Strathmore Road residents Dennis and Corey Ferster found themselves at odds with the Village of Great Neck Board of Trustees on Tuesday over building department fees and allegations of unprofessional conduct within the building department.
The Fersters said they were subjected to undue delays and a lack of responsiveness by building department employees.
The “obnoxious people in that office” wouldn’t return their calls or emails, Corey Ferster said.
“The Village of Great Neck building department has a responsibility to provide us with professional service and not to violate our due process,” Dennis told the board, “We’ve been abused by the parties using their power to sandbag and delay and use their power to keep us waiting while ignoring our concerns. They have self-serving interests instead of serving the public.”
Mayor Pedram Bral responded to these allegations, stating, “These are heavy allegations…and I don’t really want to entertain them here.”
He clarified to the residents that waiving fees or penalties falls under the authority of the board of trustees only, not the building department.
The couple said they began remodeling their kitchen in 2021 when they sought permits for various home improvements, including a bathroom renovation and a kitchen overhaul, which involved obtaining a permit that didn’t allow for any structural changes.
The COVID-19 supply chain disruptions delayed their construction plans, making it difficult for them to obtain essential appliances, Corey told the board. He said he requested the fees be waived.
The situation escalated when the Fersters received a notice that their work was in violation of the village code.
“I was very careful very methodical in my visits,” Dennis said, “Our intention was always to fully comply with every request. We haven’t had a functional kitchen in years, we’re camping in our own home it’s no I just want to I just want to get this done.”
The Fersters said when they were at the building department they spoke with others who were also frustrated with the department. They also said the submitted architect plans were mishandled by the department.
Superintendent of Buildings Stephen Haramis said several of the issues were the fault of the couple, including their taking down a structural wall without a permit.
“They didn’t have any permission or any plans to take down structural walls,” he said, “So that was the issue. Chris went out there to do the inspection, then saw the wall was opened up, it’s a structural wall, meaning that’s what holds up the entire house.”
That’s when “I was called a piece of sh*t and I don’t know what I’m talking about I have no business worrying about their safety,” Haramis said, “And I said absolutely I have every right to worry about their safety.”
“This is grossly distorted,” Dennis said.
Bral said structural integrity is important to the safety of residents and that he knew of an incident where a bathtub collapsed into the dining room because of improper construction.
He also noted that while the village was waiving COVID-19 related fees, it’s for certain reasons.
“For example, if you were getting extension fees because of Covid or you could not complete and then they are going to charge you a whole new building fee,” he said, “We will waive that as well. This is not a new building fee this is something that you never paid because it was never calculated in the original plans because those original plans did not have any major construction.”
Since the Fersters structural work was done without a permit, the fee of $1,500 was tripled, per village code, resulting in a total fee of $4,500.
Bral offered to decrease the fee to the original one-time amount of $1,500 but did not waive the other fees, amounting to a total of $2,463.
The board voted unanimously to waive half the fee.