Landlord Can Replace Lock and Key System with Proxy Key Cards

Landlord asked the DHCR for permission to replace a building's existing standard lock system with a proxy-card system. The DRA ruled for landlord, setting forth a number of conditions.

Tenants appealed and lost. They claimed that the door wasn't always locked, didn't close all the time, was often ajar, and could be pushed open without the proxy card. They also claimed that the proxy cards were poorly made, that the laminate peeled off quickly, that the $25 replacement fee was excessive, that in October 2011 the key entry system was restored to allow tenants with defective proxy cards to use a regular key, and that not everyone in the building used the new key cards. Landlord denied there were any problems and said that it retained the key cylinder during a transition period that would end in May 2012.

The DHCR found tenants' claims insufficient to revoke the DRA's order. If tenants continued to have problems with the new system, they could file complaints based on the reduction in services.

Demme: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. AO430048RT (1/17/14) [3-pg. doc.]