The futures of our children are at stake., As a pediatrician, when I see kids with lead poisoning its usually too late to prevent the worst effects on their developing brains, which is why people in public health have worked so hard to prevent lead exposure over the years,said Dr. Travis Hobart, MD, MPH, FAAP, medical director, Central/Eastern New York Lead Poisoning Resource Center. CHESTNUT HOLDINGS INC.; 1425 U LLC; and JONATHAN WIENER, Defendants. A spokesperson for Chestnut challenged the quality of the investigation, and said the firm complies with all lead laws to the letter and addresses lead issues immediately. Select a Language Below/Seleccione el Idioma Abajo. The OAGs investigation into Chestnut began in 2018 and determined that the company engaged in repeated violations of the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act, including failing to inspect apartments to determine if a child under 6 years of age lives there, failing to conduct complete annual investigations of apartments for hazards that are conducive to lead poisoning, and failing to take the necessary measures when an apartment turns over. OPINION & ORDER. On May 29, 2020, the Court conditionally certified this collective action pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), 29 U.S.C. Veritas $450M loan default: A sign of things to come? New York has some of the strongest lead poisoning prevention measures in the country, but without enforcement, families will continue to suffer. All rights reserved. 3136 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<31CF17F26827B64D9D1C3BD947307B0A><1127F07792CB7B4EA4E7A2D6EC3485F1>]/Index[3118 28]/Info 3117 0 R/Length 89/Prev 699633/Root 3119 0 R/Size 3146/Type/XRef/W[1 2 1]>>stream Additionally, Chestnut Holdings repeatedly certified, in new leases, that it had complied with the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Acts turnover requirements, even though it had not done so. What we do have is the fact that the landlord, unfortunately, has not complied with the law and as a result of that, he again, it poses a threat to all of the children who are currently residents in this building, she says. James says her office reached out multiple times to Chestnut Holdings, but did not get a response. Children who have been exposed to even very low levels of lead are at risk for neurological and physical problems during critical stages of early development. Anyone relying on information obtained from Google Translate does so at his or her own risk. CALL: 516-248-5550 ". Endangering a child in the place they are supposed to feel most secure is the worst form of exploitation., We have been working hard to protect families from lead paint poisoning in Erie County and I thank the Attorney General for bringing this lawsuit against scofflaw landlords who refuse to do their part in the fight, said Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz. Wb\M1uELF QPT20}7CL3p9e iS&JV?` 0 q Hopefully, legal actions like this one will send a message to others who might choose to ignore lead poisoning prevention laws that such behavior will not be tolerated. Thats what vouchers are there for.. Plaintiff Huggins brings this action on himself and all similarly situated current and former employees pursuant to the FLSA and NYLL. Chestnut Holdings hb```b``g`2@(@x*G78hvqiC]Vr M?3X0O;t; w8#?N9f-jY#cl ?'or: A+D5?-cuzF>g$]asy`MsrT `^a' 5~_A6OX9M9 E I_[EQ TyV)mt)H}Ri}+gE6I~_9*Ae`h`Mh DG8 ;:B fh``6X- u Any landlord or group that fails to address properties that contain these dangerous levels of lead need to be held accountable, and I commend the Attorney General for taking action., I have seen the impact of lead poisoning on members of my own family, and one of my proudest moments as a legislator was the creation of a pilot program to expand educational intervention services for children who suffer from lead poisoning, said Erie County Legislature Chair April N. M. Baskin. A copy of this disclaimer can also be found on our Disclaimer page. Childrens lives and futures are a stake in this ongoing effort, and the actions we take today will help to safeguard our youth and punish those who would harm them., Families living in Buffalos older, distressed properties are disproportionately vulnerable to the serious health consequences of lead poisoning, said U.S. Representative Brian Higgins. The State of New York, its officers, employees, and/or agents shall not be liable for damages or losses of any kind arising out of, or in connection with, the use or performance of such information, including but not limited to, damages or losses caused by reliance upon the accuracy of any such information, or damages incurred from the viewing, distributing, or copying of such materials. Chestnut Holdings of New York is a family-owned real estate investment and property management firm with a long track record of successful, responsible and reliable management. The event brought out close to 100 volunteers who enjoyed a great According to a complaint her office filed today, Chestnut Holdings repeatedly exposed children to lead paint and fraudulently certified that it had complied with the law passed to prevent that. As a landlord to thousands of children and families, Chestnut failed to safeguard its tenants, but, today, we are ensuring their health will be protected moving forward. This highly toxic metal causes serious and irreversible harms, and I am committed to ensuring that landlords follow the laws to protect young children from lead poisoning.. The New York City Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act requires owners of apartments and houses built before 1960 to take critical safety measures such as identifying apartments where children under six live, conducting annual investigations of those apartments for hazards that are conducive to lead poisoning, and remediating those conditions where they occur. Topics you care about, straight to your inbox. However, the "Google Translate" option may assist you in reading it in other languages. Nathaniel Ari Weisbrot, Esq. It is as immoral as it is illegal that a landlord would knowingly expose families to lead poisoning, which disproportionately threatens the health and development of Black and brown children, said Attorney General James. Select a Language Below/Seleccione el Idioma Abajo. In the state of New York, its illegal for landlords to deny housing to voucher recipients. New Yorkers sue Bronx real estate company for refusing vouchers We have met with the staff personally to Chestnut Holdings However, the "Google Translate" option may assist you in reading it in other languages. I want to thank Attorney General Letitia James and her team for their ongoing commitment, consistency, swift action, and thorough investigation into this important issue., A key premise of the lead law in 2004 was to make it clear that landlords had the prime responsibility to make sure the apartments they rent do not have lead-based paint hazards, said Matthew Chachre, attorney, Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation. Lead poisoning persists as one of themost prevalent and preventable environmental diseases in New York, with thousands of children having blood leadlevels above the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions reference value. Mehdi Bolour faces 25 criminal charges over illegally rented Hollywood building, More than 1,000 children in public housing have had high levels of lead since 2012, Landlord groups say lead poisoning laws will hurt affordable housing, Chestnut Holdings buys Bronx-centric 19-building retail portfolio, High Street, Daiwa bring resi to River Oaks, St. Charles revamp of torched resort takes center stage in local City Hall races, LIV plans massive resi project in Fort Worth, KBS deal to sell Union Bank Plaza to Joel Schreiber delayed for 9th time. Brian Zak/NY Post A group The New York City Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act requires owners of apartments and houses built before 1960 to take critical safety measures to prevent lead poisoning in children tenants. Google Translate cannot translate all types of documents, and it may not give you an exact translation all the time. As a result, at least 18 children residing in 17 different properties owned or managed by Endzone experienced lead poisoning. New York Attorney General Letitia James is going after one of the largest multifamily landlords in the city for alleged lead-paint violations. 2 3-4, Property Manager Sued Over Lead-Paint Compliance by New York Chestnuts strong safety record speaks to its commitment to all of its tenants, its communities, and its neighbors, but most especially children.. This is incredibly pervasive in New York City. BUFFALO New York Attorney General Letitia James, joined by Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown, today announced a lawsuit against a group of individuals and companies in the Buffalo region for repeatedly and persistently violating county, city, state, and federal laws by illegally allowing lead paint-related hazards to proliferate in their rental properties. Having lead paint in an apartment is not necessarily illegal if there is no risk of exposure, but when building owners paint over it rather than remove it which is expensive it can eventually resurface. WeWork's Bid To Find A New Lease On Life | PYMNTS.com In order to be truly successful, however, we need partners and Attorney General James has been a reliable partner in our fight against lead poisoning and holding landlords accountable. She believes she was discriminated against by a broker at Chestnut Holdings. The Judge overseeing this case is John Preston Bailey. That same year, Erie County was the only county in New York in which children who tested with blood lead levels exceeding 45 g/dL were reported. Lead poisoning in Onondaga County occurs predominantly within Syracuse, and disproportionately harms low-income communities and communities of color. Morrison said she was devastated and humiliated by the experience. According to the complaint, 600 children in Chestnut Holdings buildings are under the age of six and receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, colloquially known as food stamps. WebNew York, commenced this action on February 27, 2020 against defendant Chestnut Holdings of New York, Inc. (Chestnut) pursuant to New York Executive Law 63(12) They failed to ensure that my constituents and New Yorkers across the city were living in homes that were free of lead paint and, in doing so, put hundreds, if not thousands, of families at risk of lead poisoning. Chestnut Holdings Chestnut Holdings continues to amass properties in the Bronx, paying $46.6 million for a 10-building portfolio in the borough. Understanding Recent Changes to New Yorks Gun Laws, Chestnut Holdings Will Pay $300,000 for OAG Programs to Protect Children From Lead Poisoning, Ensure All Apartments Are Fully Compliant With NYC Lead Laws, Second Major Action by AG James in a Week to Protect NYC Children From Lead Paint, Hold Bad Landlords Accountable. Data analysis was handled by Senior Data Analyst Akram Hasanov, under the supervision of Research and Analytics Department Directior Jonathan Werberg and Deputy Director Megan Thorsfeldt. Children who have been exposed to even very low levels of lead are at risk for neurological and physical problems during critical stages of early development. I am proud to have the city be a partner in this suit with Attorney General James and our partners in the county, said Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. Attorney General James thanks Onondaga County and the City of Syracuse for their partnership in this matter. 95 worked with DreamYards art instructors to create an art display that was unveiled in the lobby of Chestnuts building at 1504 Sheridan Avenue. Our children deserve to live in safe and healthy homes, not dangerous and poisonous ones. Since 2012, 87 percent of all lead poisoned children in Onondaga County were from Syracuse. They have damaged the lives of countless children in our community. Understanding Recent Changes to New Yorks Gun Laws, Endzone Properties Barred from Owning or Managing RentalProperties in New York, Must Pay $215,0000, Landlord Failed to Maintain Lead-Safe Conditions in Rental Properties,Resulting in At Least 18 Children Poisoned With Lead. In addition, no apartments The building in front of which the attorney general selected to announce the lead lawsuit, 1515 Macombs Road, has exactly zero lead violations. This is the second time the property management company is being sued for housing discrimination. New York City has a major child lead poisoning problem, with a rate of 11.2 per 1,000 children living in private housing having elevated blood lead levels., New York Citys landmark Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention law is key to ending the enduring devastation of lead in our communities, saidMatthew Chachre, attorney, Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation. On 04/29/2020 Avery, Mary filed a Property - Other Property lawsuit against 1560 GC LLC Chestnut Holdings of New York, Inc Wiener, Jonathan Rieder, Ben Department of Buildings Department of Housing Preservation and Development.This case was filed in Bronx County Courts, Bronx County Civil Court located in Washington, New Lindo claims he attempted to rent a Chestnut apartment in 2019, but never heard back from his broker after revealing he would be paying his entire rent with a housing voucher. Attorney General James thanks Erie County and the city of Buffalo for their partnership and for providing critical information for this complaint. Unfortunately, some landlords have ignored that responsibility with impunity., New York Lawyers for the Public Interest supports Attorney General Letitia James' offices action today to protect families from toxic lead exposure through enforcement of New York Citys Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act, Local Law 1 of 2004, said Christine Appah, senior staff attorney, Environmental Justice Program, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest. Although New York banned the use of lead paint in 1970, with the federal government following suit in 1978, buildings constructed prior to 1978 often still have lead paint. Using shell companies to avoid complying with city rental registration requirements; Failing to comply with city and state property management and real estate broker licensing requirements; Conducting business in New York without authority to do so from the Department of State; and. Opp'n Ex. Some of the worst landlords in our city put the health and safety of New Yorkers at risk to protect their own profits, and Chestnut Holdings is near the top of my office's list, said New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. Chestnut Holdings is getting slapped Her and her husband were being evicted from their apartment after he fell off a scaffold and was no longer able to work his construction job. Chestnut Holdings is a family-owned real estate investment and management firm of properties throughout New York City. The lawsuit, filed in October 2021, alleged that Kiggins and Endzone endangered the health of its tenants, primarily children, by repeatedly violating lead paint laws and failing to properly address related hazards. : 18-cv-1037. The Defendants have also denied Plaintiff Huggins minimum wage and/or overtime pay as required by state and federal laws; failed to provide a wage notice at the time Plaintiff was hired and annually, as required by law; and failed to provide a proper wage statement for each pay period, as required by law. In the lawsuit, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) identifies six specific Dalfin properties that serve as examples of the egregious and illegal lead hazard management practices used by the landlords and the poisoning of children in those properties. Exposure to lead paint in our aging housing stock puts children in grave jeopardy and our future at risk, James said in a statement. Lead paint has been found in approximately 43 percent of all of New York dwellings. The State of New York, its officers, employees, and/or agents shall not be liable for damages or losses of any kind arising out of, or in connection with, the use or performance of such information, including but not limited to, damages or losses caused by reliance upon the accuracy of any such information, or damages incurred from the viewing, distributing, or copying of such materials. We need the ongoing assistance of every level of government to protect tenants from property owners who arent addressing lead hazards. All New Yorkers deserve to live in a safe and healthy home, and this is a great step in ensuring that our tenants are protected from lead exposure., Lead is a serious public health issue that, if not properly addressed, can lead to life altering medical complications for young children and families living in New York City, said New York CityCouncil Member Vanessa Gibson. Senior Data Analyst Akram Hasanov, Intern Atharv Khatu, and Director of Research and Analytics Jonathan Werberg also assisted with this matter. See some of the wonderful letters we have received from our tenants over the years expressing appreciation for various matters. Children under six are more likely to be exposed to lead than any other age group, as their normal behaviors could result in them chewing lead paint chips; breathing in or swallowing dust from old lead paint that gets on floors, window sills, and hands; and can be found in soil, toys, and other consumer products. Every family deserves to live in a home free of lead hazards, and I will work to ensure that happens.. The case status is Pending - Any future violation of the law by Chestnut Holdings will violate the agreement and subject the company to possible legal action by the OAG. NYC workers strip searched in hunt for 'stolen' money - New York Buffalos residents deserve to live in homes that are safe, secure and stable, especially when so many of us have been forced to spend a greater period of time in our homes as a result of the COVID-19 global health pandemic. Lindos case is similar to another one of the plaintiffs, who was living in a shelter at the time of their apartment search. Chestnut Holdings will pay $300,000 to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) for initiatives to protect children from lead poisoning and ensure that all of its more than 6,000 apartments throughout New York City are in full compliance with the law. Chestnut Lead paint exposure is a dangerous scourge on New Yorks communities that disproportionately impacts our Black and brown children, said Attorney General James. This seems to be the case with Chestnut Holdings. This matter is being handled by Attorney General James Environmental Protection Bureau by Assistant Attorney General Abigail Rosner, Special Counsel Sara Haviva Mark, Assistant Attorney General Samantha Liskow, Deputy Bureau Chief Monica Wagner, Chief Scientist Jodi Feld, Environmental Scientist Jennifer Nalbone, Environmental Science Intern Jeffrey Fralick, and Amanda Moody, Legal Assistant II, under the supervision of Bureau Chief Lemuel M. Srolovic. NEW YORK New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced a lawsuit against Chestnut Holdings of New York, Inc., a property management 0 Citing Exposure of Children to Lead Poisoning, Attorney Attorney General James thanks the City of New York and the New York State Homes and Community Renewal for their assistance with data collection during the investigation. Plaintiff Huggins regularly worked as many as seven days and well over 40 hours each week, including the requirement that he be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week to deal with any issues in the residential multifamily properties that the Defendants owned. There is no looking the other way. Cant Get Into the Infamous Rolfs Christmas Bar? Chestnut Holdings has recently come under fire for allegedly turning away tenants with housing vouchers. The health impacts of lead paint in rental housing are particularly acute in the Buffalo region, where children who live in communities of color are 12 timesas likely than children who live in predominately white neighborhoods to be diagnosed with an elevated blood lead level.
