Tenant alleged that the City’s allocation of the property tax burden violated due process and equal protection. Ernest Robinson sought declaratory and injunctive relief alleging that the City’s property tax classification system created a disparate and adverse impact on African-American and Hispanic residents, deprived them of due process and equal protection of the laws, and violated the Fair Housing Act. Robinson alleged that the Class Two tax burden, heavily made up of rental multiple dwellings, … <Read More>
Due Process
Owner Fined $18,000 for Basement Conversion
Owner converted basement into additional rental apartment without permit. On December 26, 2012, an inspector from the Department of Buildings served a notice of violation charging that Pandora Realty LLC had without a permit created an apartment in the basement, complete with gas and waste lines. The illegal basement apartment on 201st Street in Queens was being rented at the time. Included with the notice was an order by Buildings to correct the violation by … <Read More>