If you are a building manager or board member managing a New York City building, you might know the drill already. But, in case you don't, here's everything you need to know about the Facade Inspection Safety Program and how to prepare for it.
Commonly known as Local Law 11/1998, this program requires owners of buildings greater than six stories to have their buildings' exterior walls and appurtenances inspected once every five years and file a technical report to the Department of Buildings (DOB). This report must be prepared and submitted by a licensed architect or engineer, also known as QEWI (Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector).
The current inspection, Cycle 8, started on February 21st, 2015 and will run through February 21st, 2020.
In order to avoid fines, building owners must be aware of the last digits of their building's block number and determine when their filing period begins. Cycle 8 is divided into three different sub-cycles:
Sub-Cycle A, with last digit block numbers of 4, 5 ,6 or 9 must be filed between 2/21/2015 and 2/21/2017
Sub-Cycle B, with last digit block numbers of 0, 7, or 8 must be filed between 2/21/2016 and 2/21/2018
Sub-Cycle C, with last digit block numbers of 1, 2, or 3 must be filed between 2/21/2017 and 2/21/2019
While Cycle B and Cycle C still have some time to prepare for filing, building managers who represent Cycle A buildings should be preparing now. As tempting as it might sound to procrastinate this process, as professionals we highly discourage it. More often than not, numerous issues are discovered during the initial inspection. By waiting until the last minute, building owners run the risk of not having time to make the necessary adjustments in order to comply with city regulations, getting fined as a result.
Every year, FSI Architecture assists numerous building owners with FISP. If you have any questions or need a licensed architect to start your filing process, contact Tom Cimillo, our Director of Business Development, at tomc@fsi-architecture.com.