Harlem Landlord Let 100s Of Dangerous Living Conditions Fester: Suit

HARLEM, NY — Lead-based paint, rat infestation, dangerous building facades, and mold are just a part of the collection of complaints lobbied against a Harlem landlord in a recent lawsuit filed by the city.

A trio of New York City landlords let those "dangerous" conditions fester in buildings, including in properties owned by Alma Realty in Harlem.

“All New Yorkers deserve to live in safe, clean homes, which is why we will not tolerate landlords who repeatedly flout the law and put the health and wellbeing of tenants at risk,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement.

Buildings owned by Alma had 800 uncorrected violations, court filings show.

Alma Realty did not immediately respond to Patch's request for comment.

Here are the addresses of the Harlem buildings named in the lawsuit:

• 601 W. 139th St.
• 477 W. 140th St.
• 1627-1635 Amsterdam Ave. (Near West 141st Street)
• 557-563 W. 148th St.

The lawsuit references a laundry list of complaints and violations connected with the different uptown buildings.

At the six-story building at 601 W. 139th St., there are more than three dozen violations against the property, according to to suit.

Those violations include visible mold, an unsafe building facade, and failure to supply adequate cooking gas to tenants, the suit reads.

A short walk uptown at 477 W. 140th St., there are more than 70 violations, including ones that have to do with lead-paint hazards, failure to repair or replace self-closing fire doors, and cracks in the building, according to the suit.

At 1627-1635 Amsterdam Ave., there are over 90 violations for the 19-unit property, according to the suit. Those violations relate to visible mold, vermin infestations, and failure to fix water leaking into apartments, the suit reads.

In the farthest uptown Harlem building included in the suit at 557-563 W. 148th St., the violations detailed in the lawsuit range from an unsafe building facade, to hot water exceeding 130 degrees in a tenant's bathroom, to failing to file a report regarding the state of the building's exterior.

The other landlord the city filed a suit against on Friday was Empire Management America Corp.

The lawsuit against Alma Realty alleges that the landlord has "failed" to correct their building's violations, and demands they comply with all outstanding violations in the next 30 days.

The landlords now facing lawsuits from the city were chosen based on a multi-agency database of building violations weighed by severity and affect on tenants, officials said.

Each of their portfolios includes the worst-scoring buildings, according to the database.