Wayne Bellet, of Manhattan-based exterior maintenance firm Bellet Construction, is getting a dose of his own medicine. At the time of this interview, it’s his own office that’s under construction, he explains over the racket of dueling h…
Local Law 11 inspection is a requirement of the New York City Department of Buildings that every owner of a building higher than six stories must retain an architect or engineer to inspect their façades. Based on this inspection, a repo…
In November of 2008, New York City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) designated seven new properties with landmark status—New York University’s University Village, the Guardian Life Insurance Co. annex, the Morris B. Sanders Hou…
Years ago, when I babysat for a young boy, I watched him create a multi-story building out of empty cardboard boxes. The lad then ran around his proud creation, flexing his muscles and crowing, “My house is indy-structible!” (He then pr…
It sounds like an urban legend—something that supposedly happened to your cousin’s friend’s cousin. A little girl was at a barbecue party at a friend’s house, frolicking in the pool with friends. She swam to the drain at the bottom of th…
New York City’s co-ops and condos might vary in their architectural styles, but over time every exterior—from the ornate historic landmark to modern glass-and-steel fishbowl—experiences exterior wear due to the elements and the simple pa…
Residential buildings are constantly under attack—not by barbarians or marauding bandits, but by a force far more subtle and insidious. The most tenacious enemy of a residential building is not fire or structural collapse—though a build…
There’s more than enough to worry about living in a major American city without having to worry about being conked on the head by falling debris. That’s the kind of urban hazard Local Law 11 was created to address, requiring all buildin…
In most buildings—even otherwise well-run, well-managed ones—building staff and administration can sometimes get a little bit lax in their day-to-day maintenance duties. Equipment doesn’t get serviced. Paint peels. Dust and dirt accumula…
The boards of some co-op and condo buildings pride themselves on not raising their monthly maintenance fees for years at a time. At first glance, this might seem like a good thing—after all, low fees are appreciated by residents and can…