STATEN ISLAND, NY – A recently purchased home in Mariners Harbor was demolished by the city after the owner received multiple violations for conducting illegal demolition which endangered local residents.

Demolition of the home, which was taken over by the city following violations against the owner, has been completed, with an Oct. 24 tour by the Staten Island Advance/SILive.com showing a vacant lot where the home stood two-story. once standing.

On October 10, the New York City Department of Buildings conducted an inspection of 144 Van Pelt Avenue in response to numerous 311 complaints filed by nearby residents, officials told the Staten Island Advance/SILive.com .

Inspectors arrived to find an illegal and unauthorized complete demolition of the two-story home, with all floors, interior walls and roof already removed from the building, according to a Department of Buildings spokesperson.

Additionally, workers had illegally removed interior branch circuit wiring, light fixtures, switches and outlets without receiving an electrical permit, as well as a large portion of the gas piping system without receiving a plumbing permit , explained a spokesperson for the Ministry of Buildings.

A review of Richmond County Clerk’s records showed the property had been purchased for $470,000 a few weeks earlier, on Sept. 23, by a group listed as 144 Van Pelt Avenue LLC. Advance/SILive.com was not immediately able to contact the new owner regarding the demolition.

Not only was the work found to have been carried out illegally, but also in an unsafe manner, with workers failing to implement any safety measures to protect adjacent properties, the public and workers on site.

After the inspection, the Department of Buildings issued a complete stop work order on site and four Class 1 (Immediately Dangerous) violations to the owner totaling $15,350. according to city records.

Violations include failure to maintain the building in a code-compliant manner, failure to protect all persons and property affected by construction operations, construction work without a permit, and electrical work without a permit.

Due to the illegal work already carried out, inspectors deemed the remaining building to be no longer structurally stable, putting it at imminent risk of collapse.

This led the Department of Buildings to issue an emergency declaration order for the installation of a construction fence around the perimeter and the complete demolition of the remaining building, which is now complete.