Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: [v. 96, no. 2492: Articles]: December 18, 1915

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BUILDERS AlTD NEW YORK, DECEMBER 18, 1915 |!lllllillilllllllllllilllllillillllllllllll!lllllillllllll!llllllllllll!llilllllllll ■ I NEW CAMPAIGN FOR CONSOLIDATION Building Inspection Evils to be the Subject of Further Legislation—Con- | ference Committee Will Prepare a Bill for Estimate Board's Approval | lilllilill......llllillllllllllillllillllllllllillllllllllllM .....Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii.....Illllllllillillllllllllllllllli HUNDREDS of buildings in New York City will continue to hold out dangers of such loss of life and prop¬ erty as were sufifered in the Triangle Waist fire and the recent Diamond fac¬ tory fire as long as six city and State departments make conflicting rulings regarding the construction and altera¬ tion of buildings, according to Alfred R. Kirkus, chairman of a Conference Committee of business^ men who seek, through legislative action, consolidation of inspection functions of all city and State departments having to do with building construction, alteration and structural changes. Enforcement Now Impossible. Chairman Kirkus says the automobile, banking, drygoods, hotel, real estate and allied interests demand the rigid enforcement of existing laws for the protection of life and property, but he declares enforcement impossible while authority is divided between the Build¬ ing, Fire, Health, State Labor, Tene¬ ment House and Water Supply, Gas and Electricity departments, and while each one makes and tries to enforce rulings at variance with the rulings of all the others. The worst disasters in the city in recent years, Mr. Kirkus says, can be traced to multiplicity of inspections, and he believes recurrence of them can be stopped forever if one department is made responsible for the rigid enforce¬ ment of the law. Disregard of the Law. "The Fire Prevention Bureau of the Fire Department," continued Mr. Kir¬ kus, "had the enforcement of the law re¬ garding fire drills and the installation of fire alarms in the Diamond factory in Brooklyn. The inquest following the fire brought out the fact that there were neither drills nor alarms. The State Labor Department is authorized by law to enforce the provisions regarding the building of fireproof or fire resisting exits; to enforce the law regarding un¬ locked exits and e.xits opening outward. None of these provisons for the safety of tenants were enforced. The State Labor Department requires counterbal¬ anced stairways, but in the Diamond factory the stairway, when an attempt was made to lower it, I am told, fell on to the top of an exit door at the ground level, making both e.xit and stairway useless." Conflicting Orders. The impossibility of complying with all orders of the various departments is pointed out by Mr. Kirkus. who says that the Tenement House Department calls for ladders at the bottom of fire- escapes while the State Labor Depart- mend demands counterbalanced stair¬ ways. The last section of the new Building Code dealing with exits from buildings has been completed after the views of experts from all over the country had been consulted. In spite of this thc Fire Prevention Bureau of the Fire Department is issuing orders regarding exits, having made rulings which_are_entirely its own, and in no THE Conference Committee of Real Estate and Allied Inter¬ ests has been reorganized as a Conference Committee of Real Estate and Commercial Interests, with Alfred R. Kirkus, of the Mer¬ chants' Association, as chairman. A number of prominent merchants have been elected to the executive committee and a vigorous campaign will be prosecuted this winter to obtain favorable official action for a simplification of building inspec¬ tion in Greater New York, in order that there shall be less annoyance and expense to property owners in the future. way related to the provisions of the Building Code. "How can any one know what the law is?" Mr. Kirkus continued. "No matter how much one would like to obey it, it is impossible. We certainly do not intend to remove safeguards. Far from it. By the removal of divided responsi¬ bility we expect to erect a real safe¬ guard. It has been proven that divided responsibility makes possible the locked door and prevents proper fire escapes or means of exit, as well as fire drills and alarms. "We want consolidation of all inspec¬ tions of buildings to be erected in New York City. Then it will be necessary for builders to file plans with one de¬ partment which same department will give a certificate that the building is properly constructed or altered. Such building can then be sold or leased and the buyer or lessee can feel assured that he is not the owner or tenant of a structure that any hour may take a ter¬ rible toll of life. Fear Too Many Bills. "The approval of the consolidation plan is so great that various officials and organizations are reported to be prepar¬ ing bills. The only fear we have is that too many bills may be drawn with the purpose of bringing about this result, and that we may be compelled to ask that we be defended trom our alleged friends. Those who now seem to be en¬ deavoring to efifect a compromise an_d who are trying to unite factions are perhaps reckoning without their host. They are apparently not recognizing the fact that no matter what bill is in¬ troduced, it will have to be satisfactory to the Legislature. A bill that might lie acceptable to the Mayor, or a bill that might be satisfactory to the Bor¬ ough Presidents, or one that might be satisfactory to both these factions might still not be satisfactory to the Legisla¬ ture. "That the bill which was presented by the Conference Committee to the last Legislature was satisfactory to it, is proven by the fact that it passed the Senate with but 3 negative votes, and that it passed the Assembly with 106 votes in favor and only 23 votes in op¬ position. It is to be regretted that so mtich time was lost in endeavoring to bring about various compromises, had this time not been lost the bill would have been returned to the Legislature, and beyond any question would have be¬ come a law." Will Seek Estimate Board's Approval. The Conference Committee on Nov. 2i wrote to the Board of Estimate and Apportionment asking them to join in preparing a bill or ofTer suggestions towards the proposed consolidation. Mr. McAneny, acting Mayor, replied that within the next several days he would have the drafts of bills proposed to rem¬ edy the existing conditions, and that he would be glad to have the committee meet with representatives of the city in the matter at some time to be arranged —certainly before December 10th. "The 10th of December has come and gone," said Mr. Kirkus, "and there has been no conference, nor have we seen aiiy draft of a bill as promised, so the Conference Committee is drawing a bill and will submit it to the Board of Esti¬ mate and Apportionment for suggest¬ ions or approval. The committee will further a bill acceptable to a majority of the members of the Board of Esti¬ mate and Apportionment. General Consent Desired. "We have every reason to believe that when a proper bill is presented to the Legislature it will meet with the same, or even greater approval than was the bill introduced last year. One thing that the public may feel assured of is, that this Conference Committee will not al¬ low factions to interfere with its con¬ structive work. Any bill that may pass the Legislature will be returned to it, if disapproved, in time to permit the Legislature, which is the true repre¬ sentative of the people, to finally pass on it. "No person or organization or com¬ bination of organizations is authorized to speak for the Conference Committee, other than its chairman, but it asks all to unite with it, with the one end in view —that of the consolidation of the func¬ tions of all departments having jurisdic¬ tion over the construction, alteration and structural change of buildings. If this is accomplished, we can then get ready to take up, if necessary, the subject of concentrating the inspection functions after the new or altered building has been approved by the Consolidated De¬ partment," New Accessions. H. B. Brundrette, President of the Pacific Bank and Henry A. Schenck, President of the Bowery Savings Bank, have joined the Executive Committee of the Conference Committee of organiza¬ tions working for consolidation of building inspection. David H. Knott has joined as representative of the Hotel Men's Association, of which he is vice- president.