Tenant Not Eligible for Stay of Eviction Under CEEFPA

Landlord sued to evict tenant for creating a nuisance. Tenant failed to appear in court, and the court granted a judgment for landlord after inquest. In November 2020, the court granted landlord's request to execute on the eviction warrant during the COVID-19 pandemic. But landlord was later stayed from executing on the eviction warrant under the COVID-19 Emergency Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Act (CEEFPA), passed in late 2020. Landlord then restored the case to the court calendar by filing an emergency Order to Show Cause. Tenant again failed to appear in court and didn't file a Hardship Declaration.

The court held a hearing, and a downstairs neighbor testified that a leak from tenant's apartment that occurred several weeks earlier resulted in the collapse of his bathroom and kitchen ceilings. That neighbor also said that the leaks were an ongoing issue for several years. Landlord's agent testified that FDNY was called on several occasions to address the leaks and found that they were caused by open faucets in tenant's apartment. The building super also testified that he hadn't seen tenant at the building in over two months but that other unknown persons had been in and out of tenant's apartment.

The court ruled for landlord and directed landlord to submit for a new eviction warrant. The court indicated that tenant was ineligible for a stay under CEEFPA since tenant persistently and unreasonably engaged in behavior that substantially infringed on the use and enjoyment of other building occupants and caused a substantial safety hazard to others.

2857 Sedgwick Ave. LLC v. Drummond: 2021 NY Slip Op 21056, NYLJ No. 1617700564 (Civ. Ct. Bronx; 3/2/21; Tovar, J)