Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, the Tenant Protection Unit (TPU), and the Office of Rent Administration (ORA) is launching a proactive heat removal prevention initiative, after the first results of an ongoing investigation on rent regulated buildings in New York City came in yesterday.
During the joint City-State neighborhood inspections and thanks to tips from advocates and elected officials, it was discovered that landlords of several dozen buildings in New York City, had been replacing their central heating systems with individual apartment meters, forcing tenants to pay for their own heat.
Landlords, who are required by law to pay for and provide heat and hot water to rent regulated tenants, were illegally replacing their central heating systems with individual apartment meters. This illegal act occurred in over two dozen rent regulated buildings in New York City – mainly in neighborhoods such as Bushwick and Williamsburg, where real estate prices are rising – impacting 145 tenants.
“These landlords are going to restore their central heating systems, and others should be aware that we will not hesitate to crack down on any illegal behavior,” said Cuomo.
Williamsburg Congresswoman Nydia M. Velasquez, who represents the Williamsburg and Bushwick neighborhoods of Brooklyn said, “I commend the Governor’s TPU and ORA for taking this proactive step to protect some of our most vulnerable neighbors.”
The TPU has recaptured close to 500,000 apartments that landlords had improperly deregulated, saving the state over a billion dollars in construction and rehabilitation costs.
Bushwick/Williamsburg State Senator Martin Malave Dilan praised the agencies saying, “Congratulations TPU and ORA on another victory for rent regulated tenants. I am proud to partner with the Governor’s team as part of the North Brooklyn and Ridgewood Task Forces to ensure that long-time residents are not taken advantage of by unscrupulous landlords.”
