By:Jeff Lipton
Homes that house more occupants than they are legally zoned for can cause a litany of problems for a community. Illegal occupants do not contribute to the tax base, and they do not pay for services such as sanitation, police and water. Meanwhile, their children attend local schools, often causing overcrowding in classrooms.
The added tax burden, therefore, falls on the shoulders of legal residents. Critics also argue that illegal apartments, particularly basement units, are fire and health hazards.
"A lot of illegals have been here for a while," said Sy Glass, president of the Woodmere Merchants Association. "They are going to our schools, using our facilities, and we have no control over it. There are five and six families living in one house and we can't control it."
Glass said the merchants group has worked hard with storekeepers to help beautify the community, and added that illegal housing is a blight on the community that decreases the quality of life. He explained that unaccounted-for families have hogged parking spaces in Woodmere, an area that is desperate for parking. Glass said that four, five and even six cars are regularly parked in and around driveways that used to have one or two cars, which is one of the indicators that a house is being used illegally.
"The inspectors aren't doing their job," he said. "Where is the Town [of Hempstead]?"
The town, which serves more than 900,000 residents, has only eight inspectors to investigate complaints of illegal housing, said Seth Bykofsky, co-chair of the Community Alliance, an umbrella group of 38 civic and community organizations representing mostly unincorporated areas from Elmont to Wantagh. The alliance is dedicated to addressing quality-of-life concerns in Nassau County and bringing them to the attention of public and government officials. One of the group's focuses has been illegal housing, which is at the heart of many quality-of-life issues, Bykofsky said. "Illegal homes do detract from one's quality of life," he said.
In Inwood, the problem of illegal housing is severe, said Gregory Nunn, president of the Inwood Community Group, and Elisa Hinken, an Inwood resident and a member of the Inwood Civic Association. "People do need housing, but we don't want unsafe housing," Nunn said. "When you have illegal housing, it does create a dangerous situation.
"And the owners should pay their fair share," he added. "If they divide it into a two-family, they should pay for a two-family."
Nunn said that since the apartment vacancy rate in Inwood is 1 percent, it is understandable that illegal housing exists. "But safety comes first," he said.
"We have a severe problem with it," said Hinken, who explained that she has been working on resolving the problem with the town's Department of Buildings. "It's gotten worse the last three years. [Illegal housing] causes the social services system to be stressed out as well.
"I know the buildings department is trying to work on it the best they can," Hinken said. "Every time they solve one, there are three more popping up."
Legal homes are usually converted into illegals in unincorporated sections of the county, because incorporated areas, such as villages, have stricter enforcement of zoning laws and more time to investigate complaints, Bykofsky explained. He said that even though he has received many complaints from Five Towns residents about illegal housing, the area's community groups have yet to join the alliance, even though the alliance has tried to reach out to them. Adhering to the theory that there is strength in numbers, Bykofsky said that joining hands with the coalition could only help the Five Towns gain control of its illegal-housing problem.
"The Five Towns seems to be more insulated," he said. "The Five Towns seems to have its own set of issues, which they seem to want to deal with on their own.
"We get phone calls and complaints from all over [Nassau County], including the Five Towns, such as Hewlett and, of course, Woodmere." Bykofsky said the complaints the alliance fields are immediately forwarded to the town for investigation and action.
Town of Hempstead officials said they have recently added two inspectors, and that fines for converting a dwelling into an illegal apartment have increased from $350 to $500 and/or imprisonment for up to six months for a first offense. For a second offense committed within five years, the penalty was increased from $750 to $1,000 and/or imprisonment for up to six months. The fine for a third offense was increased from $1,000 to $1,500 and/or a six-month prison term.
The town has sent out a mailing to caution building owners against converting their buildings into illegal apartments, distinguishing them from mother-daughter apartments and two-family senior residences. Town laws state that basement apartments are always illegal, but some homeowners, such as senior citizens, can receive exemptions that allow them to rent out parts of their homes.
Bykofsky said that many property owners view the penalties as the cost of doing business, but that levying a fine of $10,000 to $15,000 would go a long way toward ending illegal housing. In addition, he said, instead of paying $5,000 to $9,000 in property taxes, owners of illegal houses should be shelling out $20,000 to $30,000.
"It's a huge drain on a [school] district," said Stephen Witt, a Hewlett-Woodmere school board member, speaking as a member of the New York State School Boards Association Area 11, which covers Nassau County. "Obviously, it puts pressure on a school district." Witt said that one school subject illegal housing has impacted is English as a second language.
Howard Weinick, president of the Hewlett-Woodmere school board, said, "As far as the students are concerned, we are still obligated to educate them. If they are living in illegal housing, then housing [authorities] have to take care of that.
"If anyone knows of any specific information [on illegals], they should tell the correct authorities," Weinick added.
U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-Mineola) said illegal housing is an extremely difficult problem to tackle, adding that Mineola has been dealing with it for about 30 years. "We have taken certain steps, as far as asking the fire department, when they can see it, or neighbors to register complaints," McCarthy said. "With these illegal homes, you're not paying a fair share of taxes. A lot of them do have children who go to the schools. They're not paying for their garbage or water ..."
McCarthy agreed that one of the biggest problems illegal housing causes is with parking. "A lot are taking front lawns off and putting in driveways, and that looks terrible," she said.
"And some have 10 people living in a basement and that's a fire hazard," McCarthy added. "I don't think there is a town around that is not dealing with this problem, and it's all because you can't find housing."
McCarthy said that Congress has been seeking to create affordable housing for young couples and others.
