![\"Historic](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/919-Prospect-Avenue-Google-Streetview.png\" "\\"Historic")
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919 Prospect Avenue \u00a9 2024 Google<\/p>\n
A South Bronx landlord must pay $2.1 million and fix severe, long-standing violations within a month following a historic judgment by New York City. On Thursday, Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced<\/a> the first-of-its-kind ruling against the owners of 919 Prospect Avenue, imposing the maximum penalties under the city\u2019s Nuisance Abatement Law. The landlord must address the most severe violations within two weeks, correct all remaining issues within a month, and pay $1,000 for each day the property remained a public nuisance for a total of $2.174 million.<\/p>\n The rent-stabilized building at 919 Prospect Avenue is owned by landlord Seth Miller, who has repeatedly appeared on the Public Advocate\u2019s annual \u201cWorst Landlords Watchlist<\/a>.\u201d <\/p>\n City inspections have cited the property for numerous violations, including a deteriorated facade, hazardous electrical equipment, obstructed fire escapes, an unsafe elevator, a non-functioning boiler, a partial vacate order, peeling lead-based paint, missing self-closing doors, rodent infestations, and the failure to install a required sidewalk shed.<\/p>\n At a Thursday press conference, Mamdani cited tenants of the building, represented by TakeRoot Justice, who worked alongside the city on the case and described the property as being \u201cin a state of near complete neglect.\u201d<\/p>\n Mamdani added that Miller reportedly cut off heat during the winter, locked elderly residents out of bathrooms, and suspended utilities as a \u201cform of punishment\u201d against tenants who reported building conditions to the city.<\/p>\n The $2.174 million fine against the negligent landlord stems from years of unresolved violations dating to April 21, 2019, according to Mamdani. He added that penalties will continue to accrue if the building\u2019s conditions are not corrected as required. The ruling marks the first time a landlord has been hit with the maximum civil penalties allowed under the Nuisance Abatement Law.<\/p>\n Mamdani also warned other landlords, calling the ruling a \u201cstrong precedent\u201d for pursuing similar legal action. He added that the city has allocated over $85 million in its preliminary budget to hire 200 new attorneys and 100 additional support staff for the Law Department, enabling it to take on more cases.<\/p>\n \u201cThis judgment is a landmark victory not only for those who call 919 Prospect Ave home, but for tenants across the five boroughs who must contend with the daily misery, mistreatment and neglect of a bad landlord,\u201d Mamdani said.<\/p>\n \u201cLet the scale of this penalty show how seriously we take the threat of building mismanagement that put residents\u2019 and neighbors\u2019 health at risk. We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to protect tenants across New York.\u201d<\/p>\n Since taking office on January 1, Mamdani has made tenant advocacy a central part of his agenda. On his first day as mayor, he revitalized the Office to Protect Tenants, now led by Cea Weaver, executive director of Housing Justice for All and the New York State Tenant Bloc. <\/p>\n