City Fines Kushner Companies For Falsifying EV, LES Permits

EAST VILLAGE, NY — The city's Department of Buildings fined Kushner Companies $210,000 this week for falsifying dozens of permit applications at 17 properties including a handful in the East Village and the Lower East Side, reported The New York Times.

City officials levied 42 violations against the real estate firm for submitting false information on permit applications, misrepresenting the existence of rent-stabilized tenants to potentially avoid regulations designed to protect residents from rent increases and eviction, The Times reported.

A spokeswoman for Kushner Companies told the newspaper the violations were merely "paperwork errors" and "in no case did the company act in disregard of the safety of our tenants," spokeswoman Christine Taylor told The Times. Kushner Companies will have the opportunity to contest the violations before an administrative judge.

The Associated Press first reported on the permits and spurred an investigation into the filings for the 17 properties by the Department of Buildings and the City Council. The properties include buildings in the East Village, the Lower East Side, the West Village and Brooklyn Heights.

Read The New York Time's full report here.

One of the 17 properties where Kushner Companies filed false permit applications, according to the city's Department of Buildings. The building, 172 Rivington Street, is located in Manhattan's Lower East Side. (Photo courtesy of Drew Angerer/Getty Images)