Temporary Security Guards

Landlord asked the DHCR if it could hire security guards on a temporary basis with out the guard service becoming a required service. In an opinion letter, the DHCR pointed out that under the Rent Stabilization Code any service provided to tenants after the building's base date generally becomes a required service. However, the DHCR has ruled in prior cases that the hiring of security guards, without charge to tenants, as a temporary measure in response to an emergency situation, doesn't become a required service. The DHCR has considered periods of two to three years to be ''temporary'' in some prior cases. There are no particular records that landlord must maintain to show that the guard service is temporary. Any determination of whether the guard service becomes a required service will depend on the facts and circumstances of each case.

DHCR Opin. Ltr. by Charles Goldstein (2/25/98) [2-page document]