Photo by Síle Moloney
An FDNY spokesperson said the emergency services received a call at 3.35 p.m. on Sunday for a report of a person injured in Apt. #1H at 3569 Dekalb Avenue, located between East 212th Street and East 213th Street.
Photo by Síle Moloney
The spokesperson said upon arrival, EMTs transported one patient to Montefiore Medical Center in Norwood, adding that her condition was unknown. Norwood News was at the scene after the collapse on Sunday afternoon and spoke to the injured woman who said her name was Amy Acosta.
Photo by Síle Moloney
“I was here cooking for my daughter when I saw a bit of water on the ceiling,” Acosta said, visibly shaken. “When I reached for a saucepan to clean up, everything fell from up high, the whole thing came down, the [inaudible], the cups, the plates, everything,” she said, adding, “I’m in pain.”
Asked if she had been trapped underneath the rubble, Acosta said, “EMS came to help me.” Asked if EMS/FDNY had to break down the door, she said, “No, my daughter was here.” We asked if her daughter had been hurt also, and she said no.
Photo by Síle Moloney
She said she had reported the issue previously to the super but that nothing had allegedly been done. Norwood News attempted to reach the super at the number displayed in the lobby and we also rang his doorbell but were unable to reach him.
Source: NYC Department of Buildings
Acosta was seen walking out of the building alongside an EMT and making her way to the waiting ambulance in which her daughter was already waiting, holding her shoulder in pain while a tear trickled down her cheek.
Source: NYC Department of Buildings
The young mother had returned to her apartment to check something inside when we met her and before she later got into the ambulance. An EMT was later seen speaking gently to both her and her daughter inside the vehicle.
Source: NYC Department of Buildings
The impacted building is owned by BAH Dekalb Housing Development Fund, designated a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and has a Manhattan address since March 2025 according to the property deed.
Other legal agreements in respect of the property have been signed with both NY Affordable Housing Dekalb Associates with an address in Great Neck, NY, and with NYC Department of Housing, Preservation & Development, though their purpose was not immediately clear.
Norwood News reached out to HPD for comment and will share any updates we receive. We also tried to each the building owner and will share any updates we receive.
Source: NYC Department of Buildings
Attached are the 33 resolved and open complaints logged in respect of the building, according to NYC Department of Buildings’ (DOB) records.
One prior complaint relates to a ceiling collapse due to water leakage. Another relates to the building structure “as a whole” being in “a terrible condition” and another to the instability of the building structure.
There are also 10 DOB violations and 17 OATH violations logged in respect of the building. OATH stands for the Office of the Administration of Trials and Hearings.
Source: NYC Department of Buildings
As reported, the issue of affordable housing and freezing the rent were part of the winning campaign agenda of New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, who, earlier on Sunday, delivered remarks at Union Grove Missionary Baptist Church in the Charlotte Gardens section of The Bronx.
Meanwhile, penning an op-ed in the New York Daily News dated Nov. 23, Alex Schwartz, the longest serving member of the Rent Guidelines Board, says such a rent freeze is not workable, and Kenny Burgos, a former Bronx assemblyman for A.D. 85, who is now CEO of the New York Apartment Association agrees, saying, “We can tackle affordability in NYC without bankrupting tenants’ homes and NYC’s public investment.”
Burgos said according to research by NYU’s Furman Center, which advances research and debate on housing, neighborhoods, and urban policy, half of rent-stabilized housing in New York City is privately owned, near 100% stabilized, and consists of pre-1974 buildings.
Source: NYC Department of Buildings
Burgos said those who operate this housing stock, according to NYU’s Furman Center, are being asked to operate on a budget that is $235 less than similar non-profit housing that is currently facing financial distress. In short, he said if the nonprofits are in distress, the privately-owned buildings are in more distress.
Norwood News has reached out to the Mamdani Transition team for comment on the Daily News op-ed and on the comments by Burgos on NYU’s Furman Center findings, and will share any feedback we receive.
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.