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Husband Of Woman Killed By Midtown Building Facade Sues Property Owner And City For Damages
By
Elizabeth Kim
Published Aug 25, 2020
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Jen Chung / Gothamist
By
Elizabeth Kim
Published Aug 25, 2020
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The husband of Erica Tishman, the 60-year-old architect who died in December after being struck by a chunk of broken facade from a Midtown building, is suing the property owner and city for damages.
The civil lawsuit was filed on Monday in State Supreme Court in Manhattan. In the complaint, Steven Tishman argues that building owners of 729 Seventh Avenue, an LLC controlled by Himmel + Meringoff Properties, failed to fix several parts of the facade that had been cited for a violation and that the city failed to follow up on the mandated repairs.
The amount of the damages sought have not been disclosed but a spokesman for the family’s attorney said they are seeking a sum in the tens of millions of dollars. The couple had three children.
The the incident on December 17th and its seemingly random nature shocked New Yorkers at the time. The victim had been walking on the southeast corner of Seventh Avenue and 49th Street when the piece of facade hit her. She was later pronounced dead at the scene. Her death immediately raised concerns about building safety, an issue that has over the years dogged New York City. In late April, city inspectors cited 729 Seventh Avenue for a Class 1 facade violation, the most severe category. The building owner paid a $1,250 fine for that violation. Nonetheless, the issues at the 17-story building near Times Square went unaddressed. The owner also did not install a protective scaffolding for pedestrians.
According to the lawsuit, the building's facade has still not been repaired as of June 30th, but the Department of Building website states that protection has since been provided.
The material that struck Erica Tishman turned out to be terra cotta, a common building material in New York City but also one that some experts, including the DOB, said could be prone to weaknesses that are often difficult to spot during inspections.
Following the Tishman's death, the DOB did a sweep of roughly 1,300 buildings across the city that had been ordered by the agency to have immediate repairs made and to install pedestrian protections. The agency also announced a host of changes, including additional facade inspectors, that would result in more frequent and thorough inspections.
By law, all buildings taller than six stories in New York City must undergo a physical inspection.
In a statement to Gothamist, the family's attorney Benedict P. Morelli, spoke of "a disturbing trend" in the city of building owners not being held accountable for safety violations.
"Owners receive minuscule fines that they are able to pay off as a way to avoid making actual repairs. This practice is an open secret in the New York real estate community. We need a better system that puts safety first," said the family's attorney Benedict P. Morelli, in a statement to Gothamist.
A spokesman for the city's Law Department called the incident "tragic" and said that the city would "review the case and respond as we proceed in the litigation.”
The spokesperson for Himmel + Meringoff said in a statement, “This lawsuit is not unexpected. The loss of Erica Tishman is a profound tragedy."
In late December, the company sued the owner of neighboring building, claiming that protracted negotiations with prevented it from complying with the DOB's order to repair its roof and facade by January 21st.
The lawsuit was dropped in January, after the two sides agreed to cooperate on providing protective measures for the building. Work is scheduled to begin soon.
Tagged
facade collapse
lawsuit
department of buildings
state supreme court
Elizabeth Kim
Elizabeth Kim is a reporter on the People and Power desk who covers mayoral power. She previously covered the pandemic, housing, redevelopment and public spaces. A native of Queens, she speaks fluent Mandarin. Got a tip? Email [email protected]
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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