NYC’s Tenant Protection Plan

New York City’s Tenant Protection Plan (TPP) was first introduced in 2008 as a means to curb exploitative practices by landlords with regard to ongoing construction on a building still occupied by multiple tenants.

There were subsequent legislative bills enacted in 2017 and 2019 which further cemented the TPP. Local Law 161 in 2017 saw the creation of the Office of Tenant Advocates at the Department of Buildings (DOB). The OTA handles all comments, questions, or complaints related to construction in occupied multiple dwellings. (nyc.gov, 2020)

In 2019, Local Law 118 amended the original Tenant Protection Plan to require owners of an occupied building to supply detailed information on the nature of the construction and how they will account for seven specific provisions. These are:

1. Egress - in other words, how tenants can adequately and safely leave the building

2. Fire safety – identify any additional safety measures to account for fires

3. Health requirements – these health requirements refer mainly to control of dust during the construction, disposal of debris, and maintenance of sanitary facilities

4. Compliance with housing standards – where any and all NYC housing/maintenance codes must be complied with during construction

5. Structural safety – give specific details regarding how the building will be kept structurally sound during construction

6. Noise restrictions – identifying specific ways in which the construction will abide by NYC’s Noise Control Code

7. Maintaining essential services – describing the methods of maintaining utilities like heat, water, electricity gas, or any other services. Any disruption of these services must be accounted for here, along with the duration of disruption and possible alternatives the tenants may have during the disruption.

In most cases, the Tenant Protection Plan must be filed by the owner of the building, although it may be filed by the registered design professional overseeing the construction if the work is being done either in a one- or two-family home, or if the construction is contained to only a single dwelling unit within a property. (nyc.gov, 2019)

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