H.S.I. Lies To Tenants About Conditions In Building

As a Rent Stabilized tenant of this S.R.O., you have witnessed the way our building runs and the problems which affect it. A few feel it’s being run O.K., while the majority of residents are not satisfied with conditions and would like some big changes. What’s YOUR opinion, and what do you think should be done? The first thing tenants need to know is what they are entitled to as residents of this building. For example, you are entitled by LAW to safe reliable elevators. Another important point is what your legal rights are as a tenant! You have many rights under Rent Stabilization Law and Code, N.Y. State Real Property Law and other Housing laws. Free copies of the “Tenants Rights Guide” are available from the New York State Attorney General’s Office, State Capitol, Albany, NY 12224, or from any other office of the Attorney General. The Guide may be downloaded from the Attorney General’s website: www.ag.ny.gov. There is also a New York City office located at 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271-0332; the phone number there is 212-416-8000. The Guide is available in English and Spanish, and you can have multiple copies sent to you at once. Management would have you believe that they ‘make the rules’. They are wrong and staff misleads tenants into thinking that they have no rights. It is about time that residents organize a tenants association and encourage other tenants to participate and change our S.R.O. into a safer, well maintained building. Remember that there is strength in numbers and a unified front is difficult to beat! Some tenants are upset by vermin (mice, roaches) in their apartments; other tenants have mold growing in their apartments. Quite a few tenants are infuriated by the lack of regular elevator maintenance. Since management has a new policy of trying to blame tenants for causing these problems, it makes more sense to call 311 immediately and report violations of the habitability of the building. Having limited access to elevators is especially hard on our neighbors who use wheelchairs, walkers or canes to get around. Beware of another new tactic used by case workers and management; if tenants complain about vermin in their rooms, they may call tenants hoarders and then make false accusations about tenants to Adult Protective Services – they’ve called several tenants “hoarders” already. This is dangerous and malicious. Their attempts at profiling tenants are empty and baseless, How to successfully respond to false accusations like this will be discussed in a new issue of the newsletter.

Several years ago, I had a very unpleasant experience here at Kenmore Hall. Management and Security completely dropped the ball, and showed me that tenant safety is definitely NOT top priority in the building. It also taught me not to trust staff at all, and that they have nothing worthwhile to offer. I am NOT a victim, I'm a SURVIVOR, and no thanks to them. Another reason I'm bringing up "ancient history" is that during the fall of 2013, Mr. Garcia called me down to his office to see if I'd mind if the ban on Mr. Ross's girlfriend could be lifted so she could visit him. It was quite easy to say no, particularly since since a good friend of mine is also currently banned from the building. I suggested to Mr. Garcia that it might become easier for me to change my mind about Mr. Ross's girlfriend if my friend were no longer banned - and he dropped the whole conversation immediately, telling me I was comparing apples and oranges. The difference is, of course, that Ross's girlfriend helped him attack me right here in the building, and my friend has never attacked anyone here, ever, to the best of my knowledge. Security in this building is a relative thing; personally, I feel safer on the streets outside that I do inside the building, and I also believe that the surveillance cameras are here to protect the building, not the tenants. Here's the back story on this: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 Watch Your Back If you get assaulted in Kenmore Hall, don’t count on desk staff in the lobby to assist you (either by intervening or calling the police on their own), despite the fact that we have surveillance cameras in all common areas of the building and someone is supposed to be monitoring them at all times, and that the desk staff reports to the Director of Security. Expect to have desk staff challenge why you’ve called the police in the event of a violent crime. Most of all, take note of the fact that the green sign that used to sit on the reception desk alerting tenants, guests and others that closed circuit cameras are in use throughout the building for the protection of tenants and guests has been removed. Now, instead, we have two signs – one in the lobby seating area, the other in the second floor community room – advising people that photography and videotaping in the building is prohibited without prior consent from H.S.I. Most of all, if you’ve been assaulted in Kenmore Hall, don’t count on having management or the Director of Security cooperate with the District Attorney’s office should the incident go to trial by providing the proper segment of videotape showing the assault (should you be lucky enough to be assaulted in a part of the building that’s under video surveillance in the first place). Are tenants supposed to feel that the surveillance cameras in the building are here to protect tenants, or to protect the building? That’s not an original observation on my part; it’s a rhetorical question I was asked during an interview I had with a Victim’s Services worker at the District Attorney’s office this past summer. We both knew the real answer. I was assaulted on an elevator in Kenmore Hall by Timothy Ross, another tenant, on June 1st, 2010, just before 7:00 in the evening. The attack didn’t stop in the elevator; he and his girlfriend chased me up the hallway from the elevator to my room on the 11th floor, hitting me hard enough in and around the head to bloody my nose and make me see stars. I’m afraid to think of what would have happened if another neighbor hadn’t been on the elevator with me, trying to block Ross’s blows, and finally calming him enough to get him to walk away while I let myself into my room to call the police. When I went down to the lobby that evening to meet the police officers, the desk staff wanted to know why I’d called the police (why wouldn’t I after being viciously attacked?); then they wanted me to fill out an incident report immediately, and I had to explain to them that I was going to speak to the police officers first, because that took priority over everything else. Ross was already in the lobby, and had apparently already spoken to the desk staff. I gave my statement to the police officers, and had Ross arrested. Incredibly, the female police officer I was speaking to couldn’t seem to believe that I really wanted to have him arrested; she asked me three or more times whether that was what I definitely wanted. He was finally arrested – and protested being handcuffed. When I went back into the lobby, I stopped at the reception desk to file an incident report, and White told me that an incident report had already been filed by Ross. I had to insist on filing a report because the desk staff apparently had difficulty understanding that there were two sides to the incident, and that I was the victim and that my statement was essential. The following evening, a large group of tenants was congregated in the lobby. Some of them appeared to be drunk; several made loud, threatening and racist comments directed at me when I walked by from the elevator to the front door. This was witnessed by another tenant, who was with me, and was loud enough that it must have been audible to the staff at the reception desk. Another tenant entered the building and spat repeatedly at me as he passed me. I was called a white bitch, and the threats included “getting” me off camera on 22nd Street. Obviously, Ross had been busy talking to his friends about the incident, and I had become a target for what sounded like an angry mob. Over the next few weeks, I was approached by several other tenants who demanded to know what had happened between Ross and me, and the encounters were not particularly pleasant – the questions weren’t simply questions, they felt like challenges. I had to remind them that it didn’t concern them, and that the matter was being handled by the District Attorney’s office. Interestingly enough, a couple of black tenants made supportive comments during that period of time – telling me that they disliked the gossiping and ugly talk Mr. Ross’s friends were spreading around the building. They also commented on the strong division in the building across racial lines. The trial was adjourned twice over the summer and fall. The District Attorney’s office met with my witness and me to collect our statements; we were told in July that they were having trouble getting Ralph Garcia, Director of Security at Kenmore Hall, to submit the segment of video from the surveillance cameras that showed the assault, as he promised me he would do if it was subpoenaed. The copy of the video was finally received at the D.A.’s office the day after one of the adjourned trial dates in August. During this entire time, no one from H.S.I. management contacted me to find out how I was or anything about the case. On July 1st, though, I came home to find that a memo had been placed on all the doors in my hall regarding management’s intention to take legal action against tenants continued to throw trash out the windows of the building, signed by Dan Danaher. I was outraged, and responded in writing immediately. That letter is included later in this post. Danaher has never responded to my letter. Over the fall, commentary on the matter by other tenants mostly trickled off, but one evening another tenant asked me if I wouldn’t accept an apology from Ross and drop the case. He’d apparently been asked to relay the outrageous message by Ross himself. Ross pleaded guilty to the assault charge on December 8, and the result is that I have a permanent order of protection against him and he has a class B criminal misdemeanor on his record. Instead of going to jail, he has to serve five days of community service. He gets to stay in the building because H.S.I. apparently doesn’t feel that his attack on me merits his being evicted. According to the District Attorney’s office, Mr. Ross’s sentence to do community service rather than being sent to jail was based on his not having been arrested within the past 8 years (although he has had legal problems in the past), and the segment of video they’d reviewed which showed various people walking around a variety of floors in the building. Both Ralph Garcia and Mollie Mattimore have told me that they both viewed the video records taken from the surveillance cameras, and that what was sent to the D.A.’s office definitely showed the assault. When I asked Garcia and Mattimore why it took so long to deliver the tape to the D.A.’s office, and why it didn’t show the actual assault, they told me a ridiculous story about the subpoena arriving at H.S.I.’s Park Avenue offices during Garcia’s vacation addressed directly to Mr. Garcia rather than being addressed to him as a staff member of H.S.I., and it not being opened or dealt with until his return because they didn’t realize it was pressing business that directly concerned H.S.I. Mattimore claims that Garcia often receives mail regarding legal cases involving tenants who have moved out of H.S.I. properties, and that they assumed that this correspondence involved one of those cases. She also mentioned that Dan Danaher had noticed it when it arrived. Garcia claims he hand-delivered the subpoenaed video to the D.A.’s office as soon as he returned from his vacation. I find it interesting that Danaher’s name came up in this conversation, not only because it sounds like an interesting way to pass the blame on to another staff member, but also because I had complained to Danaher about his “flying trash” memo at the beginning of July. Mattimore also told me that while she wishes that Ross could be removed from the building, it’s very difficult to evict tenants unless they owe phenomenal amounts of back rent and don’t have the means to pay up. That doesn’t sound completely accurate, though. For example, DHCR’s Section 8 tenant package contains a list of rules and regulations concerning tenant conduct while they’re receiving the Section 8 subsidy. Item four on the second page of this list prohibits tenants from engaging “in drug-related criminal activity or violent criminal activity or other criminal activity that threatens the health, safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment of other residents and persons residing in the immediate vicinity of the premises.” Hmmm. Ross has pleaded guilty to a violent criminal act against me. I certainly haven’t had much “peaceful enjoyment” since the assault. The only way I can effectively enforce the order of protection is if he violates it – then I can call the police and have him arrested again - but who in their right mind would want to have to endure another attack? So what’s the problem with getting him out of the building? Kenmore Hall is not a long-term housing solution for me. It was never intended to be more than a transitional solution while I find employment and better housing. I’d rather be living in a one or two bedroom apartment in Brooklyn, frankly, and I’ve been pursuing that. While I don’t want to be here any longer than absolutely necessary, I also don’t want to move out in haste just to get away from a criminal who has victimized me. When I move out, it has to be a stable, upward move, not a lateral or insecure move. Here is the body of the letter I sent to Danaher in July: July 1, 2010 Dan Danaher, Director of Operations H.S.I. / Housing and Services Inc. 461 Park Avenue New York NY 10010 FAX: 212-252-9322 RE: Memo regarding disposal of trash Danaher; When I returned home to Kenmore Hall last night, I found a copy of your memo stating that management has received complaints from community members about trash being thrown out Kenmore Hall’s windows, and that management will “immediate initiate legal proceedings against said tenant(s)” tucked in my door (#11J). While I appreciate the seriousness of the situation and the need to ensure that all tenants are put on notice about it, I found the memo offensive for several reasons. Your memo states that throwing garbage out the windows at Kenmore Hall is both unacceptable and dangerous, but is it any more unacceptable and dangerous than the vicious assault on me by another tenant that took place in the building on June 1st? Timothy Ross and his girlfriend attacked me on an elevator that evening, and pursued me up the hallway, punching me repeatedly in the head and neck, hard enough for me to see stars – and if it hadn’t been for the intervention of another tenant, I doubt very much that the attack would have stopped before I was severely injured. Most of the attack took place in a hallway on camera and was recorded on the surveillance tapes, and took over five minutes. The desk staff on duty at that time did nothing to intervene; I understand that they are not security officers, but they didn’t even bother to call 911. I called the police myself and filed a police report and had the other tenant arrested. We’ll be in court in August. So much for safety and acceptable behavior in the building; the security cameras are basically useless when violent behavior that is completely visible to the staff who are supposed to be monitoring activities in the building isn’t acted on immediately and effectively. I realize that H.S.I. has a commitment to providing housing to low-income people, and that part of its mission includes helping provide stable housing to ex-offenders and people with substance abuse problems. I was told when I was interviewed as a candidate for housing here that there were tenants with active drug abuse problems in the building, but I was led to believe that one of the conditions of their tenancy was that they be actively involved in some type of rehabilitation program, but that what tenants do in their rooms with the doors closed tends to be overlooked. Over the past year, I’ve repeatedly smelled marijuana and other drugs seeping out from under other doors at my end of the hall. It’s revolting and unpleasant, and proves a point that regardless of whether their doors are shut or not, fumes are able to seep around the door frames into common areas. I’ve encountered severely intoxicated tenants in the halls, elevators, lobby and loitering by the front door so many times I’ve lost count; they may be consuming their drugs and alcohol in private, but their intoxicated behavior (which includes urination on the floor of the community room, up the hall of the second floor and in the elevators – as well as lewd and hostile comments to me and other tenants) becomes a public issue once they leave their rooms, and it’s unacceptable to me. I have to be constantly on guard on my way in and out of the building; I refuse to subject the decent people I know outside the building to the conditions inside the building – which restricts my right to entertain friends at home – and I would never consider bringing my minor son to visit me in this building again after having been assaulted on June 1st because it would be irresponsible and negligent for me to expose my son to a potentially dangerous situation – and this interferes with and restricts my ability to have free contact with a blood relative. Based on my experiences at Kenmore Hall over the past year, it would appear that the rights and freedoms of tenants conducting illegal activities are made a higher priority than those of the decent, law-abiding tenants. Will H.S.I. ever take responsibility for this and make the building a safe place for ALL tenants? I’m not the first person to be physically attacked in the building, and I’m sure I’m not the last – and meanwhile, we’re being given notices about the dangers of throwing trash out windows. This memo is very similar to one distributed by Hania Schwartz several months ago. If there’s a need to revisit the issue, then I think it’s safe to assume that the problem is an ongoing one and that it hasn’t been solved yet. Why hasn’t it been, and why would distributing another memo threatening legal action against offenders have any more impact than the original one? Was it necessary, at a time when funding cuts to non-profit organizations are adversely affecting services and quality of life in the building, to spend the money and resources to photocopy over 300 copies of the notice in order to provide a copy for each tenant? I sincerely hope that dangerous conditions in the building improve in the very near future. My recommendation to Kenmore Hall tenants who encounter problems in the building – especially if it involves being the victim of a violent crime – is to report it to the appropriate agency or authorities as quickly as possible. Talk to management and caseworkers if you feel you need to, but don’t leave it to them to do the right thing. Document as much as you can, make copies and keep it organized. Follow up until you get at least some level of satisfaction. This may be “just” an S.R.O., but we all have stabilized leases. That’s a legally binding contract between the landlord and tenants; as long as you’re complying with your contractual obligations, you’re entitled to your rights. If you’re getting Section 8 assistance with your rent, you have an additional agency you can contact regarding problems.

FROM THE HPD WEBSITE Improving the quality of housing in New York City ENFORCEMENT SERVICES ONE TEAM... ONE GOAL MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG, Mayor RAFAEL E. CESTERO, Commissioner nyc.gov/hpd Complaints? Call 311 • nyc.gov/hpd The City of New York DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING PRESERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT Offi ce of Enforcement and Neighborhood Services MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG, Mayor RAFAEL E. CESTERO, Commissioner Division of Code Enforcement Offi ce Locations & Contact Numbers Bronx: 1932 Arthur Avenue (3rd Floor) Bronx, NY 10457 (718) 579-6790 Brooklyn: 701 Euclid Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11208 (718) 827-1942 210 Joralemon Street (Room # 806) Brooklyn, NY 11201 (718) 802-3662 Manhattan: 94 Old Broadway (7th Floor) New York, NY 10027 (212) 234-2541 Queens: 120-55 Queens Boulevard (1st Fl.) Kew Gardens, NY 11424 (718) 286-0800, (718) 286-0808, (718) 286-0809 Staten Island: Borough Hall (2nd Floor) St. George, NY 10301 (718) 816-2340 Tenant Information Message Service: (212) 863-8307 1 The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) is the leading municipal developer of affordable housing in the nation. In February 2006, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced his new housing agenda, The New Housing Marketplace: Creating Housing for the Next Generation, the largest investment in the City’s housing stock in 20 years that continues the City’s commitment to housing preservation and community development activities. It is a $7.5 billion plan to create and preserve more than 165,000 homes and apartments in neighborhoods by 2013. HPD protects existing housing stock and expands housing options for New Yorkers as it strives to improve the availability, affordability, and quality of housing in New York City. As part of our efforts to preserve affordable housing, HPD is responsible for ensuring that building owners comply with the City’s Housing Maintenance Code and the New York State Multiple Dwelling Law. These are the regulations that provide the minimum housing standards for residential buildings in New York City. This publication introduces both tenants and owners to how Enforcement Services preserves and protects housing in New York City. Tenants may come into contact with HPD’s Enforcement Services, which includes the Division of Code Enforcement and Division of Maintenance, when they contact us about conditions in their building. Building owners may come into contact with HPD’s Enforcement Services for assistance with preserving, maintaining, or improving their buildings. Introduction 12 The law requires that owners of all multiple dwellings [three or more units] fi le an annual Multiple Dwelling Registration form with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. Owners of private one- and twofamily homes are only required to register when neither the owner nor any family member occupies the dwelling. Filing a an annual Multiple Dwelling Registration form may provide owners with notice and an opportunity to correct housing maintenance complaints and emergencies before HPD issues violations and performs emergency repairs. The Registration Assistance Unit helps owners who have questions or need guidance with the registration process. Staff members are available to aid owners, Monday to Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Owners who need assistance may come in person, call 212-863-7000 for help, or visit the HPD web site at www.nyc.gov/hpd. The HPD website now contains an Online Registration Assistance feature that will allow an owner to fi ll out their property registration statement online. Registration Assistance Unit Staff from the Registration Assistance Unit. 11 Violation That May Trigger Emergency Repairs is Identified HPD’s Emergency Repair Program may repair the condition and bill the building owner Emergency Repair Order generated Emergency Service Bureau owner callback Owner Agrees to Repair? Tenant callback after repair period Repaired? Emergency Repair Closed Owner Contests Bill? Research and Reconciliation Unit reviews Decision? NO Approves Contestation Rejects Contestation YES YES NO NO YES Bill Reduced Bill Stands Owner Pays Enforcement Services Flowchart Part 2 Housing Maintenance Complaint Condition Warrants a Violation? Notice of Violation sent to last validly registered owner Condition Immediately Hazardous? Violation Properly Corrected and Certified? A uniformed Code Enforcement Inspector may inspect your apartment Tenants may initiate legal action against the landlord in Housing Court HPD’s Emergency Repair Program may repair the condition and bill the building owner NO NO YES NO Complaint Closed YES Property Owners/ Managing Agents must annually register their buildings with HPD. YES Violation Closed 2 Enforcement Services Flowchart Part 1 Housing Inspectors Housing Inspectors are a vital link to the public. Our more than 400 uniformed Housing Inspectors play a key role in improving the quality of housing in New York City. They respond to many complaints fi led with the City’s Citizen Service Center at 311. No matter why they are called, Housing Inspectors will inspect for the following six conditions during all apartment inspections: • Peeling paint [if a child under age six resides in the apartment] • Illegal double-cylinder locks that require a key for exit at apartment entrance doors • Illegal bars or gates at any egress window • Defective or missing window guards [if a child under age eleven resides in the apartment] • Defective or missing smoke alarms • Defective or missing carbon monoxide alarms Housing Inspectors can communicate in 150 languages. Many Housing Inspectors are bilingual and speak languages that include Arabic, Bengali, Cantonese, Creole, French, Hebrew, Italian, Mandarin, Polish, Russian and Spanish. For those Housing Inspectors who do not speak your language, HPD has a telephone service that links them to interpreters who will translate any one of over 150 languages. Housing Inspector speaking with tenants about apartment conditions. 3 10 Research and Reconciliation Unit Emergency Repair charges incurred by HPD when repairing violations are billed to the building owner. Charges that are not paid become a tax lien against the property. The administrative staff of the Research and Reconciliation Unit review and make determinations of protested emergency repair charges. Protests must be in writing. The protest letter (with all supporting documents) should be forwarded to the HPD ERP Research and Reconciliation Unit,100 Gold Street, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10038. The Research and Reconciliation Unit can also be reached at 212-863-6020. Protest determinations made by HPD’s Research and Reconciliation Unit are put in writing and mailed to the owner. A lead abatement technician cleans up a contaminated site using a special wet vacuum. 9 Emergency Repair Program 4 Housing Inspectors In order to access this telephone service and obtain a translator, a Housing Inspector may ask to use your telephone. There will be no charge for this phone call. Housing Inspectors provide service to the public 24/7 throughout the five boroughs. Our Inspectors’ shifts provide coverage 24 hours a day, 365 days per year. In fact, most Housing Inspectors work evenings and weekends. There is a Code Enforcement offi ce in each borough. In order to better serve the public, a Public Interviewer, who is a Housing Inspector, is assigned to each Code Enforcement Borough Offi ce. The Public Interviewer is responsible for providing assistance to the public and answering questions concerning specifi c Code Enforcement actions or issues. We depend on your cooperation to do our work. If you have reported what you believe to be an unsafe condition in your apartment, it is very important that you provide access to Housing Inspectors, so that necessary inspections can be performed. Housing Inspectors may write violations for conditions or problems that were not noted in the original complaint. Correcting Violations Housing Inspectors issue three classes of Violations. Class A Violations are considered non-hazardous, and owners have 90 days to correct the condition. Class B Violations are hazardous, and owners have 30 days to make necessary corrections and repairs. Class C Violations are immediately hazardous, and owners have 24 hours to correct the violations. One exception to the 24-hour time limit is lead-based paint hazard violations, for which owners have 21 days to correct. Owners who receive notices of violations should pay attention to correction and certifi cation dates listed. If you have received a notice of violation, you may contact your borough Code Enforcement offi ce for more detailed information on correcting and certifying violations. The Emergency Repair Program (ERP) may perform emergency repairs to correct a Class C immediately hazardous violation that is not corrected by the owner. Prior to the actual performance of an emergency repair, technical staff from the Division of Maintenance or a private contractor hired by HPD will inspect the violation and create a “scope of work.” The scope of work details all of the work that must be performed in order to address the immediately hazardous condition. After the scope of work is created, the Division of Maintenance will dispatch technical staff or hire a private contractor to perform the emergency repair. Some repairs involve environmental hazards like lead and asbestos. The Division of Maintenance’s Bureau of Environmental Hazards is comprised of staff that is specially trained to remove and test environmental hazards. In order for repairs to be performed in a timely fashion, it is vital that tenants provide access to technical staff and contractors. The law requires tenants to provide landlords with access to make repairs, provided that such access is at a reasonable time and in a reasonable manner. An abatement technician with appropriate protective gear removes paint from a wall. 8 Emergency Services Bureau If a Housing Inspector issues class C immediately hazardous violations that call for emergency repair, the Emergency Services Bureau will attempt to contact the building owner and occupants. This process is an effective tool in getting serious violations corrected swiftly. The Emergency Services Bureau attempts to call owners after these “emergency repair generating” class C violations are issued and provides notice of the violations and impending emergency repair. The Emergency Services Bureau reaches out to the last validly registered owner. Owners who fi le an annual up-to-date Multiple Dwelling Registration form may be notifi ed of class C emergency repair generating violations before emergency repairs are performed by HPD. This is another reason why fi ling an annual Multiple Dwelling Registration Form with HPD is important and benefi cial to owners. The Emergency Services Bureau also attempts to call the complainant or tenant affected by the immediately hazardous condition to see if the condition has been corrected. An emergency repair will be cancelled only if the complainant or tenant verifi es that the condition has been corrected. Emergency Services Bureau staff member notifying an owner of an “emergency repair generating” class C violation. 5 Special Services: Lead, Fire, Emergencies & Support HPD’s Division of Code Enforcement has Specialized Inspection Units for matters that require expert attention and skill. These include: The Lead-Based Paint Inspection Program The Housing Inspectors in this program inspect for lead-based paint hazards in apartments where children under the age of six live. The Inspectors are equipped with x-ray fl uorescence [XRF] machines that detect the presence of lead in paint. The Alternative Enforcement Program The Alternative Enforcement Program (“AEP”) is an additional enforcement mechanism that HPD utilizes to enforce the correction of housing maintenance conditions in the most distressed multiple dwellings. The AEP ensures that violations and conditions that caused the violations are corrected. The AEP team is comprised of housing inspectors, construction project managers, community coordinators and support staff that perform inspections, monitor construction work and provide tenants with information and updates pertaining to the dwelling’s status in the AEP. Housing Inspectors use an x-ray fl uorescence analyzer to detect lead in the paint on a wall. 7 Call Back Units: Responding to Owners and Tenants Owners who respond quickly to occupant complaints are vital to maintaining the quality of housing in New York City. Our Owner Call Back Unit staff contacts owners and notifi es them when an emergency complaint is fi led at 311, the City’s Citizen Service Center. Our goal is to obtain rapid owner response through early notifi cation. Shortly after being advised of an emergency complaint, the Owner Call Back Unit reaches out to owners by contacting them with the phone number they supply on the Multiple Dwelling Registration form for a given building. The Owner Call Back Unit contacts the last validly registered owner. Owners that fi le an annual up-to-date Multiple Dwelling Registration form may be notifi ed of housing maintenance complaints soon after the complaint is reported and before an inspection is performed by HPD. This is one reason why fi ling an annual Multiple Dwelling Registration with HPD is important and benefi cial to owners. The Tenant Call Back Unit calls the complainant or tenant to determine if the conditions complained of have been corrected. If the complainant or tenant cannot be reached, or if he or she claims that the condition still exists, a Housing Inspector may be dispatched to the location to undertake an inspection. Owners are not advised when or if an inspection will be performed. If the complainant or tenant states that the conditions referred to in the complaint have been corrected, the complaint is closed. 6 Special Services: Lead, Fire, Emergencies & Support Special Enforcement Unit The Housing Inspectors in the Special Enforcement Unit respond to fi res and perform inspections to determine whether affected apartments are habitable. Working with real property managers, the Unit monitors repair work and maintains contact with occupants and owners until the apartments are fi t for habitation. Emergency Response Unit Housing Inspectors assigned to this Unit respond to emergencies such as buildings that collapse. This unit provides coverage 24 hours a day and is able to perform late night and early morning inspections when needed. City-Wide Inspection Unit This Unit conducts re-inspections at Single Room Occupancy buildings (SROs), responds to tenant complaints and supports other Bureaus and Divisions of HPD as well as other city agencies, including the Department of Homeless Services and the Human Resources Administration. Special Enforcement Unit Staff assisting a tenant returning to a vacated apartment that had been restored to habitability.