A partial building collapse in the Morris Heights section of the Bronx earlier this week is raising concerns about the state of New York City’s aging housing stock — and the tools and penalties intended to prevent future disasters.
Lawmakers, buildings experts and everyday New Yorkers say they worry about the future of older structures and are calling on the city to staff up the Department of Buildings while increasing penalties on owners who fail to comply with required repairs or inspections.
“There are thousands of these very old, compromised buildings, and we have some indicators of where they might be, and we don’t know exactly what the conditions are,” said Councilmember Pierina Sanchez of the Bronx, who chairs the City Council’s housing and buildings committee. “I am concerned about how we’re doing in the city in terms of protecting the most vulnerable tenants in the worst housing.”
There were no fatalities or any serious injuries reported at the collapsed building at 1915 Billingsley Terrace, but the disaster left 153 people across 44 apartments homeless, according to the Red Cross. The DOB, fire department and Bronx district attorney are all investigating exactly what caused a corner of the seven-story, nearly century-old structure to crumble onto the sidewalk.
Such catastrophes are relatively rare in New York City, but Monday’s destruction came as the city’s buildings department faces a serious staff shortage and more cuts on the horizon, despite its crucial role overseeing more than a million buildings citywide.
The agency did not respond to questions about its capacity, but on Tuesday, Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi acknowledged the DOB’s gargantuan task.
“We’re a city of millions of buildings and 500-something inspectors,” Joshi said. “So we will never, with boots on the ground, get to every building.”
She said officials are “looking to sharpen” penalties for building owners who fail to comply with mandated inspections…
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