Building owner might sue Schenectady over Jay Street fire

PHOTOGRAPHER: Peter R. Barber

Schenectady firefighters battle a fire that destroyed a pair of Jay Street apartment builidngs in the early morning hours of March 6, 2015.

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The owner of 100-102 Jay St., one of two buildings destroyed and demolished after a fatal fire March 6, has filed a notice of claim against the city in an effort to recoup losses.

The notice, precursor to a lawsuit, was filed April 28 with the city’s Law Department and lists Ravena Holdings LLC of 222 W. 14th St., New York, as the building’s owner. The building was overseen by Vytas Meskauskas of Ravena Holdings, according to several former tenants.

The description of the claim lists “loss of building, rent, personal property and demolition charges.” The amount Ravena is seeking as part of the claim has yet to be determined.

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Attorney Phil Rodriguez, who has an office on State Street in Schenectady, is representing Ravena.

“He [Meskauskas] lost a building, and it appears it’s very possible that the building was inspected the day before,” Rodriguez said. “It seems there might be some responsibility on the city.”

In response to the notice of claim, Mayor Gary McCarthy says he believes the sprinkler system was turned off in the building at the time of the fire.

City Building Inspector Eric Shilling told The Gazette in March the code enforcement office inspected neighboring 104 Jay St., where the fire started, the day before the fire. Shilling did not say when 100-102 Jay St. was last inspected. He said Friday he couldn’t confirm when the building was last inspected. McCarthy declined comment.

The city has denied Freedom of Information Law requests by The Gazette for code enforcement documents related to the two buildings, citing an ongoing investigation. Rodriguez said he has also been denied access to similar documents.

“Full information or not, the notice of claim has to go in because we have a 90-day deadline,” he said. “Because the fire started in 104 Jay St., we want to see the circumstances of what that building was.”

Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney convened a grand jury to investigate the fire and subpoenaed code enforcement documents for the buildings to aid in the investigation.

The accidental fire that claimed the lives of four people started in 104 Jay St. and spread to 100-102 Jay St. The buildings have since been demolished and work to repair sidewalks and utilities on Jay Street is ongoing.

The city paid for the demolition of both buildings up front and is looking to have the owners pick up the estimated $434,000 tab. It cost about $242,396 to demolish 100-102 Jay St., nearly double that of 104 Jay St., due to the six-story building’s instability after the fire.

But Ravena did not have insurance, according to acting Commissioner of General Services William Winkler. Rodriguez confirmed the owner did not have insurance.

“We haven’t been notified about the demolition charges yet,” Rodriguez said. “I haven’t seen any bills, but I’m sure they will be substantial.”

McCarthy said the bills would not be sent to the property owners until work is done on Jay Street. The owners will also be responsible for repairs to the sidewalk and utilities, in addition to the demolition, he said.

Several displaced tenants of 100-102 Jay St. said the building was in poor condition, with a non-working elevator, garbage in the hallways and fire escapes, and furniture blocking fire doors. Some tenants also said the fire alarms and sprinklers did not go off at the time of the fire. According to county property records, the building had both alarm and sprinkler systems.

Neighboring 104 Jay St. did not have a sprinkler system, records show. Owner Ted Gounaris told The Gazette in March he was not required to have sprinklers because the building predates state codes that requires them.

Ravena purchased the property in August 2012 for $595,000, according to city property records. Meskauskas has not responded to repeated requests for comment.

Esmeralda Jewelry, a tenant of 100-102 Jay St., filed a notice of claim against the city May 1 for loss of business due to the fire, with an amount to be determined. The jewelry store was destroyed and demolished after the fire, and its owner is working with the Schenectady County Metroplex Development Authority to find a new location.

Owner Benjamin Morales told The Gazette in March he did not have insurance and lost a majority of his equipment, jewelry and other possessions in the blaze.

Donald Leva of 114 Jay St. also filed a notice of claim against the city in April for cracks in the sidewalk as a result of the demolition of 100-102 and 104 Jay St.

There are a total of five notices of claims against the city regarding the Jay Street fire to date.