Tenant Protection Plan compliance Inspection Requirements and Exceptions
When Tenant Protection Plan Compliance Inspections Can Go on Hold:
As covered in the previous EPIC KNOWS article, Tenant Protection Plan (TPP) Compliance inspections are a new inspection addition to the updated 2022 NYC Building Code. The requirements of this inspection type can be found in section 1705.26 of the Building Code. The code requirement calls for at least weekly inspections during the duration of demolition and construction to make sure all items listed on the tenant protection plan are in compliance on site.
Due to a project that went on hold for multiple months and did not want to continue TPP Compliance visits if they weren’t explicitly required, EPIC reached out to the Construction Codes team of the NYC DOB. They confirmed that TPP Compliance inspections are not required when there is a pause in construction and the site is closed, or if there is a stop work order.
Common Tenant Protection Plan Non-Conforming Items:
EPIC has now completed Tenant Protection Plan Compliance inspections on several projects. No two Tenant Protection Plans are exactly the same as they have to be specific to the project and building. There can be inclusions for structural work, changes to the standard work hours, additional protections for health requirements or egress, and many other variations.
Many of the projects that we have completed with TPP Compliance inspection requirements share an overlap in the details included on their Tenant Protection Plans, and often share common non-conformances as well. Some of the most common items that we see on site that are not in compliance include:
Not initially having a fire extinguisher on site,
Not using the proper dust control mitigation devices outlined in the TPP (i.e., vacuuming, laying down Green Dust, or wetting the floor), and
Not having zipper enclosures on apartment doors where required.
These non-compliances will be listed in the TPP Compliance Report EPIC provides after each visit and generally require minimal work to remedy. We find that non-compliances are usually fixed by the contractor and in compliance by the next TPP Compliance visit the following week.
