Approved Engineering Costs Reduced to Match Reduced Costs of Approved Work

The DRA granted landlord's application for MCI rent hikes based on pointing and waterproofing with related engineering costs, along with installation of a TV/security system. Tenants appealed and won, in part. It didn't matter, as tenants claimed, that the work was done in order to correct municipal violations, and the cost of engineering services was properly documented. However, the claim that approved engineering costs should be reduced because a portion of the exterior work had been disallowed had merit. Approved engineering costs shouldn't include the cost of services related to the excluded exterior work. So the proportional cost of excluded exterior work was applied to the engineering costs to reduce them by 11.7 percent. The DRA properly granted an increase for the TV/security system, which was installed for the first time in the building.

Various Tenants of 900 Riverside Drive: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. FN430033RT (12/29/17) [2-pg. doc.]