Some base owners and all fleet owners own garages where for-hire vehicles are parked. If you are the owner of a parking garage in New York City, this new legal obligation applies to you.
By way of history, on April 18, 2023, a parking garage on Ann Street in Lower Manhattan collapsed, killing one person, and injuring five others. This incident motivated the New York City Council to adopt new rules governing the inspection of parking structures in New York City. Section 103-16 of Title 1, Section 103-16, of the Rules of the City of New York sets forth these new rules, effective on October 17, 2023.
Local Law 126 of 2021 created a new Article 323 to Title 28 of the New York City Administrative Code. This new article allows the Department of Buildings to require additional inspections of existing buildings and structures to ascertain compliance with the provisions of the code. Inspections of parking structures in New York City will be required. Owners of parking structures will have to arrange for their parking structures to be inspected.
Section 103-16 implemented the following changes: 1) the owner must have an initial observation of the parking structure performed by a qualified parking structure inspector (QPSI). The results of the initial observation must be filed with the Department of Buildings (DOB) by August 1, 2024, on the DOB’s form. 2) The QPSI must assess the parking structure by examining its structural components, waterproofing systems, fire proofing and fire stopping systems and the structure’s history of maintenance and repairs; 3) The methods used to evaluate the parking structure must permit a complete examination of the parking structure; and 4) The QPSI must identify the most damaged portions of the parking structure and examine those locations. The QPSI must identify the causes of those deficiencies and advise the building owner and the DOB of any unsafe conditions.
If you did not file the initial observation report by August 1, 2024, you will be subject to civil penalties and will be required to attend an OATH hearing. Civil penalties for late filing and failure to file apply now because the filing period has ended. Unsafe conditions must be corrected within 90 days of filing a report with an Unsafe status, or repair extension requests must be filed. An amended report must then be filed within 2 weeks of completing the repairs. Here is the DOB penalty schedule:
- Failure to File (initial observation report): $2,500
- Late Filing (full initial report): $1,000 per month
- Failure to File (full initial report): $5,000 per year
- Failure to Correct Unsafe Conditions: $1,000 per month
- Failure to Correct SREM Conditions: $2,000 one-time penalty
A parking structure does not include: an autobody/automotive repair shop, an automotive showroom, or an automotive service station, a garage with occupancy of fewer than three cars, unenclosed and unattached lots, and garages serving one-and two-family homes.
The QPSI must be an individual who is certified to inspect parking structures by the DOB and has a minimum of three years of experience. QPSI reports to the DOB must state one of three results: Safe; Safe with Repairs and/or Engineering Monitoring (SREM); or Unsafe. A Safe rating will indicate to the DOB that no repairs are necessary. A SREM rating will indicate that the owner of the parking structure must make repairs to the applicable areas identified in the report by the start of the next inspection cycle. An Unsafe rating will require the unsafe areas of the parking structure to be shut down and repaired within 90 days of the date of the report.
The requirement for this new one-time initial observation report was created by the Department to get more parking structure owners to investigate the structural condition of their parking structures on an accelerated timeline, with an eye towards catching potential problems before an incident occurs.
To ensure compliance with these new rules, the following steps should be taken by the owner or manager of a parking garage. First, hire a qualified QPSI to inspect the parking structure. Second, find all available maintenance and repairs records showing the history of work done at the parking structure. Third, file your initial observation report with the DOB. Finally, if repairs are necessary to make the parking structure safe, those repairs should be completed as soon as possible.
Please feel free to reach out if you have questions or would like our assistance in complying with these new requirements imposed by the Department of Buildings.
