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Buildings Dept. can't locate job folder -- what can I do?

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Buildings Dept. can't locate job folder -- what can I do?

Postby mkraft » Mon Aug 28, 2006 10:26 am

The Buildings Dept. claims it's unable to locate the folder for a 'job' relating to a 'substantial rehab.' It offered no explanation for why the folder can't be found (the job isn't being audited or otherwise in a traceable location within DOB).

Is there anything I can do to force it to 'find' the folder?

Replies appreciated.
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Postby Anna » Mon Aug 28, 2006 6:19 pm

Most of the info is online.
What is missing online?
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Postby mkraft » Tue Aug 29, 2006 12:24 pm

All the job details (for a substantial rehab) plus final ('punched') plan drawings are available online?

I'm trying to establish the size of an apartment before and after a substantial rehab, as it was clearly reduced in size. I don't, however, know what the official NYC records say about the size ('before' or 'after'), so I would like to look that up.

Having that 'official' information would, I assume, be crucial if any legal action is to be contemplated.

If that detailed information is available online, how can I locate it? It didn't seem to be available on DOB's own computers.

(There were microfilms, but the apartment dimensions were so small on the microfilm that they weren't readable. A blow-up photocopy also didn't work.)

Thanks very much.
mkraft
 
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Location: NYC (Manhattan)

Postby Anna » Tue Aug 29, 2006 2:54 pm

mkraft wrote:All the job details (for a substantial rehab) plus final ('punched') plan drawings are available online?

If that detailed information is available online, how can I locate it? It didn't seem to be available on DOB's own computers.


Go to DOB website.

mkraft wrote:There were microfilms, but the apartment dimensions were so small on the microfilm that they weren't readable. A blow-up photocopy also didn't work.


Did you ask DOB if they still had the original plans in house?
DOB does blow up micorfilm back to original size, costs about $8(?) each: if you still can't read them, take them to any photocopier and blow them up larger.
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Postby mkraft » Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:34 pm

> Did you ask DOB if they still had the original plans in house?

They claim not to know what happened to the plans. Therefore they could not answer that question.

> DOB does blow up micorfilm back to original size, costs about $8(?) each: if you still can't read them, take them to any photocopier and blow them up larger.

They blew up the available microfilm on-premises to at least 11 x 17, possibly larger. The dimensions were still not visible.

Are plans kept anywhere else? In other words, can I locate the official record of the apartment's dimension at any other city/state agency?
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Postby Anna » Thu Aug 31, 2006 3:26 pm

mkraft wrote:Are plans kept anywhere else? In other words, can I locate the official record of the apartment's dimension at any other city/state agency?


NO.
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Postby lofter1 » Thu Aug 31, 2006 10:44 pm

We ran into this problem a number of years ago while our building was going through Code-compliance legalization work: The Folder for the Job was not at DOB. Seemingly the LL's Architect had taken the Folder with the plans / paperwork out of DOB (a practice that apparently is not all that unusual while the Job is on-going -- even though to remove the Folder doesn't necessarily comply with DOB regulations). However not being able to access the Folder made it very difficult for Ts to track certain aspects of the work that was taking place at the building (the Ts / LL were going through various Court procedures at the time).

Eventually the Folder found its way back to DOB -- but not until the Ts had subpoenaed the LL & Architect. At that time it was the belief of the Ts that the LL & Architect had been advised by Counsel that the presence of certain material in the Folder would not be helpful for the LL's case (in fact the time-stamps showing who had viewed the Folder indicated that the LL's Counsel may have been responsible for removing the Folder, but it was not possible to prove that).

Ultimately having access to the actual material in the Folder (the existence of which was indicated on certain DOB computer records) helped the Ts to prove aspects of the case against the LL. But digging for that material / information took many hours and a lot of tenacity.
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