have underneath.

: Well, they haven't improved with age. Whenever I am carrying something heavy, they buckle, and I fear they will one day separate from the wall. I do not plan to renew my lease in a few months, but I do own both a stove and a sofa bad couch, both of which are very heavy. I would be sick if an accident happened...for instance, if a mover was carting the stove down each step with a handtruck, and the force caused the whole thing to collapse.

: I have called the management company several times about this, Their response is of course, "what's wrong with them?" When I explain, they reply, "but are they broken?" (So much for prevention.) I "offered" to have a city inspector visit, and this made the management guy nervous. He said HE would look at it. Well, this didn't even happen.

: I filed a complaint with the DOB, through the Central Complaint hotline, because I was told I had to file a complaint to get an inspector. Then, I made an appointment for a borough inspector, which is to happen next week. In the meantime, I suspect the Central Complaint people may have contacted my LL, since I received a message from my roommate that "two hostile Hasidim were looking for you today (Please no flames about this - as far as I'm concerned, my ex-Christian fundamentalist LL was just as hostile. It's a Williamsburg thing.)."

: Great.

: I'm really trying to do this by the book. I just want to know if I'm in any danger. Am I going about this in the right way?

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Comments:
: Yeah that would be a building department matter.  If it's bad enough, they might issue a violation.  If the landlord doesn't fix it, the case would go to the Environmental Control Board, which can impose fines and order him to fix it.  Which the landlord might just ignore, but you never know. What is the staircase made of?  Wood?  The building code requires that public staircases be made of noncombustible materials.  Carpeting is illegal on staircases too, though the building department doesn't seem to enforce that one.  

: By the way, complaints are supposed to be kept anonymous, if you want it that way.  The landlord might have just put two and two together, since you had talked with him about it.

: Keep us posted!  Lots of other tenants have scary staircases too and will want to know what happens. 


: : (three unit residential building, Williamsburg, Brooklyn)

: : A while back I posted about my deteriorating staircase. This is a ramp-like set of stairs leading to the 3rd floor, in the hallway (they are not in the apartment). I am not an architect, so I don't know what kind of support they have underneath.

: : Well, they haven't improved with age. Whenever I am carrying something heavy, they buckle, and I fear they will one day separate from the wall. I do not plan to renew my lease in a few months, but I do own both a stove and a sofa bad couch, both of which are very heavy. I would be sick if an accident happened...for instance, if a mover was carting the stove down each step with a handtruck, and the force caused the whole thing to collapse.

: : I have called the management company several times about this, Their response is of course, "what's wrong with them?" When I explain, they reply, "but are they broken?" (So much for prevention.) I "offered" to have a city inspector visit, and this made the management guy nervous. He said HE would look at it. Well, this didn't even happen.

: : I filed a complaint with the DOB, through the Central Complaint hotline, because I was told I had to file a complaint to get an inspector. Then, I made an appointment for a borough inspector, which is to happen next week. In the meantime, I suspect the Central Complaint people may have contacted my LL, since I received a message from my roommate that "two hostile Hasidim were looking for you today (Please no flames about this - as far as I'm concerned, my ex-Christian fundamentalist LL was just as hostile. It's a Williamsburg thing.)." 

: : Great.

: : I'm really trying to do this by the book. I just want to know if I'm in any danger. Am I going about this in the right way?


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