The 234 Apartment

Officials said the building appeared to lack working smoke detectors. News in Brief (Photo: file image) SPRING VALLEY - A basement fire left four apartments uninhabitable in a building that apparently lacked working smoke detectors , authorities said Tuesday. The fire was reported at 9:41 p.m. Tuesday in the laundry room at 60 Twin Ave., a 24-apartment building overseen by the Spring Valley Community Development Corp . "Heavy smoke was coming from the front door," Spring Valley Fire Chief Ken Sohlman said. "We contained the fire down in the laundry room. There was smoke damage to the four apartments in that section of the building." Sohlman said Orange & Rockland Utilities cut off power to the building in the wake of the fire. He said building management will have a plumber repair some  gas line damage , but the fire was not related to natural gas. The fire's cause is being investigated by Spring Valley fire inspectors and detectives with the Rockland S...

T wo weeks ago, a Manhattan Supreme Court judge handed down a decision designed to strike fear in the hearts of landlords. Justice James d’Auguste ordered that an independent receiver be appointed to manage two Midtown residential buildings where the landlords allegedly allowed illegal Airbnb rentals to occur. The case, which began when the city sued the landlords in February 2015, has become one of the battlegrounds in a larger war between city enforcement agencies and short- term rental sites like Airbnb. Airbnb, which was recently valued at $31 billion, refuses to release the exact addresses of hosts who break the law by renting their entire apartment for less than 30 days without being present. Without the addresses and names of Airbnb violators , the city mostly targets the owners of buildings that rack up the most illegal hotel complaints from 311 calls and the New York City Department of Buildings. “This entire model—and it was intentional [by the city]—is complaint-drive...

In the spring of 2015, residents of the Forest Hills Apartment complex complained about their air conditioners not working, mold in their apartments, outdated fire extinguishers , broken electrical outlets and slow response times from the management company . Now after about 18 months of renovations, things are starting to improve, residents say. “They’ve got a new manager, Ms. Eunice, and she is really, really trying to get some stuff done here,” Joyce Mosley, a long time resident of Forest Hills, said. “She has repaired several apartments, taken care of mold issues. They’ve sent in painters and plumbers.” Resident Keith Miller agreed . He said on a scale of 1 to 10, he’d give the new management an eight, primarily for their effort. He said things are not perfect, but he sees some improvement. Forest Hills has had a history of troubles in recent years. The 136- unit apartment complex is on Seventh Avenue and has 96 apartments reserved for residents who receive federal housing su...

GREENVILLE, SC (FOX Carolina) - The Greenville County Sheriff 's Office announced a third arrest in a deadly shooting at Boulder Creek Apartments . Greenville County deputies , fire crews, EMS and the coroner responded to the apartments located at 300 Furman Hall Road in reference to gunshot victims  around 1:45 p.m on Sunday, Apr. 2. When they arrived on scene they realized a second scene was taking place at the Spinx on North Pleasantburg Drive . Sheriff Will Lewis said they received calls regarding two male gunshot victims who pulled into the Spinx, one of which was deceased. The coroner later identified the deceased as Azaveon T Cook, 21 of Piedmont. Cook was the passenger in the vehicle that arrived at the Spinx, the coroner said. He was pronounced dead on scene after suffering at least one gunshot wound. The coroner said bystanders attempted CPR on Cook but were not successful. The second male gunshot victim was transported to the hospital and underwent surgery. Lewis sa...