By Dan Murphy
There is never a good time to find out that you have to leave your home, but perhaps the worst time of all could be in the winter and around the holiday season. Unfortunately, residents who live at 254, 256 and 258 New Main St. received bad news when a boiler for the three buildings stopped working, resulting in all three buildings getting temporarily condemned by the Yonkers Building Department because of substandard temperatures.
Residents were told to evacuate their apartments until the boilers were replaced. And to make matters worse, a few residents’ apartments were robbed of their belongings after they were forced to leave.
Councilwoman Corazon Pineda-Isaac, who represents the apartment buildings in the second district, spent the last two weeks taking action on three different levels: helping the tenants and families affected, contacting the landlord, and trying to find ways through legislation to hold landlords accountable and keep track of bad landlords in the city.
“My office, as well as the city’s Office of Constituent Services, has been in touch with the Westchester County Department of Social Services in regard to the immediate temporary housing for those families that had nowhere to go to,” she said. “Some had been placed in a hotel, others had been placed in emergency shelters. We were able to secure an extension at the hotels until DSS works out the details.”
According to Pineda-Isaac, the owner of the three properties had a meeting set up with the Buildings Department to go over the details of the replacement of the boiler, which she planned to be present for.
“I’ve looked into the history of the landlord for 254, 256 and 258 New Main St.,” she said. “It appears this is the first heat-related complaint on record for these properties. The Building Department acted quickly in condemning the buildings to ensure that no family is living in frigid temperatures, especially since so many of the affected families have small children. I hope that this situation – where families are scrambling to find last-minute housing through no fault of their own – is not repeated. I will look into introducing legislation that would hold landlords financially responsible for temporary housing for tenants that need to be displaced due to landlord negligence.”
The councilwoman explained that the Building Violations Registry that was created more than a year ago was supposed to track data on building violations, in order to hold neglectful landlords accountable to their tenants.
“I am disappointed that the registry has not been working as it was meant to,” she said. “Information is lacking and as it exists right now; it is not what was called for in the legislation I introduced back in 2016. I will work with the Building Department to ensure that it becomes a tool that can be used as it was intended to.”
Pineda-Isaac’s office is collecting items these families may need during their time of displacement. Drop-off is at City Hall, fourth floor, Suite 414. The councilwoman will be distributing the items directly to the New Main Street residents over the next few days.
“According to the Building Department, the soonest they will be able to get into their apartments is two to three weeks from now,” she said. “If you or anyone you know can provide temporary housing for any of these residents, please give me a call at 914-377-6312. Or if you know of any affordable permanent housing, let me know, as well. My office has already received over seven bags of clothing and a crib donation. I love how Yonkers families come together in times of need.”
After announcing a call for help for these families, the response was great, noted Pineda-Isaac. “In less than 48 hours, we received so many donations that we were overwhelmed with so many supplies,” she said. Donations included diapers from the Westchester County Diaper Bank, clothing from the Yonkers Federation of Teachers, and donations from Pressley Memorial Church, St. Joseph’s Hospital, DSS, the Yonkers Police Department and Captains, Lieutenants, and Sergeants Association – and more.
“We also received support from some of the New Main Street merchants,” said Pineda-Isaac. “Roberto from La Piñata and Pedro Alvarez have been supportive every step of the way. Catholic Charities and the Yonkers Sanctuary Movement have been amazing in their support to these residents, as well as Mayor Spano’s office, and some of my colleagues on the City Council, including Councilmembers Michael Sabatino, Shanae Williams, and Council President Mike Khader and their respective staff members.
“We set up all the donations at the Power Lab (thanks LaMont OyeWale’ Badru), and at St. Mary’s Church,” she continued. “We’re still working on providing for the displaced families. The new boiler has already been installed and is up and running at the New Main Street properties. The city’s Building Department will be conducting another inspection to see what other housing violations have been cleared in order to determine how soon families could move in.”
Thankfully, on Dec. 6, the New Main Street properties passed inspection and families were allowed to move back into their homes. St. Joseph’s Medical Center was able to make donations to the families, thanks to anonymous donors that wanted to help.
“I was moved to make sure to try and help because of what the families were going through during the holiday season. These are families that have very little and I feel it my responsibility to try and serve as a messenger and put the families in touch with people who can help them. We are connectors on the council,” said Pineda-Isaac. “We also need to try to protect families in the future and hold those accountable. I’m hoping that future legislation will do that.”
In addition to not providing heat to the tenants for 30 days, the New Main Street properties had multiple other building code violations. Pineda-Isaac will be hosting a Christmas party for the families affected, Tuesday, Dec. 18. Toys and gift cards will be accepted as donations to Pineda-Isaac’s offi ce on the fourth fl oor of City Hall.
