1061 Allen Street (January 2023)

A court case involving the former Crawford Furniture Building that burned down in a fire in November 2022 has been adjourned until June 30.

City of Jamestown Corporation Counsel Elliot Raimondo and Allen Street Development LLC Attorney Daryl Brautigam appeared in Housing Court Friday, June 2 before Judge George Panebianco for a pre-trial motion.

The adjournment was made due to both parties submitting new files in the case that needed to be reviewed by the Judge. One issue that needs to be resolved by the courts is whether Allen Street Development LLC principal owner Richard Rusiniak is personally liable for the cost of the clean-up of the site at 1061 Allen Street.

The City is seeking damages against the corporation and Raimondo has said the property owners owe over $90,000 in back taxes.

1061 Allen Street (January 2023)

The corporation that owns the former Crawford Furniture Building that burned down in a fire in November 2022 is expected to plead guilty to code violations.

City of Jamestown Corporation Counsel Elliot Raimondo and Allen Street Development LLC Attorney Daryl Brautigam appeared in Housing Court Friday, April 28 before Judge George Panebianco.

Brautigam informed the Judge that he is advising his client at a pre-trial hearing scheduled for June 2, 2023 to enter a guilty plea on two tickets.

Jamestown Director of Development Crystal Surdyk said these tickets are for on-going violations at 1061 Allen Street that go back several years in regards to junk and debris issues as well as other code issues that preceded the fire on November 16, 2022.

Raimondo said this plea will allow the City to seek damages against the corporation, “After the fire, the city had to pay H.H. Rauh Contracting $100,000 for an emergency demolition just due to the fact that the site was so unsafe during and immediately after the fire for any individuals to near there. That said, anyone who drives on Allen Street and past 1061 Allen will still see that there are massive, and what we would say is Superfund type site, that needs to be cleaned up at the site of the fire.”

Raimondo said the city has received quotes for over a million dollars for that clean-up. He added that the owners also owe over $90,000 in back taxes for the past five years.

The pre-trial motion on June 2 also will determine if Richard Rusiniak has any personal liability as one of the principal owners of Allen Street Development LLC. A sentencing date for the guilty pleas will be determined at the pre-trial and that future date also will include the hearing of contempt charges against Richard Rusiniak by the City for providing false statements in court.

Meanwhile, Surdyk said the Environmental Protection Agency is still assessing the site. She said their involvement with the site in the years before the fire has been a benefit to the city, “I think the fire could have been much more damaging and catastrophic had they (EPA) not been able to achieve some compliance with removing some of the chemicals and hazardous materials from the site. We do know there were still some hazardous materials that remained at the time of the fire, but like I said, it could have been much more catastrophic than it was.”

The DEC and EPA are each pursuing independent actions against the property owners.

Surdyk added that Jamestown Police have not charged anyone with setting the fire but said she believed they did have suspects in the case. WRFA contacted Jamestown Police Chief Tim Jackson about the matter but had not heard back by press time.

Director of Development Crystal Surdyk presents to Jamestown City Council Housing Committee

Jamestown City Council learned more about a proposed $1.227 million dollar Rental Rehabilitation Program at its work session Monday.

Director of Development Crystal Surdyk said while a home ownership program is a hot button program, the funding received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development office under the American Rescue Plan Act did not allow for that kind of use, “The possible activities included rental housing rehabilitation, tenant based rental assistance, supportive services, acquisition and development of non-congregate shelter, and non-profit operating and capacity building assistance. So, unfortunately this did not allow for the assistance in creating more home ownership.”

Surdyk said a meeting required by HUD between stakeholders including the Jamestown Housing Authority, Chautauqua Opportunities, Southern Tier Environments for Living, and other community based organizations resulted in the agreement that the creation of a Rental Rehabilitation program was the best action, “For a number of reasons, one of which being we have had a rental rehabilitation program in the past so we weren’t creating something that was brand new. It was something we already knew how to do and it’s certainly really a huge need as we all know.”

Council member Marie Carrubba asked if there was a way to not give funding to landlords who consistently did not keep their properties up to code and were consistently in Housing Court on code violations.

Surdyk said there will be a screening process and a 10% match required of landlords, “We can fund up to $15,000 per unit. There will be a limit on the number of units that any one landlord can apply for. And there will be a five year anti-speculation agreement so the landlord would not be able to then turn around and sell their new and improved property. If they do, they have to reimburse us for the full amount. And, in addition to that, there’s a property maintenance agreement that they have to sign.”

Surdyk said a complete housing inspection for code violations will be done for participants in the program with the landlords responsible for bringing the housing units up to code.

A public hearing on the Rental Rehabilitation Program will be held Monday, March 28 prior to the City Council Voting session.

1061 Allen Street

An Allen Street industrial property in danger of collapsing is also under investigation by the State Department of Environmental Conservation and Environmental Protection Agency for contamination.

The property is located at 1061 Allen Street is owned by Allen Street Development LLC whose principal owners are Richard Rusiniak and his wife of Cheektowaga. The building used to be part of the former Crawford Furniture’s complex.

Jamestown Director of Development Crystal Surdyk said the City has cited the property numerous times in Housing Court, with Friday, January 21 being the most recent appearance. Mr. Rusiniak, nor any associates, appeared at Friday’s hearing.

Surdyk said the City is trying to get Mr. Rusiniak to secure the property and make it safe, “We have been working with the EPA and now the DEC on really assessing the site and determining what and where the potential hazards are. There are known hazards. It’s really just a matter of getting that full assessment of where all that is located. The building itself, a large portion of it, is collapsing and so there is serious concern there.”

Surdyk said they have serious concerns that if the building collapsed, anyone inside could be injured, “We also have a very serious concern about fire. It is attractive because you can enter the premises and there’s a lot going on in there. There have been some known thefts. So it’s a potential fire hazard, so it’s just an attractive nuisance.”

Surdyk added the City would like to see a controlled demolition of the back portion of the structure. She said the brick structure closer to Allen Street is in good shape and could be redeveloped.

She said with the property being located in a Brownfield Opportunity Area and its history of being part of furniture manufacturing, she contacted the EPA for guidance, “That led them to decide that they needed to take a closer look at it. The ended up coming down and doing their own independent investigation. They actually are in town right now [Friday] doing some additional investigation. We met with them yesterday and the DEC on site. The DEC has a history with this property owner. There are a number of other properties they have been working with him on to get cleaned up.”

Surdyk added the EPA is also doing an assessment and testing with all agencies collaborating to ensure all hazards are mitigated. She said the DEC and EPA are each pursuing independent actions against the property owners.

In Housing Court, Judge George Panebianco adjourned the case until Friday, February 4 in hopes that the property owners would appear and also ordered that Mr. Rusiniak should continue clean-up of the junk and debris on the site.

Housing Court

Director of Development Crystal Surdyk told the City Council Housing Committee that Judge George Panebianco will be hearing 15 cases a week, which is up five cases a week from last year.

Council member Marie Carrubba said while the regular evictions for public health and safety issues have not stopped, the eviction moratorium for tenants who were unable to pay rent due to financial hardships caused by the Pandemic is ending Saturday, January 15.

Governor Kathy Hochul said in a briefing Tuesday that the eviction moratorium will likely expire Saturday as planned without intervention from her office or the State Legislature.

She added she is asking the federal government for more rent relief to aid landlords and tenants ahead of the likely expiration of the moratorium.

The New York State Office of Temporary Disability Assistance announced it has reopened its Emergency Rental Assistance Program even though officials said it needs additional funding to support the backlog of existing and future applications.

Hochul said New York State only received $27 million of the $1 billion it sought from the Federal government.

New York will be joining other states in sending a joint letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to request additional federal funding.

City Council will vote on the ordinance change at its August 30th voting session.

Housing Court has been reopened for three weeks now and is still working through 2020 code enforcement cases. Surdyk said the court is only hearing 10 cases a week, “We are sticking with the most egregious. We’re really not bringing in cases that, you know, are just high grass or something that is kind of simple. We’re really trying to focus on the things that are more complicated and bigger nuisance type stuff.”

Council President Tony Dolce asked if there was a way for the city to get stricter on grass mowing, “Even in homes that we have people that actually live there but don’t mow their lawns that become issues of concern and safety. I know we have a list of abandoned properties and zombie properties that we mow, but there are several others that people are just not complying with the law and I think it’s time to. If we have to wait for the court, it’s going to be next year before we even.. and it’s ridiculous.”

Mayor Eddie Sundquist responded saying there are legal issues around the City mowing lawns where people reside as it could open up the city to claims of trespassing. Sundquist said staff would prepare a memo for council discussing the legal issues as well as possible solutions.

Mayor Sundquist added the city is still getting further input on the plan on how to spend nearly 28 million dollars in American Rescue Plan Recovery funds, “So, we’ll be having coffee hour with not-for-profits across the city. We had a round table with manufacturers throughout the city. We have a round table with small businesses in conjunction with the Public Market, Jamestown Renaissance Corporation, and others coming this week. So, we are doing other ones. We don’t want to miss groups. And we want to make sure we’ve covered our bases so we’re trying to get just a little more input.”

Sundquist said the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation will present the public input findings to Council in September.