Spring Valley police to shut down unsafe Jewish home

Officials found a host of safety hazards at 17 Washington St. in Spring Valley in an investigation that began two weeks ago after two adults and six children were hospitalized with carbon monoxide poisoning

SPRING VALLEY — The village plans to shutter a dilapidated Washington Street residence where eight people were sickened by carbon monoxide last month after attempts to cite the property owner with violations have been unsuccessful.

Officials found a host of safety hazards at 17 Washington St. in an investigation that began two weeks ago after two adults and six children, including an infant, were hospitalized with carbon monoxide poisoning.

They were found to be burning charcoal and using propane heaters inside the house, which was without power because of the surprise Oct. 29 snowstorm.

"The house is in deplorable condition," Spring Valley Building Inspector Walter G. Booker said.

The two-story house is meant to be occupied by a single family but appeared to be occupied by numerous tenants, Booker said.

It has no smoke detectors or carbon monoxide detectors, which would have alerted the residents to the odorless, poisonous gas they were creating in an attempt to fend for themselves during the power outage, he said.

The house also has missing gutters, broken steps, evidence of infestation and faulty gas lines to the stove.

Village records show Joseph Klein last owned the property and sold it in February 2010.

The current owner is listed as a corporation called Alpha Holdings LLC, which doesn't exist in New York state records, Booker said.

"That says whoever owns the house is hiding behind a fake name," Booker said.

Spring Valley Fire Inspector Frank Youngman said Klein claims he no longer owns the property but oversees it and collects the rents.

A tenant also said people pay rent at Municipal Plaza, where Klein has an office, Youngman said.

Klein owns multiple properties in the village and elsewhere and has frequently been issued violation notices and fined over the years. He was most recently cited for violations at another Spring Valley property, 30 Lafayette St., and fined $3,350. Most of those violations have been corrected.

When reached by phone Monday, Klein said only that he works for Empire Management, the company that owns the 17 Washington St. property. The company, which he said has no owner, was hiring workers to address "minor" repairs, and tenants would likely move back in after it was reinspected, he said.

Booker said the residents of the home had relocated after being discharged from the hospital.

The house is uninhabitable, Booker said, unless substantial repairs are made.

"Joe Klein said he would take care of it, but we don't hold stock in that," Booker said. "We've heard it before and seen no action. So we're going to leave it (closed off) until someone comes requesting a permit for work."

Booker said the plan to board up the house is part of the village's stricter stance toward absentee landlords and property owners who don't comply with health and safety codes.

"We're going to be proactive," he said. "Whenever we have a building that's unsecured, we don't want that liability ."