Interim Multiple Dwelling Was Lawful on Violation Date Despite No Residential C of O

DOB issued eight violation notices to landlord based on illegally altering a building as a dwelling without a valid certificate of occupancy (C of O). At a hearing, DOB showed that a 1962 C of O authorized the building's use as a factory. Although landlord had filed an Alt 1 application with DOB, no new C of O had yet been issued for the job. Landlord testified that the building was an interim multiple dwelling (IMD) registered with the NYC Loft Board and therefore residential occupancy of the building was permitting pending issuance of the new C of O. The ALJ ruled against landlord, finding that an IMD registration wasn't the equivalent of a valid C of O.

Landlord appealed one of the violations, and won. The building was a registered IMD on the violation date. Multiple Dwelling Law Section 283 permits residential occupancy of IMDs, if the occupancy is in compliance with MDL Article 7-C (the Loft Law), notwithstanding any other law or code. And the Loft Board may grant extensions to obtain the new C of O if landlord shows it was making good faith efforts to obtain one. So the building's occupancy as a multiple dwelling was lawful on the violation date. That particular violation was dismissed.

DOB v. Jackson S M J Realty Cp: ECB App. No. 2201298 (2/23/23)[3-pg. document]