On February 6, 2018, Plaintiff Huggins filed a civil lawsuit in the United States District Court Southern District of New York against CHESTNUT HOLDINGS OF NEW The OAG has been active in holding landlords and property managers accountable for violating childhood lead poisoning prevention laws in New York. 2 3-4, 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. 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. Recently, a lawsuit on behalf of eight housing voucher recipients was filed against Chestnut Holdings in the Manhattan Supreme Court. The refusal to accept the voucher came at a troubling time for Morrison, who had recently been diagnosed with thyroid cancer. New York State has the highest percentage of buildings built before 1950 in the nation. The event brought out close to 100 volunteers who enjoyed a great The OAG began its investigation into Dalfin and the other individuals and entities in 2017, when upon a painstaking review of county and city violation histories, tax records, deed transfers, and corporate filings, the office identified the interrelated group of landlords and property managers with a record of repeated and persistent lead paint violations and childhood lead poisonings. Google Translate cannot translate all types of documents, and it may not give you an exact translation all the time. as Chestnut Holdings partnered with The Bronx is Blooming and The NYC Department of Parks and Recreation to engage the community through environmental stewardship and educational activities. The Environmental Protection Bureau is a part of the Division of Social Justice, which is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General Meghan Faux, and all under the oversight of First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy. WebChestnut 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 Chestnuts strong safety record speaks to its commitment to all of its tenants, its communities, and its neighbors, but most especially children.. Attorney General James is continuing to pursue legal actions across New York to end the scourge of childhood lead poisoning by holding accountable landlords that allow lead paint-related hazards to proliferate in low-income rental properties. 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. 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. Since 2017, OAG hasfound that the group violated the law in other ways, such as: The poisoning of children from lead paint in aging rental housing is an ongoing national public health crisis, but is of particular concern within New York, and especially the Buffalo region. The Bronx real estate company is allegedly refusing to consider tenants with housing vouchers. We are grateful for Attorney General Letitia James commitment to furthering this collaborative mission by holding landlords accountable for their properties violations to ensure that every child has the opportunity to fulfill his or her potential.. 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. The suit alleges that Chestnut Holdings has put the health of its tenants at risk by repeatedly violating the New York City Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act, %%EOF This case will help our call for stronger enforcement of the key provisions of the law that were designed to remove lead from the environment before people are exposed to this neurotoxin. I'd like to thank Attorney General Letitia James for her commitment to the health and safety of families across our state, and for ensuring that all landlords provide safe, healthy, lead-free housing that is in full compliance with our laws. quoteRotator.delay=5;quoteRotator.fadeDuration=1;quoteRotator.fadeoutDuration=2;quoteRotator.quotesInit(); At Chestnut Holdings, we value our relationships with our tenants and are dedicated to building and preserving our tenant communities. 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. These include annual inspections and ensuring that an apartment is code compliant when a tenant moves into their new home. AG Letitia James Sues Chestnut Holdings for Lead Poisoning - The Real Deal Attorney general sues Chestnut Holdings for lead paint According to the lawsuit, Chestnut is considering its options including a possible lawsuit for harassment and defamation. This particular plaintiff was forced to remain in a homeless shelter for seven more months after the incident with Chestnut. This Google translation feature is provided for informational purposes only. We believe there is a policy and practice of this management company to not rent to people who have housing vouchers, said Jean Fischman, who is representing the eight New Yorkers involved in the second case against Chestnut Holdings. The agreement also requires Kiggins and Endzone to pay $215,000 that will be used to prevent the exposure of children to lead paint within the City of Syracuse or Onondaga County, and/or to provide assistance to the families affected by lead poisoning. In the state of New York, its illegal for landlords to deny housing to voucher recipients. Attorney General James thanks Onondaga County and the City of Syracuse for their partnership in this matter. I thank Attorney General James and our partners at Onondaga County for helping us put a stop to the bad practices of John Kiggins and Endzone Properties once and for all, said Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh. Through the Mayors LeadFreeNYC initiative, we will continue to work with our partners on all levels of government to keep New Yorkers safe and drive lead exposure down to zero," said NYC Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Louise Carroll. Each plaque displays an artists hand drawing of the tree along with a brief written description that includes related botanical, practical and historical content. The OAG will continue to work with them and other dedicated local partners to continue to make progress in combatting childhood lead poisoning in the region. 0 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. WebPhone: (718) 543-8200. '' As we have seen with the tragedy in Flint, Michigan, lead can pose a serious safety issue with devastating effects on our most vulnerable populations. Young children are more likely to be exposed to lead than any other age group. Lead-based paint was banned in 1960, but remediating the toxin has proved difficult in older buildings. The health code thus requires lead paint to be enclosed with a rigid surface, such as drywall. Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY), and Peter D. Lopez, Regional Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), announced today that the United States has filed a civil lawsuit against Chestnut Petroleum Distributor, Inc., and its affiliates CPD Energy Corp., CPD Exposure to lead paint in our aging housing stock puts children in grave jeopardy and our future at risk. The company was later dropped from the suit. This matter is being handled by the Environmental Protection Bureau of the New York Attorney Generals Office and is led by Assistant Attorneys General Matthew Eisenson and Patrick Omilian, Special Assistant Attorney General Marissa Lieberman-Klein, Environmental Scientist Jennifer Nalbone, Science Interns Meredith Seibold and Serena Labrecque, and GIS Intern Gregory Welter. Op. This is the second time the property management company is being sued for housing discrimination. 3118 0 obj <> endobj Veritas $450M loan default: A sign of things to come? 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. I commend the New York State Attorney General for taking this action, and thank my team at HPD, along with our colleagues throughout the city and state who work day in, day out to protect the people we serve., All New Yorkers deserve safe homes, free of the dangers of lead poisoning, said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. I am proud to stand with Attorney General Letitia James to fight for Bronx residents and to stand with all New Yorkers to demand that landlords and management companies treat their tenants with the respect and dignity they deserve., "Exposure to lead has devastating consequences for all those exposed, but it is particularly dangerous for young developing children, said New York State Senator Jos M. Serrano. 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. 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. This is the second major action that Attorney General James has taken in the past week to hold landlords accountable for failing to comply with New York Citys lead paint laws. As reported in Crains New York Business, Chestnut Holdings is trying to evict WeWork from a midtown New York City building, and has filed a suit stating that it is Lindos case is similar to another one of the plaintiffs, who was living in a shelter at the time of their apartment search. According to a 2018 study, the city of Buffalo suffers from some of the highest rates of childhood lead exposure in the nation from poor housing conditions in old homes with lead paint. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that in 2017, 715 children in Erie County under six years of age tested with blood lead levels between 5 and 9 g/dL, and 415 children tested with blood lead levels of 10 g/dL or higher. Lead is a highly toxic metal that can cause serious and irreversible adverse health effects. ` *d * $4%Y1\ - Z:q;.&&c60e`tIrS*hd 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. Select a Language Below/Seleccione el Idioma Abajo. Protecting the health and safety of our tenants should always be our number one priority., Attorney General Letitia James deserves high praise for this important victory protecting New Yorkers against lead poisoning, said New York CityCouncil Member Robert Cornegy. Thats what vouchers are there for.. This kind of enforcement is an important aspect of our states larger efforts to ensure that all New Yorkers have access to high-quality, safe, and affordable housing, said State Senator Brian Kavanagh. 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. I will continue to do everything within my power to uphold our lead laws and hold landlords accountable for exposing our communities to serious and irreversible harms., As a part of LeadFreeNYC, HPD is committed to keeping children safe from lead through enhanced enforcement, education, and resources for property owners to make good on their obligations, said New York City Department of Housing Preservation and DevelopmentCommissioner Louise Carroll. In fact, no safe lead level in children has been identified. WebNEW PALTZ, N.Y. Chestnut Petroleum Distributors Inc. (CPD) debuted a new logo and branding for its Chestnut Markets through a partnership with GSP. Lead poisoning in New York City is highest among children of color and children living in high-poverty neighborhoods. In February 2020, Attorney General James filed a lawsuit against Chestnut Holdings of New York, Inc., a property management corporation, for failing to comply with provisions of New York Citys lead poisoning prevention law. In 2013 Chestnut acquired the Shalom Aleichem Houses, three distressed properties made up of 15 buildings, in Van Cortland Village in the Bronx. Exposure to lead poisoning can have long-lasting health consequences, especially on our children, said State Senator Alessandra Biaggi.
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