Landlord Seeks Restoration of Rents Reduced by 1982 CAB Order

In 1982, the CAB, the DHCR's predecessor agency, reduced tenants' rents and ordered landlord to fix roof leaks, peeling paint and plaster throughout the building and apartments, low water pressure, and inadequate hot water throughout the building, and to restore elevator services by correcting building violations. In 1994, the DHCR denied landlord's application to restore rents. Landlord filed a new application to restore rents in 2008. Landlord now claimed that the original conditions were repaired many times over and that any existing conditions were minor items that were the result of normal wear and tear. The DRA ruled against landlord.
Landlord appealed and lost. Landlord claimed that any conditions found by the DHCR's inspector were new conditions unrelated to the original rent reduction order. Landlord hadn't cured the cause of the leak damage to the bulkhead areas and apartments. And landlord failed to prove that these were individual apartment problems. The original order found there were building structural and mechanical problems that caused leaks and defective walls and ceilings in many apartments in the building.

Rockaway Pratt, LLC/Various Tenants: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket Nos. WJ220024RO, XD220048RT (8/21/09) [7-pg. doc.]