By: Benyamin Davidsons
Residents at an exclusive, high-end Tribeca building are complaint they are battling rats.
As reported by the NY Post, The Cast Iron House, a doorman building built in 1881 has become infested with rats. The 9-story building at 67 Franklin Street, which boasts 11 duplex lofts and two penthouses, had large rodents found “crawling on couches, in kitchens, down stairs and perhaps most unsettling, in a child’s playroom,” as per a lawsuit filed by the residents.
The landmark building, which displays a sample of New York’s iconic 19th-century cast iron architecture, was converted into 13 condo apartment units in 2015 by architect Shigeru Ban. The lawsuit claims that the residents of the multi-million dollar lofts have spent their own money to fix holes in drywall and cabinets gnawed at by the unwanted, oversized pests. “These are New York City rats,” said lawyer H.P. Sean Dweck, who represents the residents. “These are big boy rats.”
“No one should be forced to live with rats, regardless of building type or the nature of the occupancy,” the posh residents wrote in their Manhattan Supreme Court filing, adding that they have “spent tens of millions of dollars” for their units– roughly $63.5 million collectively. Court records for the litigation include photos of the fat rats scurrying about in a living room, on counter tops, down a staircase, and through couch cushions– as well as photos of a few dead rats. It’s “a rat condition that no one would want in their building or apartment for a single night,” the residents complained. Among the residents, filing the complaint is Giorgio De Luca, who is co-founder of the gourmet grocery chain Dean & DeLuca.
The building boasts amenities including a fitness center, resident’s lounge, hydrotherapy spa, sauna, steam room, a dance/yoga studio and a courtyard. In the past two years, however, the building has garnered two summonses from the city Health Department, for fresh rat droppings. Rats have easy access entering the condominium because of missing insulation in “many areas” of the facade, as well as the absence of “fire-stopping” sealants in the walls of the building, the residents claim.
A lawyer for the Cast Iron House denied the claims. “We deny all of the allegations raised in the complaint and we are confident that this lawsuit will be dismissed,” said attorney Richard Klein.