Co-ops—Alterations—Apartment Had Been Subdivided—Alteration Allegedly Done 18 Years Ago—Petitioner Failed to Prove That Alterations Had Been Done Without Board Approval—Claim Also Barred by Doctrines of Laches and Waiver

The petitioner had commenced a holdover proceeding involving a cooperative apartment that was occupied by the respondent, pursuant to a proprietary lease agreement.

The petitioner had served the respondent with a notice to cure (notice), which alleged that the apartment had been subdivided from a one-bedroom to a one-bedroom with a separate guest room and that “constituted an 'unauthorized alteration' in violation of” the lease. The notice noted that the respondent was “obligated to comply with all laws,…and regulations with respect to the occupancy and use” of the apartment and that “the addition of the free standing wall without a permit issued by the New York City Department of Buildings [DOB] was a violation of the New York City Administrative Code [Admin. Code] regardless if the wall was installed by a prior lessee.” The petitioner asserted that it was entitled to terminate the lease five days after the occurrence of a default, provided that the alleged default continued for 30 days after written notice.