Landlord Fined $120K for Adding Three Illegal Apartments to Two-Family Dwelling

DOB issued six violation notices to landlord for illegal conversion of a two-family house. Each violation imposed daily penalties. DOB's inspector stated that he'd observed  two unauthorized Class "A" apartments constructed in the basement, and an additional Class "A" unit added on the second floor. One of the basement apartments had three bedrooms. At a hearing, landlord admitted the illegal conversion charges but sought mitigated penalties because the illegal apartments were vacated the same day the violation notices were issued. Landlord also said that he took immediate action to restore the premises to its prior legal condition as a two-family dwelling, although it took two months to get permits.

The ALJ ruled against landlord, finding no grounds to reduce the penalties. Penalties of $15,000 were assessed for each of the three violations. An additional $25,000 was imposed for each apartment based on daily penalties capped at 25 days. Landlord appealed, claiming the penalties were excessive and unconstitutional. Landlord's brother had appeared for her before the ALJ, and she now claimed that he had been unauthorized to do so. But landlord's brother had knowledge of the relevant facts and came prepared with proof as to when the conditions were ultimately corrected. Landlord also failed to explain why, if her brother wasn't authorized to appear, no one else did so. The penalties imposed were authorized by Admin. Code Section 28-202.1 and DOB's penalty schedule, found in 1 RCNY Section 102-01. The total penalties remained $120,000.

DOB v. Chen: ECB App. No. 2201344 (2/23/23)[2-pg. document]