2 UES Buildings Owned By NYC's 'Worst Landlord,' Watchlist Shows

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Tenants of two Upper East Side buildings can claim an unwanted distinction: their landlord is the worst in New York City, according to a new report.

The Public Advocate's office on Tuesday released its annual "Worst Landlords Watchlist," which uses public data on housing violations to shame the property owners who keep their buildings in the worst shape.

In the top spot was Johnathan Santana, who is tied to 15 buildings on the watchlist — and, with 2,980 open violations, has the most of any landlord in the history of the watchlist, according to Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.

The list is based on the average number of open violations recorded at each building between December 2021 and November 2022, according to the city's housing department.

While a total of 100 landlords cracked the list, both Upper East Side buildings are owned by LLCs tied to Santana. And though Williams's office cautioned that some buildings on the watchlist might be vacant, both Upper East Side buildings appear to be occupied, with each one advertising recent rental listings.

Here's the scoop on both:

338 East 61st St.

This five-story Lenox Hill building near First Avenue averaged 151 open violations, according to the watchlist. Its listed owner is Newport Partners, an LLC that lists Santana as its head officer.

Currently open violations include a lack of hot water, broken intercom system, rats in the "front areaway," mice in the basement, and a broken carbon monoxide device, according to the Housing Preservation and Development Department.

Meanwhile, since as far back as 2013, complaints filed with the Department of Buildings allege that the building is being used as an illegal short-term rental. Earlier this week, someone said they had rented an apartment there on Airbnb, found it was "overheated" for two days, and then had their heat shut off entirely — forcing them to "sleep somewhere else."

The building has been under a partial stop-work order since 2013 after Newport Partners tried to build partitions to add new bedrooms for transient use, without permits, according to DOB records.

1585 Third Ave.

Also known as 201 East 89th St., this building averaged 78 open violations during the past year. Its listed owner, Highpoint Associates V, likewise names Santana as its head officer.

Its spot on the list may sound familiar: it also made the 2020 watchlist. Things have apparently gotten even worse since then, when the four-story building had only 52 average open violations.

Now, the building's open violations include a ceiling water leak, defective bathroom faucets, broken window glass, a mouse infestation and a broken fire escape.

The Department of Buildings, meanwhile, has put the building under a partial vacate order since 2019, when a resident reported having "no fire escape on any of his windows."

Other recent complaints include unpermitted construction and another by a visitor from Arizona, who stayed there in an Airbnb and said "the place was in a mess."

The Public Advocate's office releases the "worst landlords" list every year as a watchdog measure.

This year, it appeared that private landlords racked up housing violations at a staggering level.

"Across the entire list, there were a staggering 69,018 violations, nearly a 30% increase from the previous year," Williams tweeted. "Conditions continue to deteriorate even as the median rent in the city has massively increased."

But it should be noted that the 100 worst landlords listed are only the private landlords.

The city itself — NYCHA — also let conditions deteriorate, with 673,990 open work orders, Williams said.

"The city itself remains the overall worst landlord in New York City," Williams tweeted.

NYCHA, again, also deteriorated. This year, there are 673,990 open work orders, an increase of 73,510 over last year’s number. The city itself remains the overall worst landlord in New York City. pic.twitter.com/LyFLWU6why
— Office of the Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams (@nycpa) December 20, 2022

Patch reporter Matt Troutman contributed.