A.
Habitable rooms. Every habitable room shall have a
window or skylight opening directly to the outside. The total area
of such window or skylight shall not be less than 8% of the floor
area of such room. All windows and skylights shall be enclosed with
glass and shall be provided with suitable hardware and sash cords
and made to open to the extent of 4% of the floor area. Every dwelling,
habitable room and hall shall be equipped with a safe, artificial
lighting service, and all electrical wiring, outlets and fixtures
thereof shall be installed and maintained in accordance with the provisions
of local municipal ordinances and statutes of this state. In the absence
of natural ventilation, every habitable room shall be ventilated by
approved mechanical means.
B.
Bathrooms and water closet compartments. Every bathroom
and water closet compartment shall have at least one window facing
to the outdoors and having a minimum openable area of 4% of the floor
area of such room except where there is supplied some other device
approved by the enforcement officer as affording adequate ventilation.
C.
Electricity.[1] Every dwelling shall be supplied with electricity. Within
such dwelling:
(1)
Every habitable room shall contain at least two separate
floor- or wall-type electric convenience outlets, or one such convenience
outlet and one supplied ceiling-type electric light fixture.
(2)
Every water closet compartment, bathroom, laundry
room, furnace room and public hall shall contain at least one supplied
ceiling- or wall-type electric light fixture.
(3)
Every outlet and fixture shall be properly installed
and maintained in good and safe working condition.
A.
Generally. Every dwelling shall have heating facilities
which are properly installed, maintained in safe and good working
condition and are capable of safely and adequately heating all habitable
rooms, bathrooms and water closet compartments to a temperature of
at least 70° F. at a distance three feet above floor level when
the outside temperature is at 10° F.
B.
Venting and insulation. Every space heater shall be
properly vented through an approved flue leading to the outer air
and shall be adequately insulated from all combustible materials.
A.
Connection. All plumbing fixtures required by this
section shall be connected to an approved source of water supply and
to an approved system of sewage disposal.
B.
Condition. All plumbing fixtures shall be properly
installed and maintained in good working order.
C.
Water closets and lavatory basins. Every dwelling
unit shall contain within its walls a room, separate from the habitable
rooms, which affords privacy and which is equipped with a flush water
closet and a lavatory basin.
D.
Bathtubs and showers. Every dwelling unit shall contain
within its walls a room, separate from the habitable rooms, which
affords privacy to a person in the room and which is equipped with
a bathtub or shower.
E.
Kitchen sink. Every dwelling unit shall contain a
kitchen sink properly connected to the hot- and cold-water supply
and sewer system.
F.
Facilities in rooming houses. In every rooming house,
the following minimum plumbing fixtures are required for each multiple
of six sleeping rooms: water closet, bathtub or shower and lavatory.
G.
Hot- and cold-water connections. Every kitchen sink,
lavatory and bathtub or shower required by these standards shall be
properly connected with both hot- and cold-water lines. The hot-water
lines shall be connected with supplied water-heating facilities.
A.
Dwelling unit. Every dwelling unit shall contain at
least 150 square feet of habitable floor area for the first occupant
and at least 75 square feet of additional habitable floor area for
each additional occupant.
B.
Sleeping rooms. In every dwelling unit and in every
rooming unit, every room occupied for sleeping purposes by one occupant
shall contain at least 70 square feet of floor area, and every room
occupied for sleeping purposes by more than one occupant shall contain
at least 50 square feet of floor area for each occupant 12 years of
age or over and at least 35 square feet of floor area for each occupant
under 12 years of age.
C.
Calculation of floor area. Floor area shall be calculated
on the basis of habitable room area. However, closet area and hall
area within the dwelling unit, where provided, may count for not more
than 10% of the required habitable floor area. At least 1/2 of the
floor area of every habitable room shall have a ceiling height of
at least seven feet; and the floor area of any part of any room where
the ceiling height is less than 4 1/2 feet shall not be considered
as part of the floor area in computing the total floor area of the
room to determine maximum permissible occupancy.
D.
Scope of term "occupant." For the purpose of this
section, a person under one year of age shall not be counted as an
occupant.
E.
Use of cellar. No cellar space shall be used as a
habitable room or dwelling unit. Play or recreation rooms may be located
below grade.
F.
Use of basement. No basement shall be used as a habitable
room or dwelling unit unless:
(1)
The floors and walls are substantially watertight.
(2)
The total window area, total openable area and ceiling
height are in accordance with these standards.
(3)
The required minimum window area of every habitable
room is entirely above grade of the ground adjoining such window area,
not including stairwells and accessways.
A.
Location. No dwelling unit or rooming unit shall be
located within a building containing any establishment handling, dispensing
or storing flammable liquids in any manner which constitutes a danger
to the lives of the occupants.
B.
Egress. Every dwelling unit and every rooming unit
shall have safe, unobstructed means of egress leading to safe and
open space at ground level.
C.
Exits, etc., to be clear. Every hallway, stairway,
corridor, exit, fire escape door and other means of egress shall be
kept clear at all times.
D.
Use of storage rooms. Storage rooms and storage lockers
shall not be used for storage of junk, rubbish or waste.
E.
Storage under stairways. Closets or storage beneath
stairways are prohibited in any multifamily dwelling or any rooming
house.
F.
Egress from multifamily dwellings. There shall be
at least two means of egress available from each story of every multifamily
dwelling and of every rooming house if the dwelling is four or more
stories in height or is three stories in height and has at least five
habitable rooms on the third story. A basement used as a dwelling
unit shall not count as a story for the purpose of this section.
G.
Course of exit facilities. Exit facilities from dwellings
or dwelling units shall lead to a public thoroughfare either directly
or through a court or yard, and passage to such exits shall not lead
through any other dwelling or dwelling unit.
H.
Cooking equipment standards. No owner, operator or
occupant shall furnish or use any cooking equipment which does not
comply with these standards.
I.
Construction, installation and maintenance of cooking
equipment. Every piece of cooking equipment shall be so constructed
and installed that it will function safely and effectively and shall
be maintained in sound working condition.
J.
Portable cooking equipment. Portable cooking equipment
employing gasoline as fuel for cooking is prohibited.
K.
Connections to flues and supply lines. All heating,
cooking and water-heating equipment burning solid fuels shall be rigidly
connected to a chimney or flue, and such heating equipment burning
liquid or gaseous fuels shall be connected to a supply line with rigid
pipe or with approved flexible metal hose line approved by either
the American Gas Association or the Underwriters' Laboratories and,
where required, to a chimney, flue or vent.
L.
Heating equipment. Heating equipment shall be installed
in a manner which will avoid the dangerous concentration of fumes
and gases. Unvented portable space heaters burning liquid or gaseous
fuels shall be prohibited. Heating equipment shall not be forced to
operate beyond the safe capacity for which it was designed.
M.
Fuel storage. Fuels shall be stored in accordance
with generally accepted practice and in a manner which will minimize
the danger of fire. No fuel oil, gasoline or highly flammable fuel
shall be stored within any structure used for human habitation except
in a manner approved by the New York State Building Code and the Fire
Department of the City.
A.
Screening generally. During the period from May 1
to September 30 every door opening directly from any dwelling to outdoor
space, which said doorway is used for ventilation, shall be supplied
with a screen, together with a self-closing device in good working
condition; and in each room at least one window or other device with
openings to outdoor space, used or intended to be used for ventilation,
shall likewise be provided with a screen.
B.
Basement and cellar openings. Every basement or cellar
window used or intended to be used for ventilation and every other
opening to a basement which might provide an entry for rodents shall
be permanently equipped with screens or such other device as will
effectively prevent their entrance.
C.
Extermination. Dwellings shall be kept free from rodents
and other vermin at all times, with the responsibility for extermination
resting with the occupant or owner as hereinafter specified.
A.
Exterior. All foundations, exterior walls, roofs,
windows, exterior doors, basement hatchways and other exterior portions
of dwellings shall be watertight, weatherproof, rodent- and insect-proof
and maintained in a good state of repair.
B.
Interior. Interior partitions, walls, floors and ceilings
shall be reasonably tight, capable of affording privacy, maintained
in a good state of repair and kept clean and sanitary.
C.
Stairways, porches and balconies. Inside and outside
stairways, porches and balconies shall be so constructed as to be
safe to use and capable of supporting the load that normal use may
cause to be placed thereon.
D.
Facilities and equipment. Every supplied facility,
piece of equipment or utility which is required under this chapter
shall be so constructed and installed that it will function safely
and effectively and shall be maintained in good working condition.
A.
Occupants. Occupants of dwellings shall have the following
responsibilities:
(1)
To keep the dwelling and premises the occupant occupies
in a clean and sanitary condition.
(3)
To hang and remove screens provided by the owner except
where the owner has agreed to supply such services.
(4)
To keep plumbing fixtures in a clean and sanitary
condition and to exercise all reasonable care in their proper use
and operation.
(5)
To exterminate insects, rodents or other pests in
the case of an occupant of a single-family dwelling or occupant of
a dwelling unit in a multiple-unit structure where that dwelling unit
is the only one infested.
B.
Owners. Owners of dwellings shall have the following
responsibilities:
(1)
To let no dwelling or room to anyone for occupancy
unless it meets the minimum standards set forth in this chapter.
(2)
To have the dwelling unit or room in a clean, sanitary
and habitable condition; to free from infestation before renting;
and to clean, repair and exterminate if needed to meet the requirements
of this chapter before offering for rent.
(4)
To exterminate insects, rodents or other pests if
infestation exists in two or more units of a multiple-unit structure,
where infestation exists in shared or public areas of multiple-unit
structures and where infestation exists in a single unit of a multiple-unit
structure or in a single-family structure when infestation is due
to failure of the owner to maintain the dwelling in a rodentproof
and reasonably insectproof condition.
(5)
Surface and subsurface water shall be appropriately
drained to protect buildings and structures and to prevent development
of stagnant ponds. Gutters, culverts, catch basins, drain inlets,
stormwater sewers, approved combined storm and sanitary sewers or
other satisfactory drainage systems shall be utilized where deemed
necessary.[2]
[Added 2-8-1965]
(6)
Fences and other minor constructions shall be maintained
in safe and substantial condition.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(7)
Steps, walks, driveways, parking spaces and similar
paved areas shall be maintained so as to afford safe passage under
normal use and weather conditions.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(8)
Yards and courts shall be kept clean and free of physical
hazards.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(10)
Exterior wood surfaces of buildings and structures
that are not inherently resistant to deterioration shall be periodically
treated with a protective coating of paint or other suitable preservative.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(11)
Floors, walls, ceilings, furnishings and fixtures
of residential buildings shall be maintained in clean and sanitary
condition.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(12)
Accessory structures shall be maintained so
as to be free of conditions detrimental to safety or health.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(13)
Grounds, buildings and structures shall be maintained
free of insect, vermin and rodent harborage and infestation. Methods
used for exterminating insects, vermin and rodents shall conform to
generally accepted practice.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(14)
Where the potential for rodent or vermin infestation
exists, windows and other openings in basements and cellars shall
be appropriately screened with wire mesh or other suitable materials.
[Added 2-8-1965]
(15)
From May 1 to October 1, entrances to residential
buildings shall be provided with self-closing-type devices or screens,
and windows and other openings used for ventilation shall be appropriately
screened. Screens shall not be required in rooms located sufficiently
high in the upper stories of multiple dwellings as to be free of mosquitoes,
flies and other flying insects.
[Added 2-8-1965]
C.
Owners of premises shall be responsible for compliance
with this chapter and shall remain responsible therefor regardless
of the fact that this section may also place certain responsibilities
on operators and occupants and regardless of any agreements between
owners and operators or occupants as to which party shall assume such
responsibility.
[Added 2-8-1965]
