A partial stop work order is currently in effect in relation to construction work at a building under construction in the Bedford Park section of The Bronx, after a 311 complaint was received by NYC Department of Buildings (DOB).

 

David Maggiotto, DOB deputy press secretary, said that on Jan. 6, DOB received a 311 complaint alleging illegal construction activity at 21 East 198^th Street in The Bronx, located between Jerome Avenue and Creston Avenue.

 

Maggiotto said the following day, DOB inspectors arrived at the 11-story building site under permit for foundation work, and the construction superintendent provided approved plans for the work underway. He said the inspector did not observe any non-compliant conditions, and no enforcement actions were taken.

Maggiotto said that on Feb. 2, DOB carried out a proactive construction safety compliance inspection of the site, and inspectors observed that the contractor was performing work at the “superstructure phase of construction,” despite not having a valid permit for such work. “Inspectors also observed unsafe conditions present at the site, including a concrete pump occupying the street, and outriggers blocking the adjacent pedestrian walkway,” Maggiotto said.

 

He said that as a result, DOB issued numerous OATH (The Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings) / ECB (environmental control board) violations, and a Full Stop Work Order for the site.

Maggiotto said that on Feb. 11, during a re-inspection of the construction site, the general contractor provided DOB with an approved Site Safety Plan and a valid new building permit. He said that the work site was not fully code-compliant, however, as various safety measures were not being maintained.

 

He said as a result, DOB partially rescinded the Stop Work Order, which allows for excavation and foundation stage work to take place, only.

 

Maggiotto said that in order for DOB to fully lift the Stop Work Order to allow for construction to continue into the “superstructure phase,” the general contractor must schedule a re-inspection with DOB, and the responding inspector must confirm that no violating conditions are present, and that the site is fully compliant with all DOB code regulations. Once this is confirmed, he said the Partial Stop Work Order can be lifted.

 

As reported, a partial building collapse occurred at a construction site on Burnside Avenue in Fordham Heights last month. Fortunately, there were no injuries reported. It follows a previous partial building collapse at a NYCHA building in Mott Haven in October 2025, a partial building collapse in Morris Heights in December 2023, another construction site collapse at an Orchard Beach construction site in July 2023, and a wall collapse in Olinville in which six people were injured the same month and year.

City Council Member Pierina Sanchez (C.D. 14) previously introduced a bill, which became The Billingsley Terrace Structural Integrity Act, inspired by the Billingsley Terrace partial building collapse in Morris Heights in December 2023, and it duly passed in the council in 2024. The Morris Heights incident forced over 150 tenants to lose their homes, as reported, but fortunately there were no injuries.

 

As reported, Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark announced that three building contractors were indicted on April 12, 2023 in the first Bronx case to bring charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide for a construction fatality that occurred at 94 East 208th Street in Norwood in 2019.

 

The victim, a father and 46-year-old Ecuadorian immigrant worker, Segundo Manuel Huerta Mayancela, was crushed by 1,000 pounds of debris in what was described as an egregiously dangerous building site, a joint investigation by NYC Department of Investigation (DOI) and the Bronx District Attorney’s office found. Builders also allegedly falsified credentials/permits and flouted safety laws, according to the investigation. They were called out by union workers for doing so, as reported at the time.