Boards can expect another building inspection program under new law
- New legislation requires the DOB to proactively inspect dangerous buildings
- The NYC Council created the initiative after two high-profile building collapses last year
The law charges the department with identifying hazardous buildings in addition to the existing inspections required every five years under Local Law 11.
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New York City’s condo and co-op boards should buckle up for another building inspection program next year.
NYC’s hazardous, aging buildings will see more frequent inspections under a new Department of Buildings program set to start in December.
The New York City Council passed legislation last week requiring the DOB to use “predictive analysis” of a building’s past violations, age, and other factors to identify those in danger of collapse. The law charges the department with identifying hazardous buildings in addition to the existing inspections required every five years under Local Law 11.
“The creation of a proactive building inspection program will be transformative, allowing us to investigate potential structural issues and protect New Yorkers from dangerous building conditions that could turn deadly,” Buildings Commissioner Jimmy Oddo said in a statement.
The bill requires Oddo to create rules for when a building would need to undergo a “corrective action plan” to fix safety issues, and instructs the DOB to perform follow-up inspections to make sure the problem was solved. Mayor Eric Adams is expected to sign the bill into law, The Real Deal reported.
The Adams’s administration dedicated $4.7 million to the department to set up the new inspection program after two high-profile building collapses shocked New Yorkers last year. One such collapse in the Bronx forced residents out of their apartments, and the destruction of a Manhattan parking garage—killing one of its managers—pushed the DOB to speed up its parking garage inspection program.
The new legislation isn’t the only change to the DOB’s building inspections regime. Almost all buildings need to have their parapets inspected this year under Local Law 126, the same law that mandated parking garage inspections.
The DOB’s rules could change even further next year, after engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti completes a study of Local Law 11, which requires buildings that are six stories or taller to have their facades inspected by a professional every five years.
The rule, also known as the Façade Inspection & Safety Program, could change depending on Thornton Tomasetti’s recommendations—based on DOB data, best practices in other municipalities, and current construction practices.
“This new scientific study will help us as we look to further refine these important regulations, so that they continue to keep New Yorkers safe, while ensuring that sidewalk sheds are only up when they are truly needed,” Oddo said in a statement.
