Greenpoint
Lorven Pharmacy
Culture on the Cheap
Greenpoint Restaurant Watch: 946 Manhattan Avenue
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
Remember that most curious conversion I told you about last month? You know, the space that was formerly a bookstore but whose Certificate of Occupancy stated it was a funeral parlor? Well today the sign finally went up. And I have some very good news on the “culinary diversity” front!
Your eyes are not deceiving you. This eating and drinking establishment will be serving fare previously unavailable in my corner of Greenpoint.
Per the really friendly guys who erected the sign “La Taverna” will be serving “Mediterranean food”. When I queried them as to whether it would be Greek, Turkish, etc. they confessed that they did not know. Nonetheless I told them this was most welcome news because our community has too many Thai restaurants already. As you can see in the above photograph, they found this piquant observation quite amusing.
La Taverna
946 Manhattan Avenue
Brooklyn, New York 11222
I got no word as to when this establishment will be opening its doors. However, I took a quick peek inside and the interior appears to be very close to completion. The tables, chairs, light fixtures— you name it— were all in place and the only thing I could see lacking were the customers. In other words I am going to prognosticate that La Taverna will be gracing the Garden Spot sooner rather than later!
Miss Heather
North Greenpoint Photos Du Jour: Bodega Daze
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
The following photographs may not necessarily depict bodegas per se but they do represent the way north Greenpoint has changed, for better or worse.
R.I.P at Eagle and Franklin Street.
Renovated, empanadaed and in demand down the block.
This was my bodega of choice when I lived on Clay Street.
This is not a bodega. However, Acapulco Deli & Restaurant resides next to the S & A Deli and is one of the most underrated diners in the Garden Spot. What’s more, now they’re sporting a fancy new awning!
Greenpoint Furniture formerly (and possibly currently)Â known as “DONE DEAL$”.
I was never too big on this one (too much emphasis on meat) but the “presentation” is nice. Good place to buy soda, though.
Such is the life nowadays in north Greenpoint. Of all the people depicted in the above photograph who do you most identify with? More importantly, does it even matter?
We’re all in this together for better or worse, Greenpointers. Best to direct our angst or get a collective chuckle out of people who write stuff like this:
I have to say that all of the places in Brooklyn and Manhattan that I considered moving to, I did not consider Greenpoint at first. Then I saw the posting for the 305 McGuinness Lofts in early February. I am a huge sucker for apartment porn, as I call it, and the new condo-turned-rental developments are great for that. This was a Craigslist listing for a brand new triplex: 3 BRs, 2 BAs, brand new appliances, loft like ceilings, on-site parking and a gym. Shane and I quickly agreed: Yep, going to see that. Per the broker, Baris, these had just hit the market and so far they had curious locals coming to see the building.*
So we went on a cloudy Sunday. Getting off of the G train at the Greenpoint Ave stop and seeing the Starbucks warmed the cockles of my heart. We had a lot of time so we went to see the open house that was posted on Craigslist for 110 Green St. The road itself was desolate but on the right-hand side there was this huge building. It had no sign (later discovered it had been called the Viridian, and was very famous for having Magic Johnson as an investor, and even more famous for going bankrupt last month) and it was very clearly still under construction. We checked out the model apartment, which was extraordinarily tiny. They were, and still are, charging $2,900 for a 2 BR and $3,600 for a 3 BR, so I was curious to check them out. There were many potential tenants and only 1 sales rep. He took us to see the area where there supposedly will be a huge, olympic sized swimming pool (suuuuuure), and then this enormous atrium, which was supposed to have had a fountain, but then explained that the original plans had already been downgraded to now include a simple lounge area instead. At that point, we ran out of time, so we left unimpressed, thinking they needed a reality check. With those prices and 138 new units to rent, each with limited space, it seems to be a daunting task, indeed.
After that disappointment, we headed off to 305 McGuinness Lofts. McGuinness Blvd, for those who don’t know (and I didn’t) is a very noisy, busy road with traffic gunning to and from Brooklyn and Queens via the Pulaski bridge. The apartment building was under heavy construction (and still is), with wires dangling and walls unfinished. We were shown the triplexes and duplexes. The triplexes were cool: 1200+ sq feet in each, with 2 entrances, 2 bedrooms & 1 bathroom on the bottom floor, kitchen with huge windows and decent living/dining space on the 2nd floor and then the third floor mezzanine with another room that will (one day, in theory) have sliding glass doors overlooking the living/dining area, and another bathroom. W/D comes with every unit, as does central air, lovely new appliances and huge windows. I wasn’t crazy about the bedrooms, which were small, and the limited amount of closet space in each, but overall, it was a nice place for a relatively decent price.
But nice floors, beautiful appliances, kitchen, huge windows and only $3,000 with a free month thrown in. Add in on-site parking and the gym? Awesome! Duplexes with 2 bedrooms plus an area for an office space, had a nicer view but the 2nd floor/mezzanine had a ridiculously low ceiling, barely clearing Shane’s head, and they only had 1 bathroom. Additionally, the mezzanine/2nd bedroom shared a huge window with the master suite, and the two rooms were not completely shutoff from each other due to that window, so we figured, if we lived here, it’d be the triplex…
Yes, this was ostensibly written by a “real person”. While gloating over the “lovely new appliances” and “huge windows” our wannabe/soon-to-be neighbor didn’t notice the rather fragrant and enormous waste treatment plant one block away.
Real estate shill or simply clueless?
I’ll let you make the call. A triplex overlooking the Shit Tits, anyone?
Miss Heather
*This is true. We stare in dumbfounded amazement at this edifice wondering why some dumbass, a bankrolled one at that, would build such a turd on McGuinness Boulevard. Daily. It is a constant source of amusement.
P.S.: The 184 Eagle Street post is a HOOT:
When we were first heading over to Greenpoint to check out 305 McGuinness I also put in a call to check out the listing for a luxury 2 BR, 2 BA with mezzanine place (pics above), complete with on-site parking. Was told by the real estate agent that it was for 184 Eagle Street but that tenants were in the place so I couldn’t see it that day (Sunday). Weekdays weren’t good for me so I passed.
Then a few weeks back Brownstoner picked up on a story posted by New York Shitty about 184 Eagle St doing hostel duty on the side. Apparently a tipster found the Craigslist posting. So…while they wait for a real rental, they’re making money by renting out the place on a weekly basis where you can get either a bunk bed ($28 per night) or a private room ($78 per night). Um, ew?
Um, welcome to my reality lady. I have seen a number of my neighbors— renters all— “displaced” by development. It happens like this: a developer purchases 1,2,3 lots in a row— usually because the landholder cannot afford the real estate taxes— and the tenants are forced to vacate. And in the place of their former homes are erected testaments to gentrification such as 110 Green Street, 184 Eagle Street and 305 McGuinness. Their target demographic: people like you.
But the locations are deemed “too crude” by people like you (greed and easy credit makes developers do silly things) so they have to find more creative ways to meet their loan debt like skipping over the whole Certificate of Occupancy thing.
Or employing a dead condo (“nondo”) as an illegal hostel/hotel. Thus generating what is my opinion one of the most hilarious complaints I have ever seen on the Department of Buildings web site.
Who says gentrification/displacement can’t be funny?
Notes From The 94th Precinct Community Council Meeting
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
It was packed at last night’s Community Council meeting. If I had to guesstimate I’d say there were at least 100 people present. Many of whom were residents and/or business owners from Franklin Street, along with a camera woman from Channel 12, a community liaison from Joseph Lentol’s office and a “representative” from the Production Lounge.
Although a cake congratulating Officer Fulton for his promotion to Deputy Inspector was in the offering, all eyes, ears, minds and most importantly mouths were intent on discussing last weekend’s incident at the Production Lounge And I’ll tell you: all the people present (save perhaps two) be they old timers, newbies, 30-somethings with children or simply concerned citizens were very, very angry. What I found most interesting was that although the gun play at the Production Lounge (and how the police handled it) was the subject of the entire meeting, it was in reality a proxy for a number of quality of life issues which have been festering in Greenpoint for some time. These included but were not limited to:
- The proliferation of bars on Franklin Street.
- The increase in noise and disorderly activity which has come as a result of the previous.
- Dissatisfaction with the 94th Precinct’s response to complaints.
- Club Exit.
- Allegations that 311 is fudging the number of complaints being called in.
Disturbing allegations that the ownership of The Production Lounge did not care about the nuisance it was posing to its neighbors (and in fact encouraged it) also arose. As did some incidences which would be best described as harassment or outright intimidation. But enough preliminaries. Follows is my footage from the meeting. Draw your own conclusions.
Part I
Part II
Part III
I’ll be adding more footage from this meeting as YouTube (and my sheer will power) sees fit.* In the meantime those of you who have been affected negatively by The Production Lounge (or any other watering hole in Greenpoint or north Brooklyn in general) can and should contact the following:
State Assemblyman Joseph Lentol
619 Lorimer Street
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 383 – 7474
lentolj (at) assembly (dot) state (dot) ny (dot) ny (dot) us
Councilman David Yassky (When this was suggested at the meeting a number of people shouted in unison “He’s useless!” But who knows?)
114 Court Street
Brooklyn, New York 11201
(718) 875 – 5200
yassky (at) council (dot) nyc (dot) ny (dot) us
My good friend over at Neighborhood Threat has already pointed that out all noise complaints should be tendered to 311. Take down the complaint number(s) and hand them over to our local Community Board via email…
Community Board 1
435 Graham Avenue
Brooklyn , New York, 11211
(718) 389 – 0009
Fax: (718) 389 – 0098
Email: bk01 (at) cb (dot) nyc (dot) gov
And last, but hardly least, you can also file a complaint to the New York State Liquor Authority. Here’s a snippet of their online complaint form.
Given what I heard from last night’s meeting I suspect complaint boxes two and six will be very useful. It might also strike some as interesting that The Production Lounge has neither a Place of Assembly permit nor Certificate of Occupancy. In other words, they have no right to have people (much less those brandishing firearms) in 113 Franklin Street in the first place. Don’t believe me? Go to the Department of Buildings web site and see for yourself.**
Miss Heather
*You can watch the final two installments by clicking here.
**Oh yeah: it should come as no surprise to my fellow Greenpointers that the Production Lounges has no cabaret license either. Sound familiar, anyone?
P.S.: There’s much more piquant commentary about last night’s proceedings to be found on Yelp.
And Then There Were Two
Filed under: Williamsburg
Illegal rooftop terraces, that is. After running errands today a most interesting email was awaiting me when I got home. M writes:
This is one of the owner(s — Andrea Drozd — Ed. Note) of studio B, I used to live one block from “the Delanceyâ€, seems that this is a habit of hers. And the sound proofing never happened.
She sure likes that those rooftops!
Curious to see what “M” was talking about I checked out links she sent me.
And sure enough, Ms. Drozd is mentioned as one of the owners of Juliette. In fact, they have an entire photo set dedicated to their rooftop terrace which— just like its cousin up here in Greenpoint— is neither mentioned in their Certificate of Occupancy nor their Place of Assembly. Both of the previous cover the first floor only.
No wonder she got so disgusted at last week’s Public Safety Committee meeting and complained about how long the city takes to issue permits and conduct inspections; she got away with an illegal rooftop terrace in Williamsburg, why shouldn’t she get away with it here Greenpoint? Permits and waiting are for little people.
I wonder if Ken Fisher offers a bulk discount for his “services”? More importantly, he should be giving me some kind of commission for finding and/or posting this stuff. Seriously.
Miss Heather
Studio B Photo Credit: Neighborhood Threat
Notes From The Public Safety Committee (NSFW)
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
I was present at last night’s Public Safety Committee meeting at Community Board 1. What’s more, I even presented some material (with hilarious results, as you will see). But since I have been sick with some kind of stomach bug and consequently spent most of yesterday convalescing*/preparing for this event, I will keep it as short and sweet as possible.
The meeting convened at 6:45 p.m. and the chairman, Mieszko Kalita, noted the astonishing number of people present. A few were journos (I spied a reporter for the Brooklyn Paper), a few more were upset (and rightfully so) about hazardous conditions for pedestrians on Vandervoort near Beadel Street, but most were there for the main event: Studio B’s cabaret license hearing.
Studio B’s talking head/legal counsel, Ken Fisher presented a letter written by Susan Kowal, a neighbor of said establishment. It outlined seven points to alleviate the public nuisance issues pertaining to their business. They were as follows:
- The issue of soundproofing, namely the rooftop garden.
- Permanent signage admonishing patrons to be considerate of their neighbors.
- The installation of double doors on the first floor as an extra sound-proofing measure.
- A supervised smoking pen to be installed and enforced in front of said establishment.
- Studio B will do regular trash sweeps of of Calyer and Banker Street.
- A security force (provided by Studio B) will be put in place to deter patrons from loitering on adjacent properties.
- Enclosed garbage containers will be put in place in lieu of garbage bags.
In a very welcome act of good faith Studio B acquiesced to points number 1-6. Their representative, Ken Fisher, stated that they were barred by law in regards point number 7 (make note of this, it becomes relevant later). Mr. Fisher also noted that Studio B has ceased using the rooftop garden as of July 23, 2008. A number of people (myself included) pointed out that the reason this came to pass is because the Mayor’s Office for Special Enforcement closed it down. On July 23rd. Undeterred, Mr. Fisher emphasized that Studio B is awaiting inspections from the Fire Department and Department of Buildings regarding the premises.
Dennis Fulton, the new(ish) precinct captain of the 94th Precinct was not only present, but had a few things to say as well. First he noted that Ms. Kowal’s letter was very well written and applauded Studio B’s efforts to make concessions to their neighbors. Then he made note that Studio B had no significant uptick in complaints lodged for the last two months. This was disputed by neighbors of Studio B present who stated they were discouraged by 311 employees from filing a complaint where there was already one extant (for any particular evening). Mr. Fulton was (understandably) befuddled by this revelation and assured everyone present they were more than welcome to contact the precinct directly at (718) 383-3879. This was very welcome news.
Captain Fulton had a few questions for Studio B. They were as follows:
- The smoking pen and its parameters. Chairman Kalita pointed out as long as it only extended three feet from the building, it was perfectly legal.
- Upon hearing from Mr. Fisher there would be no live performances or dancing on the second floor, Mr. Fulton asked if there were speakers (to play music) on the second floor. Mr. Fisher answered in the affirmative— but said they would be willing to stop playing music at 10:00 or 11:00 p.m. It was made known by several people present that Studio B often doesn’t start events until 10:00 p.m.
And of course, the “owner” spoke. One of them, anyway.
She too mentioned the above-listed seven points and said they even invited neighbors to a barbecue on their rooftop garden to discuss issues. Caryn Rose noted this meeting came to pass on their illegally built, yet-to-be-legally-sanctioned rooftop garden. The owner had no rebuttal to this. Said owner also waxed sanguinely about how long it takes for the city to approve building permits, certificates of occupancies and such. To wit it was suggested by several people present, quite vocally, that Studio B should wait like everyone else. Once again, the owner had no answer.
Pro: Studio B had a few people on hand to attest to the validity of their institution. The first, a chap with a clearly visible trace of a black eye, attested that he lived behind Studio B and had never heard anything. He made it a point to question the verity of statements lodged by his neighbors attesting that there was indeed, a noise problem. He was told by the Mr. Kalita that he was there to state his case, not ask questions. This same chap later professed to speak on the behalf of several people in his building but failed to provide names. When asked about the woman who sat next to him, he said it was his girlfriend and she lived with him. Go figure.
Another woman said she liked going there. A late-coming gent stated that Studio B’s presence provided jobs/income to the community. Given that there are MAYBE 2-3 late night delis and everything else closes at 11:00 p.m.— at the latest— I and a number of other people found his argument to be rather tenuous at best.
Con: The usual suspects… and others. After applauding the measures Studio B seemed to be willing to take regarding noise and garbage, it was pretty much the same complaints I have heard before. All of which were (and are) very legitimate:
- Why should Studio B be awarded a cabaret license when they have broken the law repeatedly?
- They’re operating as if they have a cabaret license already thus said hearing was a farce.
- Studio B was having an event that very evening at 8:00 p.m.
Then came forth the others:
- Dewey Thompson, a member of Community Board 1 (but not a member of the Public Safety Committee) noted that securing a cabaret license was a privilege, not a right. And given Studio B’s abysmal track record he was against them being awarded a cabaret license.
- Me. But I will leave that for last. When asked by Chairman Kalita if he had anything in the way of a rebuttal regarding what I presented, Mr. Fisher said he would wait until the end of the hearing.
- After some discussion about the Vandervoort traffic situation, Mr. Kalita asked if anyone else had anything to say about Studio B. Someone did: an architect who consults businesses as to the zoning regulations and legal requirements needed to set up businesses. His specialty was eating and drinking establishments. First, he noted that the second floor had no legal certificate of occupancy. With a fussing baby in one hand and a rather thick Department of Buildings memo in another he then pointed out to Ken Fisher that Public Assembly permits and a Fire Protection Plan are required of businesses whose size exceeds seven floors or whose Certificate of Occupancy exceeds 300 people. Since Studio B’s first floor allowed 461 people, they did, indeed, fall into this category. He offered this pamphlet to Mr. Fisher**. This chap then commenced to speak but Ken Fisher cut him off. And as a result, Mr. Fisher was severely reprimanded by chairman Kalita. His right to speak having been restored, he went on the record to say that given their lack of respect for the law there was no good reason Studio B should be awarded a cabaret license.***
Shortly thereafter were entertained with some Sophistry:
Ken Fisher (This is paraphrased— Ed. Note): Studio B already has a cabaret license under the previous owner.
Chairman Kalita: You cannot drive a car using someone else’s license.
Ken Fisher: You can drive another person’s car if it has been inspected.
Chairman Kalita: (disgusted)
Angry Studio B Neighbors: It (Studio B— Ed. Note) hasn’t been inspected.
In what I would surmise to be a last gasp effort to bully the detractors present, Mr. Fisher said if the board didn’t give the green light for Studio B’s cabaret license with conditions (points #1- 6) they might be dropped when the Department of Consumer Affairs makes their decision.
It went on. And on. Conditions (for the go-ahead) were discussed, but I suppose I should go into my contribution to this hearing (which precedes this dung heap).
What gets me about this whole Studio B thing is no one seems to care about the people actually patronizing this establishment, so I fashioned my presentation accordingly.
1. I recalled watching a fist fight during their Grand Theft Auto IV release shin dig. This came to pass at 3:30 on a Saturday afternoon. I clearly remember their security person getting on his walkie talkie and saying everything was “OK”. It wasn’t. The police were called to break it up.
2. I professed to have no knowledge as to what Studio B, as a nightclub, is entitled to do. But I noted that they have conducted a number of roller derbies and at one such event a woman broke her arm. After drinking “four shots of whiskey”, no less. Good people make bad decisions under the influence. Why didn’t Studio B employees bar this poor woman from participating?!? If not out of the kindness of their hearts, out of fear of legal liability?
3. You know we’re living in troubled times when I quote from the Brooklyn Paper.
Miss Heather:
Ken Fisher was quoted this week in the Brooklyn Paper as saying: We’re very conscious of the fact that not everybody is respectful of the neighbors when they come to and from the club, but that’s not necessarily within the club’s control.
Does Studio B even bother to control their patrons? I don’t think so. If anything, they are enablers.
Exhibit A: gleaned from Studio B’s very own MySpace page.
As you can see on the tabs in this screencap, I was getting my fix of Britney gossip today. She’s looking good. The same cannot be said about the topless person in this YouTube flick (which has been removed). Bummer.
Exhibit B: More boobies courtesy of “Fun At Studio B”!
At the very bottom Collin (LaFleche) promises more pix. I clicked and he delivered!
After I showed the above goodness to the Public Safety Committee (and noted it came from Studio B’s own photographer) I wistfully noted that I was not as “free-spirited” as this woman. Perhaps I should be? Perhaps I will be. Tomorrow, as Scarlett O’Hara said, is another day!
Not knowing what audience I was talking to (that being the Public Safety Committee of Community Board 1) I thought I should include a few goodies for the ladies.
Exhibit C: Banker Street Booty
Once again, Collin delivered.
Nice tooshie.
I forgot to mention that these photographs were taken on May 3, 2008. The day after they opened their rooftop garden. Oh well.
I can kick myself for overlooking this beauty. Oh well, here it is for posterity. These kids sure have a hard time keeping their clothes on (and wiping their asses)!
4. I brought up the troublesome (and yes, BORING) issue of Studio B being caught with over 650 people in a space sanctioned for 461. I made light of their trying to get the rooftop terrace approved for 173 people. If Studio B has packed over 650 people in a space designated for 461 people, what will they do if/when they are allowed to have 634 people in their haven? What fire plan do they have in place? (ANSWER: NONE) How will patrons egress or EMS or New York’s Bravest be able to enter under the current conditions? I made it very clear I did not want this to happen here.
5. I could not refrain from bringing this up. I wanted it to be on public record. I even said so. I asked the people representing Studio B what kind of place they were running. I don’t know— and given their slack jawed expressions I don’t think they know either.
When all was said and done, Ken Fisher had nothing in the way of a rebuttal to what I (and more importantly, everyone else) presented. We got obfuscation, petulance, arrogance and bullshit in return. I guess that’s what Studio B is paying Mr. Fisher “the big bucks” to do.
Mr. Kalita was more than a little angry when he tendered his decisive vote against recommending Studio B’s cabaret license. First he re-read Susan Kowal’s letter. Then he pointed out that Studio B can indeed have a garbage container and if they bothered to consult the Department of Sanitation’s web site they’d know why.****
What’s next: the Executive Committee of Community Board 1 will conduct a session this month (August) and have yet another vote about Studio B’s license. Since it is an Executive Committee meeting (because CB 1 is on vacation in August) there will be no opportunity for public comment.
And I have no doubt Studio B postponed their initial hearing for a cabaret license for just this reason!
In closing, there are many lessons to be learned from what I beheld last night. Too many to mention, but here are a few:
- Don’t fuck with Mieszko Kalita. He might be sweet and jovial behind the counter at Beata Delicatessen (he is, I know) but he has a zero bullshit tolerance as the head of the Public Safety Committee.
- If you are paid lobbyist/attorney (KEN FISHER), do NOT interrupt a Greenpoint citizen who is trying to speak with a fussy baby in tow. Especially if he is as qualified, if not more so, than you regarding such vagaries as Public Assembly Permits and Fire Plans.
- Bluffing and strong-arming pisses people off. ESPECIALLY GREENPOINTERS. (KEN FISHER)
- Posting photos on the Internet of people inside and outside your establishment exposing themselves is rock-ass stupid. Captain Fulton certainly found what I presented interesting.
Miss Heather
UPDATE: It looks like Studio B will not be open tonight. They moved their show for this evening to Southpaw.
Photo Credits: (all save the photo gracing the beginning of this post) Collin LaFreche and Studio B.
*A nice way of saying spending most of my day in the bathroom. I will spare you the details. This post is too damned long already!
**He accepted it and later threw it in the garbage. Mr. Fisher said their architect had a different idea.
***Here’s what he had to say about the experience:
That Ken Fischer sure is a douche. I really enjoyed handing him that DOB memo. I was a bit nervous and my voiced cracked (which is unusual), but what a great pastime. I could get into community board meetings.
****They cannot keep the container on the street, after being emptied they have to keep it on their premises.
P.S.: No Twinkies were hurt or otherwise consumed during the above hearing or the writing of this post. I hate sweets. Except for ice cream and baklava. On occasion.
Studio B: Where The Fun Never Stops
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
My commenters are a very intelligent lot. Hence why I will open this post with a missive from addrobinson:
From everything I know about Studio B, other than the rooftop garden, none of this is new, the noise, the over capacity etc…. So what occurred recently that caused you to take such a strong stance against them?
Let’s imagine for a moment that I, a citizen, invited 140+ of my best friends to party on my rooftop (and I have a nice one, btw). Someone would call the cops and I’d be cited and/or thrown in jail.
In other words, it’s a matter of inequality. Studio B, despite having no permission to host events on their roof does so anyway. Nothing happens.
They have a Stop Work Order which they have not only seen fit to violate but have also removed from their front door. Once again, nothing happens.
Here is the garbage this establishment generates. Would you want to look at this 2-3 times a week? I didn’t think so. Will they get in trouble for this? Probably not.
At what point will the owners of this property, WS Delancey Realty LLC, be held accountable for their actions? Will it be today? They do, after all, have a hearing regarding their first (and undoubtedly not last) violation of their Certificate of Occupancy on this, Cinco de Mayo.
In closing here is a little footage I shot of this establishment yesterday afternoon. Note that the music they are playing is loud enough to be picked up by my dinky little digital camera from across the street.
Miss Heather
P.S.: Be Sure to check out my buddy 11222’s take on Studio B’s grand opening of their rooftop by clicking here.
Studio B: It Just Keeps Getting More Interesting
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
Yesterday evening I received a provocative email from a tipster. If its contents are to be trusted it would appear that Studio B has more than just an out-of-date Certificate of Occupancy and a Stop Work Order* to contend with:
…the fact that any PA (Public Assembly — Ed. Note.) over 300 people requires, by law, a fire protection plan to be approved by the DOB and the FD. They have not filed one.
Whoops.
I suspect New York’s Bravest will be less than pleased when they get wind of this.
Miss Heather
*Which I have heard they promptly violated by working last weekend.
My housing s(h)ituation
While I (still) intend to write a testimonial about my recent housing woes, the following nastygram pretty much speaks for itself…
November ??, 2006
Negligent Landlord
Brooklyn, NY 11222
Re: Conditions at XYZ Green St. (AKA 123 Manhattan Avenue) Brooklyn, NY 11222
Dear Landlord:
We, the below-signed residents of XYZ Green Street, are writing this letter to voice our concerns regarding the lack of effective management and proper maintenance of this building. Recent events including, but not limited to:
1. lack of heat and hot water for an entire week (11/2/06 – 11/9/06)
2. electrical outages in individual apartments and the public areas of this building as result of questionable/unlicensed electrical work and water damage
3. lack of responsiveness on the part of your managing agent to address the aforementioned issues in a timely manner
have made it all too clear that serious changes need to be made regarding how this building is managed and maintained. It is the purpose of this letter to make you aware of the more egregious concerns we have regarding the habitability of this building and to start an amicable dialogue as to how these issues will be handled moving forward.
1. Lack of heat and hot water: on November 2, 2006 we received a notice from KeySpan stating they had disconnected the boiler that provides heat and hot water to the apartments of this building. This was done because the chimney for the boiler was blocked. This is a very hazardous condition: one that may have caused carbon monoxide to be discharged into the apartments of this building. This situation was made even more hazardous given that neither the apartments nor public areas of this building have carbon monoxide detectors or smoke detectors. Both of the previous are required by law.
KeySpan came to this building Sunday, November 3, 2006 at 9:15 p.m. to inspect the boiler and (hopefully) restore service. We were forced to turn this gentleman away because:
a. The person we were led to believe is the Superintendent (Gerardo) was not on the premises at the time (because he no longer resides here)
b. We had no means of reaching the him or providing access to the basement
As a result, we had to wait an entire week for our heat and hot water to be restored. This is unacceptable; having no heat or hot water for an entire week is not a mere inconvenience, it is a health hazard.
Once again, this building experienced a lack of hot water (or any water, for that matter) November 22, 2006 from roughly 8:00-11:00 a.m. We were given no notice about any work being done to the boiler. Rather, we were told by a gentleman who works for Green Street Plumbing (at 157 Green Street) a week later that you were “sweating the pipesâ€. What work was being done to the boiler that would necessitate this practice?
2. Lack of access to the basement: the recent course of events (from November 2 through November 9) could have been easily truncated had access to the basement been provided to KeySpan. In addition to having no means of contacting the Superintendent (or another managing agent for this property) outside of business hours and having no one on the premises with the necessary keys to provide access to the basement, it has come to our attention that this building has been cited by the Department of Buildings for having an illegal apartment in the basement.
This was undoubtedly a contributing factor to KeySpan being denied access to the basement. Either you or one of your managing agents did not want to give KeySpan access to the basement for the simple reason that someone was living there. This not only violates the Certificate of Occupancy (on record with the Department of Buildings) for this building, but poses a serious hazard to all who reside in this building. We (the legitimate tenants of this building) cannot get timely access to the basement in the event of an emergency and the person(s) residing in the basement has/have no secondary means of egress in the event of a fire.
3. Unlicensed electrical work and cosmetic improvements being made to this building: On the week of October 25, 2006 an employee under your hire (and/or under the hire/supervision of Gerardo, the ostensible Superintendent of this building) proceeded to do work in the public areas of this building. Among other things he:
a. installed a motion-sensitive light fixture above the mailboxes by tapping into the existing light fixture located on the first floor above the stairwell. Any work that involves electrical wiring must have a permit from the Department of Buildings and must be performed by a licensed electrician. This work was clearly not conducted by a licensed professional (much less with a permit) and as a result, a number of apartments experienced brown-outs and the public areas of this building had no lighting whatsoever for 36 hours. No measures were taken to redress this problem on the part of your managing agent. We, the tenants of this building, put light fixtures in the hallway so some measure of light would be provided to anyone entering and leaving the building.
b. re-faced the stairs between the first and second floors of this building. He tapped into an existing light fixture (this time on the second floor) in order to power the equipment necessary to do this work. This, in turn, caused a brown-out in apartment #1. In addition, the improvements made to these stairs have already started to fall apart. One tenant fell and hurt herself while climbing the stairs because the metal facing on the 6th stair tread had come loose. This has since been repaired, but the gentleman (once again) tapped into the light fixture to do it— well after you have been ordered by the city (twice) to remove this illegal wiring.
c. painted parts of the public areas of this building with oil-based paint and made no effort whatsoever to provide adequate ventilation, be it by opening windows or the front door of the building. When confronted about this, your employee said he had worked this way for “29 years†without trouble and saw no reason why he should change this practice. Oil-based paint, while very durable, requires proper ventilation because the fumes are noxious. As you are probably aware, a number of people in this building have chronic asthma; such fumes serve only to exacerbate their symptoms.
4. Insecure mailboxes: it has come to our attention that the locks securing the top of the mailbox fixtures in our building (to be used only by our postal delivery person when he places mail in our mailboxes) are inoperative. Anyone with access to this building and knowledge of this defect can gain access to all the mailboxes (and the mail contained therein) in this building. The Superintendent’s own daughter was seen accessing the mailbox for apartment #7 (where she and her family had lived previously) by hitting the mailbox fixture repeatedly until it opened.
a. If the Superintendent was concerned about having mail delivered to his new address, he should have tendered a forwarding order to the United States Postal Service.
b. Tampering with mail boxes and mail theft are Federal offenses.
Be advised that this matter has been brought to the attention of the local Postmaster.
5. Access to this building: a number of people have been given keys to this building without any notification in writing from you or your managing agent. This raises some serious safety concerns, as we have no idea who these people are or why they are being given access to this building. Not only was the gentleman (mentioned in item #3 of this letter) given access to this building without notification, but the new porter (?) of this building has been given keys to the front door. Our concerns are as follows:
a. Why was the old porter, Joyce Montero, who resides in this building (apartment #4) relieved of her duties? We were very happy with her services and see no reason why she should be replaced.
b. We are not comfortable with this man having access to this building because:i. The work he does here is limited in time and scope, yet he loiters around the building constantly.
ii. He has taken to harassing one of the tenants in this building repeatedly. It is our understanding (per what you told an officer of the N.Y.P.D., 94th Precinct, on the afternoon of 11/22/06) that this man is your employee. If this is so, as your agent this man is to clean the building and sort the garbage; he is not to verbally harass, intimidate, or threaten the tenants who live therein. If he cannot (or will not) refrain from bothering the tenants of this building, it is your responsibility to replace him.
6. Door providing access to the roof: this door will not remain closed. It slams continuously during inclement weather and permits rainwater to enter the building. Rainwater has rotted a section of the ceiling on the fourth floor. This damage has since been plastered over (by the same person mention in item #3 of this letter). We have serious concerns about the effectiveness of this repair work and any possible damage to the electrical wiring to the fourth floor light fixture that might have been concealed. Nonetheless, such repairs do not address the origin of the problem, e.g.; the fact that the insecure door to the roof still permits rainwater to enter the building. We want a real and lasting solution to this problem, not quick fixes.
7. Buzzers: this fixture does not operate properly. Not only are they wired in no discernable order (the top buzzer is for apartment #3, for example), but there appears to be no buzzer for apartment #6. This is a constant source of confusion and annoyance.
8. Inadequate lighting at the entrance of this building: it is our understanding (per housing code) that a 100 watt light bulb is to be used in lighting fixtures that illuminate the entrance of an apartment building. The current lighting is clearly not adequate (as of the writing of this letter, said light bulb is inoperative), and as a consequence, a number of derelicts and other non-residents have taken to loitering on the stoop of this building at night. This poses some serious safety concerns. It is not unreasonable to assume that if this fixture was brought up to code, these people would be less likely to loiter in front of this building.
In closing, the above list is a general synopsis of the more troublesome issues we have experienced of late. A number of these defects have already been brought to your attention; you have been cited by the Department of Buildings and Housing Preservation for a number of them recently. Additionally, a number of us would like to know why you have not registered the rent (with the DHCR) for our individual apartments for the last two (or more) years. Some of us have also discovered other irregularities regarding our rental histories which will be brought to your attention via attachments. Following this letter you will find:
• Images of the above-listed defects
• A list of open citations from the Department of Buildings and Housing Preservation and Development for this building
• Cover letters and supplemental material regarding the habitability/condition of individual apartments, rental overcharge concerns and other issues that have arisen with individual tenants
We thank you in advance for your attention to these matters and look forward to getting a written response from you as to how they will be corrected.
Sincerely,
XYZ Green Street Tenants’ Organization
From The New York Shitty Inbox, Part III: What To Do About Illegal Hotels?
Filed under: 10002, 10003, 11206, 11211, 11222, Bushwick, Bushwick Brooklyn, Criminal Activity, East Village, East Village Manhattan, East Williamsburg, East Williamsburg Brooklyn, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic, New York City, Williamsburg, Williamsburg Brooklyn
More specifically: What do I do when I learn that a fellow tenant is renting out his/her apartment via Airbnb? E.g.; What recourse do I have when some drunken asshat breaks my front door lock at 2:00 a.m. in the morning or simply walks in and hands my husband his luggage?
A tipster writes:
Heather!
Illegal Hotels, formally known as transient occupancy units (TOU’s) are Class “A” residential units that have been converted for short-term stays of 30 days or less without adhering to the fire codes, tax laws, Certificates of Occupancy and zoning restrictions of hotel use. The illegal conversion of residential buildings into hotels presents serious problems for permanent residents, limits the supply of available housing – in particular, rent-regulated and low-income housing. By lacking the necessary fire-safety measures that legal hotels are required to have by law, which are more stringent than multiple dwelling buildings, TOU’s also present substantial safety hazards to permanent, legal residents as well as short-term guests; many are dangerous firetraps.
The Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement (“OSE”), headed by Kathleen McGee, pulls together the various enforcement agencies to go after TOUs when they are reported. I know people don’t believe it, but for this people need to file 311 Complaints, being sure to tell the operator that they want it to go to OSE. Kathleen has worked to get complaints that are incorrectly taken for HPD or DOB re-routed to her shop (and has been largely successful).
The District Manager or local elected officials can also forward complaints directly to Kathleen, and can even do so anonymously. It can be hard to get OSE out immediately, unless there is a present and imminent fire hazard, but they are very good at going out to problem locations (ie: repeated complaints or severe activity). They have been stepping up their enforcement recently.*
So far, there isn’t much proactive enforcement based off of sites like AirBnB, although with recent changes in the law, which raised the fines for landlords and allows tenants to be fined as well, some landlords have started to patrol the websites to catch tenants and proactively inform OSE.
*No shit.
From The New York Shitty Inbox, Part II: Angry At Alma
Today was designated by yours truly to be a quiet day at Chez Shitty doing housework. As is usually the case, this has been rendered totally asunder by a proliferation of very angry emails from my fellow citizens. Take this missive from D, for example. He writes:
Heather,
As a regular reader of your blog, I’ve have noticed that you’re in touch with the north Brooklyn neighborhood happenings.
I’m writing on behalf of the residents who live directly above the Alma lounge (229 Roebling / South 3rd st). To keep this email succinct I’ll say that we have had problems since their opening in April, 2010. Our primary concern is the chronic noise/bass levels that shake our apartments (Wed-Sun, 11:00pm-5:00am). However, despite ongoing police intervention we have ample evidence of loitering, fights, violence…
and Alma’s promotion of illegal-unlicensed exotic dancers, valet parking, hookah smoking. But to be clear, we’re only concerned with the noise/bass.
What’s Happening? For more than 10 months we’ve tried to diplomatically navigate multiple mediation channels:1) Asking Alma’s owner to simply turn it down. Alma’s management has been unsurprisingly uncooperative.
2) Asking our landlord (S&C Management) to comply with the habitability clause of our lease and intervene. S&C has been unsurprisingly silent.
3) Calling 311 on a nightly basis – All 5 tenants suffering from alma have submitted weekly complaints and surprisingly the 90th precinct’s registered responses conflict with our experiences of watching the officer cars stop in front of the club, speak to the bouncer, drive away (e.g “The Police Department responded to the complaint and took action to fix the condition.”). This has been completely ineffective.
4) Attending the 90th precinct’s monthly community affairs and pleading directly with Deputy Inspector Michael Kemper and Detective Bruno Vidal. Additionally, we have been in phone contact with both Kemper and Vidal asking for their intervention. Both Kemper and Vidal have been very professional and really do seem like they’re doing all that’s in their power.
5) Attending the Community Board (CB1) public hearing and speaking directly with the public safety chair, Kalita. Additionally, we have been emailing with Maria Viera and although her correspondence has been brief, appears to be facilitating a dialog with the 90th precinct and the DEP. I’ll be attending this month’s public safety (02/03) and public hearing (02/08)
6) Submitting multiple complaints to the NYSLA. We have not received any response.
7) Patiently worked with DEP to schedule a first sound reading and finally in December a summons was issued (NOV# 00266115X) was issued with a 01/25/11 hearing date (See Attached). The irony is that even the DEP inspectors noticed Alma trying to turn the music down as they arrived. On 01/26/11 we were informed that Alma’s hearing was adjourned and rescheduled 03/22/11. DEP is recommending not to schedule a second sound reading until after the postponed hearing (two more months?) WTF?
What’s Next? If the March hearing happens as scheduled, it will basically be a full year of suffering and bureaucrazy just to protect our rights to live in our homes (vs. a sub-woofer). After every phone call/meeting/email, it becomes increasingly unclear to us laymen-advocates who is accountable. While our apartment’s shake us into lucid insomnia, we ask ourselves questions like: Why did the landlord allow a dance club to open below residential apartments? Does the Alma dance club even have a Cabaret license? What’s the point of 311? Why does it take so long to address a clearly chronic violation? Are we being irrational?As a long time resident of north Brooklyn, we’ve seen several clubs shut down (triple crown, studio b, sound fix) and Alma’s noise/bass is just as problematic (if not worse). I’m reaching out to you because we don’t know what else to do. If you have any thoughts or encouragement I’d love to buy you coffee / lunch for your troubles.
Thanks for the offer of coffee and/or lunch, D, it is truly appreciated— but not necessary! By all appearances you have gone through all the proper channels and have demonstrated an admirable amount of due diligence. I have forwarded your missive to a few folks and I am quite interested to see what they have to say on the matter. In the meantime, if anyone has advice— or would care to commiserate with/corraborate the above testament by D please share via comments or via email at missheather (at) thatgreenpointblog (dot) com. Your identity will remain anonymous if you so desire. Thanks.
They missed the most egregious violation: it’s not a restaurant and there’s certainly no PA there (not sure how big it is). There’s a self certified ALT 2 they just filed to convert it to “eating and drinking” but this is so very wrong. It has to be filed as an ALT 1. I would start lobbing complaints regarding their ANSUL system (not filed nor approved), illegal commercial kitchen, and possible PA to the FD. Complaints to the DOB for occupancy contrary to the certificate of occupancy AND I would write a letter to the Brooklyn borough commissioner of the DOB requesting an audit of the application I linked to. They’d have to have a pretty serious life safety violation to get a vacate, so I doubt that happens, but that’s a good start to some serious nut twisting. If it should be a PA, I’d go directly to the FD PA unit instead of 311…
Oh, and I wouldn’t wait to make more noise complaints. If I’m repping the restaurant, I’m going to adjourn that shit again for another 2-3 months. You’re allowed up to 3 adjournments before it will default… Lastly, if memory serves me, this is the same architect that filed the Studio B CO amendment.
Miss Heather
NYS Flickr Pool
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