STATEMENT BY PUBLIC ADVOCATE DE BLASIO ON INSPECTIONS OF ILLEGALLY SUBDIVIDED APARTMENTS

“Illegally converted apartments are a clear hazard to the safety of New Yorkers. It should not take the Department of Buildings weeks to dispatch inspectors, only to have many of them stymied by locked doors. The Department must accelerate its inspection process and increase its attempts to gain access to illegally subdivided units. We need to hold irresponsible landlords accountable and shut down these illegal dwellings before more lives are lost.”

A Quick Pitch Might Get You in Trouble with the Law by Stephen Geffon - Leader-Observer

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Putting up party tents without obtaining the required permits can get you in trouble with the law. Just ask the owner of a home near 117th Street and Linden Boulevard in South Ozone Park.

Last Friday evening, a multi-city agency task force, led by officers from the 106th Precinct, descended on a South Ozone Park residence that put up party tents without the necessary city permits, according to precinct Community Affairs Officer Ken Zorn. He said the police were responding to community complaints.

Zorn said the homeowner had put up a large tent encompassing the whole property, adding that the way the tents were erected, there was no way to exit the property if there was a fire because port-a-potties blocking the exit.

Zorn said that, under the law, if you are holding any type of event and putting up a tent in a fenced location with more than 75 people you need to obtain a temporary assembly permit. He added that the Department of Buildings (DOB) must inspect the tent to make sure that it is structurally sound, and that the Fire Department is also required to inspect the structure to ensure that it is safe.

Zorn said the owner of the house was issued two Environment Control Board violations by DOB; one for operation of a temporary place of assembly without a permit and the second for erecting tents on a property without the required permit.

He reminded residents who are planning to hold large parties that city permits are required for these events. “It’s a parking issue, it’s a quality of life issue to the surrounding residents," said Zorn. "We’re looking to educate the public to have safe, fun events.”

Briarwood Community Association Meeting - September 17th - Bill Thompson Visits...

Briarwood Community Association members with Comptroller and Mayoral candidate Bill Thompson

President’s Report: Our Latest Quarrel With the Department of Buildings

The BCA, together with civic organizations throughout the City have long identified the Department of Buildings (DOB)to be dysfunctional (perhaps by their choice). But more, one could not be remiss in stating that the Bloomberg administration lies unashamedly in the same bed with the city’s rapacious developers and contractors. The long list of actions, inactions and procedures by the (DOB provides inarguable evidence of an administration policy to encourage and make it easier for developers to circumvent and violate existing code in order to maximize their benefit at the expense of our stable communities. How well we have seen this at work in Briarwood.

Starting Monday, July 13th, the DOB initiated a new procedure and began to post plans for pending work permits on its website so that the public can identify problems with planned projects and file complaints in a timely fashion. Sounds good? Read on.

Look at how the rule works. It confers on the public a 45-day statute of limitations after which the Buildings Department will issue a work permit and leave the developer home free. This latest City Hall scam is to remove from the public its right to challenge at any time, and to demand an official examination, inspection and resolution of building construction by the Buildings Department with respect to established zoning regulations and Building Code requirements. Members of the public, few with any architectural or planning expertise, now face a new requirement to hunt around the DOB’s website to identify pending projects and file a complaint. All this must be done within only 45 days. And if DOB’s finding fails to adequately address a complaint, recourse then involves an appeals process that culminates with the City's Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA). Appeals to the BSA likely require members of the public and civic associations to incur legal expense they do not face under the prior rules.

The likelihood of successful complaints surviving DOB's appeals process is just about nil. Just ask any citizen who has spent time with the DOB or the Board of Standards and Appeals.

The new procedures make filing a challenge more onerous than the current 311 complaint procedure and removes any possibility of filing an anonymous challenge. These outrageous procedures represent nothing more than a continuation of the imperiousness and arrogance that this administration shows with regard to the ability of the public to influence development in our neighborhoods.

This new process flies in the face of reality and basically drafts the public to act as more than eyes and ears to report possible violations and illegal conditions. The rules unrealistically and most inappropriately require the general public to essentially act as building plan examiners and building code inspectors. In truth, members of the public rarely become aware of projects until they see shovels in the ground and construction underway. This occurs long after DOB issues its permit approvals and the new 45-day opportunity to complain has elapsed. The current process allowing architects and engineers to self-certify their own projects is more-than-ever an open invitation for inappropriate development to rise beneath the public’s radar.

Leaders of the more than 110 civic organizations that make up the Queens Civic Congress agree they will not be able to catch plans from property owners before DOB certifies projects and contractors begin their work. These civic leaders express concern at how they and their communities will cope with DOB’s notorious practice of allowing applicants to self-certify plans for projects as legal and conforming with all city regulations.

The rule, left standing, immunizes corrupt practices and makes impossibly difficult the public’s right to address illegal conduct whenever and wherever found. It violates every citizen’s fundamental right, the right of concerned community members and Community Boards, to challenge illegal practices at any time.

The process for posting plans on line continues to omit zoning calculations and analyses from the plans on DOB’s website. This short-circuits any effective use of the new complaint process. Absent zoning analysis, the public remains unable to determine if, in fact, a project conforms with zoning or building regulations and if an objection is warranted.

Perhaps City Hall wanted this all along. Maybe they seek to disguise this over-development tool as they continue to scheme how to remake sound and stable communities. They thwart and play cute with zonings and text changes our civic organizations advocate, and allow many essential landmarking opportunities to fall prey to inappropriate and unnecessary development.

In an opening response, we participated along with civic leaders, members of the Queens Civic Congress in a protest rally in front of the DOB headquarters on July 10^th. Together we intend to do all that is possible to have the agency withdraw this latest act of contempt for Joe Citizen.

Seymour Schwartz

Assemblyman Mark Weprin Joins Queens Civic Congress to Express Concern About New DOB Development Challenge Process

Assemblymember Mark S. Weprin (D-Little Neck) has written Commissioner Robert D. LiMandri, New York City Department of Buildings (DOB), asking him to address the concerns raised by Queens Civic Congress, the Historic Districts Council, and the Four Borough Neighborhood Alliance about DOB’s new development challenge process.

“As a longtime advocate of open government, I believe that greater transparency within the DOB is clearly in the public interest,” said Assemblymember Weprin. “At the same time, DOB needs to address community objections.”

Mr. Weprin’s letter mentions three issues of concern to the community:

(1) Requiring people to file complaint forms instead of calling 311 will be onerous in many cases.

(2) Residents should not need to be familiar with building codes or zoning regulations to express concerns.

(3) The forty-five day challenge period is too brief. The clocks starts with the filing of the plans, but it often takes longer than forty-five days for construction to begin, so community members may not even know about a planned project until the challenge period is over.

“I will continue working with local civic associations and community groups, as well as with the Queens Civic Congress, to ensure that the public always has a say,” said Assemblymember Weprin.

Thompson Objects to Department of Buildings’ Rule Change Regarding Public Input...

New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. today in a letter to the Mayor and in testimony expressed his objections to the New York City Department of Buildings’ proposed rule change regarding public input on development projects.

In a letter to the Mayor, Thompson wrote: “This proposed rule change will severely restrict the publics participation in the City’s planning and development approval process.”

Currently, Department of Buildings’ (DOB) rules do not impose time limitations for the public to raise objections regarding the approval of a construction project. Instead, DOB plans to allow only 30 days for the public to register complaints about development projects.

Thompson was particularly disturbed by the fact that DOB’s rule change is expected to take effect on Monday, March 9^th, forgoing the proper statutory period. “I am also deeply troubled by reports indicating that, under the guise of a ‘substantial need’ to implement the proposed rule change immediately, you have approved a waiver of the statutory 30-day period prior to the rule becoming effective,” he wrote. “This appears to be yet another attempt to stifle public participation in this process.”

“Although this process may suggest a need for a better approach to address belated objections, the Department’s proposal fails to provide a reasonable time period for individuals to learn of pending development projects or to allow community boards to provide vital input,” Thompson continued. “DOB’s newly proposed approach will therefore inevitably favor developers at the expense of those living in the neighborhoods adjoining construction sites.”

Thompson recommended lengthening DOB’s proposed 30-day challenge period, creating a role for Community Board participation, and developing a community notification mechanism to allow the public to be aware of proposed developments and be able to register comments.

Thompson also registered his concerns by issuing testimony before a DOB meeting late Friday afternoon.

“While forcing the public to closely monitor the DOB website and swiftly prepare detailed challenges, the proposed rules place no formal responsibility on DOB to prevent challenges from languishing indefinitely while potentially illegal construction continues,” Thompson said.

Subsequently, the DOB extended the comment period to mid-April and indicated that the rule changes would not take effect on March 9^th.

Call for Urgent Action Against Overdevelopment by Albert Baldeo...

Over-development has radically altered the traditional appearance and character of our neighborhoods. Illegal construction, non-compliance with zoning rules, and poor quality construction-this scourge is compounded with our failure to landmark historic buildings.

The results are increased population density, overloading community resources, congestion, pollution, parking and mass transit service problems. Schools are overcrowded and public utilities and services are overburdened, including sewer systems and garbage removal. The beauty of our tranquil neighborhoods is being destroyed. This epidemic has reached such proportions that there are few issues that cry out for governmental action more than over-development in Queens.

The issues are encapsulated in this larger question: “How can we enforce and promulgate laws relating to zoning infractions, illegal conversions, McMansions, lack of land marking of historic districts, concreting over lawns, out-of-character structures, permanent fencing, tear-downs and self-certification by engineers and architects?”

Abuse after abuse, eye sore after eye sore, buildings of this nature crop up block after block, like a cancer destroying our communities. Some have been completed, and others have been absolutely abandoned, presenting additional security and sanitation problems of their own.

Down zoning, the solution to the problem, curbs over-development and stops out-of-character development in Queens' residential neighborhoods. Changes in zoning regulations will align new construction with the character of the borough's neighborhoods and will ensure that communities can gracefully accommodate new development.

City Planning, in consultation with the Queens Borough President's Zoning Task Force, is supposedly conducting neighborhood zoning studies throughout the borough of Queens with the goal of preventing further over-development in each neighborhood. But why, after four years, we are still waiting for City action? Do we have to wait until the monstrosities completely overwhelm our neighborhoods? Why has it been stalled by the Department of City Planning over the last several years?

We must get the rezoning process moving again, as real estate investors continue to break ground on large-scale construction projects, putting up condominiums and four and five-story buildings with increasing frequency.

Clearly, City Planning and the Department of Buildings have dropped the ball. The City needs to complete the Down zoning Phase II process, and add personnel who are better trained, properly inspect violation complaints and respond quickly and efficiently.

Historic landmarks must also be preserved. The City must carry out the mandate of its residents. Enough is enough!

Raccoons Invade from Forest Park by Howard Koplowitz - YourNabe.com

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City Councilman Joseph Addabbo addresses his constituents during a town hall meeting as City Comptroller William Thompson looks on. Photo by Howard Koplowitz

In his first public appearance since announcing his run for state Senate, City Councilman Joseph Addabbo (D-Howard Beach) held a joint town hall meeting Monday with City Comptroller William Thompson in Woodhaven.

Residents complained about city Department of Buildings issues, raccoons invading their homes from nearby Forest Park and "human animals" living next door.

When confronted with a question about how the DOB could be more effective, Thompson said complaints about the agency are "the first or second issue brought up in Queens.

"The Department of Buildings has dropped the ball," Thompson said, noting that investigators from his office found that the agency said dangerous situations existed in some situations, but did not follow up to make sure the problems were solved.

"They don't respond quickly and efficiently," the comptroller said. "They just don't."

Addabbo, who announced over the weekend that he was running for state Sen. Serphin Maltese's (R-Glendale) seat, said the City Council signed legislation last year adding more inspectors to the agency, but the DOB hired incompetent workers.

He said a remodified version of the bill was introduced this year that would provide training for new building inspectors.

A Woodhaven resident who lives near Forest Park complained that baby raccoons were grazing in her backyard.

She said that when she called 311, she was eventually referred to a private trapper who charged $299 to set up a trap and another $99 to haul the trap if raccoons got caught in it. The ASPCA gives out free traps, she said, but she would have to bring the cage with the trapped raccoon to the organization herself.

The woman said she was concerned that the two raccoons she saw would multiply.

"I'm hoping it's not a brother and a sister because there's no taboos in Raccoonland," she said.

She asked if the city had "raccoon birth control to spread around Forest Park."

Addabbo said he has contacts with local exterminators who "sometimes do favors" for his office and urged anyone with an animal or pest control problem to call his staff.

A resident of 81st Street in Ozone Park asked for help about a different kind of problem.

"Everybody's talking about animals. I got human animals. I got a prostitute next door to me," he said.

He said a few girls and a man who were living at the house and wanted for murder were arrested, but have since moved back in.

The man also said there was a graffiti problem on his block, noting that he just paid $4,000 to have his car repainted.

Addabbo said the City Council is trying to have penalties increased for graffiti crimes.

Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at hkoplowitz@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 173

Crane Collapses in NYC; At Least 1 Dead -- Newsday.com

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An early-morning crane collapse on the Upper East Side killed at least one person and injured two others -- the latest in a startling string of construction accidents.

The collapse happened just before 8 a.m. at East 91st Street and 1st Avenue, with the crane ripping through the white brick exterior of an apartment building and landing on the street below.

Firefighters combed through the wreckage, searching for bodies. Rescue workers pulled two people from the rubble, the Fire Department said. A New York-Presbyterian Hospital spokeswoman said two people were being treated, but that the extent of their injuries was unknown.

"This is just unacceptable, and we have to figure out what happened," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said during a radio interview. "The bottom line, No. 1, is public safety."

Construction workers Lamont Coggins and Trevor Griffin remained stunned shortly after the crane crash.

Coggins, 37, of Brooklyn, said he was so close to the crane operator he could see "what he was eating."

The operator didn't seem panicked or disturbed before the crane -- which had no load -- spun twice, collapsing on a third turn, Coggins said.

"It went so quick," he said. "All you could do was pray for him as he went down."

It was unclear whether the operator survived.

Griffin, 19, of the Bronx, was inside the building hit by the crane. He was clearing the 13th floor for crews to lay concrete when he heard a loud noise and saw falling debris.

"It was white metal pieces coming down," he said. Griffin escaped by sliding down a ladder.

Both men believed the crash had something to do with machinery malfunction. The two had been working on the site for two weeks and couldn't immediately recall any major problems.

No official word of the cause of the crash had been released by authorities at the scene.

Near the scene, construction workers lined a police barrier as they waited to be interviewed by investigators.

In the distance, the crane's base remained on the building being constructed. Acoss the street, the apartment building had damage to several floors, showing the path of falling crane.

City Councilwoman Jessica Lappin said New Yorkers should be furious about another deadly crane collapse.

"They have a right to be angry," she said in a television interview. "They have a right to be nervous when they're walking down the street near a construction site."

The construction was taking place at 335 East 91st St. A police source said the Department of Buildings in April cited the contractor for operating a crane in an unsafe manner with hoisting a steel box with no permit.

In March, seven people were killed in a crane collapse on East 51st Street. An inspector in the city's Buildings Department was later arrested on charges of falsifying business records, and Buildings Commissioner Patricia Lancaster resigned.

New Cell Tower Is News To Locals by Lee Landor - Queens Chronicle

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Cellular transmission equipment was installed on the roof of a building near St. Elizabeth’s School in Ozone Park — news to the school and parents.

Small laminated signs posted around St. Elizabeth’s School in Ozone Park warned parents that their children are in danger and urged them to call local politicians for help.

Neither the school, nor Assemblywoman Audrey Pheffer (D-Ozone Park) knew of the signs or the situation that prompted their creation — the installation of a cell phone tower on the roof of 84-04 95th Ave.

“The radiation that is released by cellular antennas ... is especially damaging to children,” the signs read. Some words were highlighted for emphasis and, to passersby, seemed to link St. Elizabeth’s and Pheffer to “danger” and “radiation.”

Cell towers are unlikely to cause cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. Studies on the effects of radiowaves and radiofrequency emitted by the transmitters have not determined potential health risks to the general public, but have found possible problems relating to occupational exposure, according to the World Health Organization.

St. Elizabeth’s principal, William Ferguson, was upset about the use of the school’s name on the signs claiming the tower is a health risk. The signs’ creators are most likely also responsible for e-mailing an anonymous letter to a handful of elected officials and newspapers demanding they take action.

“People misread it,” Ferguson said. “The tower is not on our building and they shouldn’t use our name. (The signs) weren’t authorized by us.” He fears parents will associate the school with the tower installation and pull their kids out.

“I have to look at it as a positive,” Pheffer said of having her name associated with the situation. “People felt that something was wrong in the neighborhood, that they should call my office because they get results.”

Cell phone tower installations have become common in the last few years, the assemblywoman said: “as people increase cell phone usage, (the companies) need towers. To install towers, they need a buildings department permit.” Pheffer has asked the Department of Buildings to inspect the tower near St. Elizabeth’s and make sure it adheres to the permit.

She is also reviewing legislation proposed in the Assembly that prohibits the placement of cellular transmission equipment, including towers and antennas, within 500 feet of a school in New York City.

An unsigned e-mail, with return address Concernedparishioners@yahoo.com, was written on behalf of St. Elizabeth’s School and Church, despite the “concerned parishioners” failure to notify either of the problem. E-mails requesting a name or contact number were not returned.

The concerned parishioners — who may not even be affiliated with St. Elizabeth’s Church, according to Ferguson — urged readers to support the Assembly bill.

They also suggested that a temporary restraining order be placed on the wireless service provider responsible for erecting the tower, which the concerned parishioners claimed had not yet been operating last week.

Because there is no current law restricting the installation of cellular transmission equipment near schools, the tower on the roof of 84-04 95th Ave. is as of right. “On a private house, as long as they have the permit, at this point, there’s nothing that we can find that would demand that they remove it,” Pheffer said.

Ferguson said there is no question that he would call for the tower’s removal if it posed a danger to students. But currently, he said, that has not been proven.

Several parents who had not heard anything of the situation indicated they would have to research the potential health risks involved with cellular transmission equipment in order to become concerned.

“I’m going to try to find out what the downsides are,” said Edwin Diaz, while waiting to pick up his 10-year-old.

One way to do that, he added, is holding an informational meeting between parents, school officials, the building owner and the wireless service provider.

When reached by phone, building owner Raymond Masaitis refused to answer questions about the tower installation, and calls to wireless service provider Metro PCS were not returned. But it appeared that parents weren’t demanding answers because they were not informed of the situation.

Kathy Afnaime, whose two children attend St. Elizabeth’s School, was angered that she did not receive notification of the tower installation. She considered circulating a petition calling for the tower’s removal, despite not yet knowing its possible effects.

Confused about what is considered a safe distance between a tower and a place where children congregate, Maria Rodriguez wants to research the matter. She picked up her twin sixth graders and headed home. “I’ve got some homework to do.”

Queens Councilman, Mayoral Candidate, Offers Different Take on Lancaster's Resignation by Sally Goldenberg - SILive: City Hall Insider

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Unlike the Staten Island politicians and developers who are upset to see Buildings Commissioner Patricia Lancaster go, Queens City Councilman Tony Avella, a 2009 candidate for mayor, issued a statement yesterday calling her resignation "much needed and long overdue."

"While I thank her for her efforts to reform the Building Code, her administration was riddled with sheer incompetence and an absolute neglect of building construction and safety enforcement issues," Avella said in the statement.

He had originally called for Ms. Lancaster's resignation in January, and reiterated his call last week after she told a City Council committee that a high-rise building on East 51st Street that was the site of a fatal crane collapse last month should never have been approved.

"It was clear that under Lancaster's tenure, DOB was an agency in total chaos," he added. "Whether it was a high-rise or low-density construction, enforcement and oversight simply did not occur. DOB's main mission to ensure the safe and lawful use of buildings and properties under the building and zoning code had been subverted in a mad dash for more construction - and construction at any cost."

NYC Buildings Dept - Construction Safety Week

It looks like the Bloomberg Administration is making a public relations move to try to propagandize the electorate over their dismay record of protecting our neighborhoods from over-development by the real estate industry throughout the City and particularly in Queens and Brooklyn...

Redding Street Protests Comfort Inn Construction by Lee Landor, Assistant Editor - Queens Chronicle

I believe if Community Board 10 members were allowed to vote on this facility it would be definitely voted down - but zoning laws allow it to be built...Ozone Park must be re-zoned and as soon as possible to prevent other misappropriate structures and businesses being brought in the community. The fault lies with the Dept of Planning not the Community Board...

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Construction of a Comfort Inn motel on a residential street in Ozone Park is set to begin this month, despite protest from area residents. photo credit -Lee Landor

Several dozen Ozone Park residents were met with defeat two weeks ago at a Community Board 10 meeting where they were told there is no way to prevent a Comfort Inn motel from moving into the neighborhood.

It’s as of right, board members told them. The three lots on which the motel will be built, at 137-30 Redding St., are zoned C8-1 for commercial use.

Although residents who live further down the block, which is zoned R4 for residential dwellings, accepted the auto body shop that previously occupied the lot, they are against a C8-1 designation that allows the construction of a two-story motel.

“It’s the demise of the neighborhood,” Redding Street resident Lorraine Benjamin said, noting that many problems already plague the area and the motel addition would only exacerbate them.

Heavy foot traffic and awkward driving conditions have made the intersection of Redding Street and Pitkin Avenue difficult to navigate at certain points during the day — particularly at M.S. 202’s dismissal time, when students swarm the streets.

Benjamin, who organized a protest at the C.B. 10 meeting, is concerned about the loss of parking spaces, increased traffic congestion, excessive noise and dangers posed to pedestrians. “This is not motel alley,” she said. “There are people and families living here.”

Community Board 10 is powerless when it comes to as-of-right building, Chairwoman Betty Braton said. But, had its members been given the opportunity, they would have opposed the construction.

“It is not an appropriate use of a side street,” Braton said, noting that the lot occupies the back end of the C8-1 zone. The chairwoman guessed that automotive uses are primarily what the zoning intended — certainly no one considered the intersection as appropriate for a motel.

One elderly resident was particularly infuriated. “I have lived in this neighborhood for 74 years, 74 years, and I have never had a problem this this,” she said. Others complained that they were initially told condominiums or a medical office building would replace the auto body shop.

“In my wildest dreams I never would have thought that (a motel would move in),” said Benjamin, whose parents have lived in the neighborhood for 43 years.

The problem is that the zoning map is outdated, according to urban planner Paul Graziano. When it was created in 1961 — a time during which Americans were consumed by the country’s car culture — auto-related business was booming.

To support the industry, the city designated certain areas C8-1 so that gas, service and repair stations could be built. But the zoning category was not created exclusively for vehicle-related commercial use: a designation subcategory, “use groups,” indicated that motels and other structures could be built on C8-1 lots as well, Graziano said.

This situation could have been entirely avoided if the Department of City Planning had rezoned Ozone Park two years ago, when it promised it would, he added.

Calls to the DCP were not returned as of press time.

The Department of Buildings approved the developer’s plan and issued permits for construction on March 12.

Equally upsetting for residents and community board members is the prospect of seedy establishments accompanying the motel in its move into the neighborhood. Property owner Amritpal Sandhu has bought two additional lots adjacent to the future Comfort Inn, resulting in speculation that a restaurant or bar will soon join the block.

To ease such fears and diminish speculation, Sandhu must increase his communication with area residents, Braton said. “The best they can hope for is that the owner is up front with them.”

Although Sandhu said he had no knowledge of the residents’ opposition, he indicated that he would be willing to meet with locals to discuss his plans for the $10 million project.

Noting that he chose the Ozone Park location because of its proximity to the airport, Sandhu said few guests would have their own vehicles. Additionally, he is providing between 10 and 15 parking spaces on the 32,419-square-foot property.

This does not pacify some neighbors who said they have already witnessed “inconsiderate behavior” resulting from the project.

During demolition of the former auto body shop, which ended about two weeks ago, at least five trucks lined up along Redding Street, a one-way road, and barricaded the block’s exit.

“Now I won’t be able to have a barbecue,” said a resident whose backyard faces the motel property. People will peep out of windows and invade her privacy, as well as that of other neighbors, she added.

Such disturbances are disconcerting for residents of the quiet street, but they said the most frightening aspect of having a motel — which has a cellar and reaches a height of about 25 feet — on the residential street is not knowing who will occupy its 75 units.

They are nervous about having “transients,” as one neighbor put it, around neighborhood children and frustrated that they can take no action against the construction. The locals don’t want a situation like the one they said has plagued them for many years: prostitutes who occupy the rooms of the Cross Bay Motor Inn.

The recent news of prostitution-ring busts at two hotels near John F. Kennedy International Airport have further alarmed residents about the motel’s potential clientele.

During the C.B. 10 meeting, area resident Joseph Randazzo expressed concern that the motel would become a Section 8 building, housing welfare recipients and other low-income individuals. “It’s a scam,” said one local mother of three. If it doesn’t become designated for Section 8 housing, the owner will just turn the rooms into “condos,” she said, and conduct some type of illegal operation.

When told of these speculations, owner Sandhu was adamant that his motel would uphold the same standards as the well-known Comfort Inn chain. When it opens some time next spring, it will be a family-operated business, he said.

Even so, C.B. 10 and City Councilman Joseph Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard Beach) intend to closely monitor the construction — which was set to begin last week — and operation of the establishment. Both have requested a buildings department audit to ensure compliance of all regulations.

No one will be quite as vigilant as the Comfort Inn’s soon-to-be neighbors. They will first attempt to meet with Sandhu and convince him to make the building residential. If it doesn’t work, they have promised to scrutinize the motel’s every move in every phase from construction to completion.