BEST PRACTICES

18 Pages·2017·1.55 MB·English

Guideline for “BEST PRACTICES” Submittals

Contact Information:
NYC Department of Buildings
Local Law Enforcement Unit
280 Broadway, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10007
[email protected]

Program Description:
In order to ensure the safety and structural stability of New York City buildings, owners must
comply with Local Law 11 of 1998, where owners of properties higher than six stories must have
exterior walls and appurtenances, such as balconies, inspected every five (5) years – and they
must file a technical façade report with the Department. Property owners must repair unsafe
conditions within 90 days of filing a technical report. Once the work is finished, owners must file
an amended report within two weeks. Façade report and maintenance/repair deadlines are
divided into cycles. The current cycle for inspection (Cycle 8) began February 21, 2015, and
runs through February 21, 2020.

The required façade inspections are called critical examinations and may only be performed by a
Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector (QEWI). QEWIs are New York State licensed Professional
Engineers (PE) or New York State Registered Architects (RA). After performing an inspection,
the QEWI must file an electronic technical report through DOB NOW: Safety (online portal)
indicating the façade’s condition and classifying the building with one of three ways:
•Safe: No problems and in good condition; or
•Safe With a Repair and Maintenance Program (SWARMP): Safe, but requires
repair/maintenance; or
•Unsafe: Problems/defects threaten public safety. (With an Unsafe classification, the
owner must immediately install protection, such as a sidewalk shed, or construction
fence.)

Costs / Benefits:
DOB has recently launched significant improvements to its Façade Inspection Safety Program
for the current Cycle 8 reporting. Some of these changes include the following:
 Established a new system to track all Local Law 11/98 inspection reports and new online
portal (DOB NOW: Safety) where building owners, managers, and design professionals
can:
o Submit façade compliance filings including uploading documents
o Report unsafe façade conditions
o Make filing fee payment
o View the status of a façade compliance filing
o View and search information related to façade filings and conditions
o Receive emails at milestones throughout the filing process;
 Proactive inspections on all FISP compliance filings including SAFE and SWARMP
submissions;
 The Department may conduct an inspection of any building that fails to file a timely
compliance inspection report (NR), and, if needed, place public protection at the location
at the owner’s expense; and
 Mandated that any building that files a report indicating there are unsafe conditions will
be given 90 days to correct these conditions. The owner must install public protection as
soon as an unsafe condition is discovered. Again, if the landlord fails to do so, the City
will conduct an inspection and, if needed, place public protection at the location at the
landlord’s expense.
With these changes, applicants are no longer required to come to DOB with hard copies of
reports for filing as they did in previous report cycles and can make payments online. The online
portal also provides instant notification of acceptance or rejection with objections to the
applicant. For DOB, these changes have reduced the amount of errors resulting from data entry
and have helped expedite the Department’s review.
Additionally, DOB is currently using GIS tools that allow users to create interactive queries and
analyze spatial information from maps. Using GIS, DOB inspection staff can aggregate various
datasets, historic maps, and field reports. The results can be used to develop risk profiles for
specific buildings and identify mitigation strategies.

Attached Documents:
Document A – Selected Workflows
Document B –Example Reports (hard copy report)
Document C –Example Reports (electronic report)
Document D – Façade Safety Report (screenshots from
https://www1.nyc.gov/site/buildings/about/facade-safety-report.page)
Categories – Please check all categories that apply to your best practice
X Plan Review
(cid:0) Permitting
X Inspection
(cid:0) Management/Administration
(cid:0) Legal
X Customer Service
X Information Technology

**Submit this form with any attachments, additional comments, or questions to [email protected]
Document A – Selected Workflows
1. Initial Filing – (SAFE or SWARMP)
2. Subsequent Filing (SAFE or SWARMP)
BUILD NYC Façade Process Flow –TR6 Initial v13
Filing –Initial TR6/FISP Report (SAFE or SWARMP selected)
QEWI fills out TR6, FISP Report, uploads the required
documents and pictures and pays fees.
The FILE button will not be enabled unless the required
Prefiling
fields are filled out, required documents uploaded and
required fees paid.
QEWI
Only a QEWI can hit the FILE button
File
Resubmit
Administrative Review
CSR can perform the following
actions on the Initial Report Pending
Incomplete
Assign Plan Examiner Plan Examiner
Submission
Incomplete Submission Assignment
Pending Plan Examiner
Assignment
Pending Plan
Examiner Assignment
CSR can perform the following
actions on the Initial Report
Assign Plan Examiner
Assign PE Incomplete
Submission
Resubmit Assign Plan Examiner
PLAN EXAMINER REVIEW
Plan Examiner can review
the Initial Report and perform the following actions:
Incomplete
Incomplete Submission Request Inspection
Submission
Request Inspection
Accept
Reject
REJECTED
Inspection
The Inspection Supervisor can perform
Inspection
the following actions:
Complete
Accept
Inspection Complete
ACCEPTED
Acronyms
Late Filing Fee -$250 per month & $1,000 Failure to file fee -annually
PE –Plan Examiner
If the initial report has been rejected by Department, a revised report must be filed within
CSR –Customer Service Rep
forty-five (45) days of the date of the Department's rejection in order to maintain original
ERT –Emergency Response Team
filing date. QEWI –Qualified Exterior Wall
If the initial report is not acceptable after two (2) rejections, a new initial filing fee will be Inspector
required in order to maintain the original filing date.
Failure to submit a revised report addressing the Department's objections within one (1) year Inspection -
This status is displayed
of the initial filing requires a new critical examination, including a new close-up inspection.
only for DOB Users.
The filing date must be within 60 days of the final inspection date.
Page 1of 13
BUILD NYC Façade Process Flow –TR6 Subsequent v13
Filing –Subsequent TR6/FISP Report (After SAFE/SWARMP)
This option will be enabled only
when a SAFE or SWARMP Initial
Report has already been filed
QEWI fills out TR6, FISP Report, uploads the required and Accepted
documents and pictures and pays fees.
The FILE button will not be enabled unless the required
Prefiling
fields are filled out, required documents uploaded and
required fees paid.
QEWI
Only a QEWI can hit the FILE button
File
Resubmit
Administrative Review
CSR can perform the following
actions on the Initial Report Pending
Incomplete
Assign Plan Examiner Plan Examiner
Submission
Incomplete Submission Assignment
Pending Plan Examiner
Assignment Pending Plan
Examiner Assignment
CSR can perform the following
actions on the Initial Report
Assign Plan Examiner
Assign PE
Incomplete
Submission
Resubmit Assign Plan Examiner
PLAN EXAMINER REVIEW
Plan Examiner can review
the Initial Report and perform the following actions:
Incomplete
Incomplete Submission Request Inspection
Submission
Request Inspection
Accept
Reject
REJECTED
Inspection
Inspection The Inspection Supervisor can perform
Complete the following actions:
Inspection Complete
Accept
ACCEPTED
Acronyms
PE –Plan Examiner
CSR –Customer Service Rep
ERT –Emergency Response Team
QEWI –Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector
A subsequent report indicating revised conditions may be filed within a five-year
report filing cycle to change a building’s filing status for that cycle. Inspection -
This status is displayed
only for DOB Users.
Page 2of 13
Document B – Hardcopy Report