NY Mult Dwell L § 34 (2021)
2021 New York Laws MDW - Multiple Dwelling Article 3 - Multiple Dwellings--General Provisions Title 1 - Light and Air 34 - Rooms in Basements and Cellars.

§  34.  Rooms  in  basements  and cellars. 1. In any multiple dwelling erected after April eighteenth, nineteen hundred twenty-nine, every room in a cellar or basement shall have a permit as provided  in  subdivision five of section three hundred and, except as provided in subdivision six of this section, shall comply with the following conditions:   a.  Such  rooms  shall be everywhere at least eight feet high from the floor to the ceiling, except that in a basement room  as  many  as  four beams  twelve  inches  or less in width and extending six inches or less below the ceiling may be disregarded.   b. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph f, the ceiling  of  every such room in the front part of the dwelling, or in an apartment or suite extending  to  the  front  part, shall be at every point of such room at least four feet six inches above the curb level  directly  in  front  of such  point  on  the street in front of the dwelling; and the ceiling of every other such room, unless the yard of the dwelling is sixty feet  or more in depth or extends to a street along its entire width, shall be at every point of such room at least two feet above the curb level directly in  front  of  such  point on the street in front of the dwelling. Every yard or court upon which any such cellar or basement room  or  apartment opens shall, conform to the requirements of subdivision eight of section twenty-six.  Every such room, except as otherwise provided in paragraphs e and f, shall be an integral part of an apartment or  suite  containing at  least one room with a window opening directly upon a street or yard. Except as provided in paragrahs e and f, and  if  the  yard  of  such  a dwelling  is  less than sixty feet in depth there shall be not more than one apartment or suite in any cellar therein and any such  apartment  or suite  shall  contain  not  more than five rooms, shall be supplied with water closet and bath accommodations, and shall not open upon any  court less  than  five feet in width. Every part of such an apartment or suite shall either be within twenty-five feet of  the  inner  surface  of  the front or rear wall of the dwelling or have a window opening upon a court of  at  least  the dimensions prescribed in section tweny-six, but never less than ten feet wide.   c. Every  such  cellar  or  basement  room  shall  have  access  to  a water-closet   constructed   and   arranged  as  prescribed  in  section seventy-six.   d. Every such room shall have a window or windows complying  with  the requirements  of  section  thirty. The aggregate area of windows in each such room, except  as  provided  in  paragraph  f,  shall  be  at  least one-eighth of the horizontal area of the room. Each such window shall be constructed  so that the upper half of its area can be opened, and shall open upon a street, court or yard. The underside of the top stop-bead of each such window shall be within  twelve  inches  of  the  ceiling.  One window  in  each  such room shall have an area of at least twelve square feet.   e. In addition to a janitor's apartment three rooms or less  may  also be  provided in the cellar of such a dwelling exclusively for the use of persons regularly and continuously employed in the maintenance  of  such dwelling.  Every  such room shall be completely separated from any other room or private hall and shall comply with all the provisions respecting a janitor's apartment except those relating to  water-closet  and  bath, but  there  shall  be at least one water-closet and bath accessible from each such room without passing through a janitor's apartment.  No  other rooms  in  such  a  cellar  shall  be  occupied  for  living or sleeping purposes, except  as  permitted  in  paragraphs  b  and  f.  Whenever  a janitor's apartment in the cellar of such a dwelling, or a room therein, is  expressly  excepted  from  a  requirement  in  any provision of this  chapter, such exception shall apply also to  any  cellar  room  lawfully occupied as in this paragraph provided.   f.  (1) When the lot of such a dwelling abuts upon two or more streets and the difference in level between the highest and the lowest points of the curbs adjoining the lot is more than ten  feet,  a  room  below  the highest  curb  point  may  be used for living purposes provided it opens upon a street or upon a lawful court or  yard  which  connects  directly with a street or, if the floor of such room is not more than twelve feet below  the  highest  curb  point,  upon  an  interior court with a least dimension of not less than thirty feet if such court is  situated  on  a lot line, and otherwise with a least dimension not less than fifty feet. Every  such room shall be at least nine feet high from finished floor to finished ceiling. When any such room or an apartment containing it faces a street, the ceiling of the room at every point shall be at least  four feet six inches above the curb level of such street directly in front of such  point. For the purpose of determining the required dimensions of a court or yard  of  any  dwelling  subject  to  the  provisions  of  this sub-paragraph,  the  height  of such dwelling shall be measured from the lowest point of such court or yard.  (2) When the lot of such a multiple dwelling does not run through from street to street and there is a difference  in  level  exceeding  twenty feet  between the highest point of the curb in front of the dwelling and the lowest point of the curb on a street directly in  the  rear  of  the dwelling which street is within one hundred twenty-five feet of the rear line of the lot, a room below the level of the highest point of the curb in  front  of the dwelling may be used for living purposes provided such room opens upon a yard or a court adjoining a yard.  The  floor  of  any such  room shall be at least six inches above the level of every part of every yard and court upon which such room opens and of the curb  on  the street  in  the rear of such dwelling and also of all intervening ground between the rear street and the rear lot line. Every such room shall  be at  least  nine  feet  high from finished floor to finished ceiling. The required dimensions of a yard, or of a court adjoining a yard, on  which such  a  room  opens  in  any dwelling subject to the provisions of this sub-paragraph, shall be  determined  by  the  height  of  such  dwelling measured from the lowest point of such yard or court.  (3) In any portion of a multiple dwelling arranged for living purposes below  the  curb  level  under authority of either of the sub-paragraphs above there  shall  be  no  wood  beams,  wood  lintels  or  other  wood structural  members, nor shall any wood or other inflammable material be used in any partitions, furrings or ceilings.   2. Every multiple dwelling erected after  April  eighteenth,  nineteen hundred  twenty-nine,  whenever  the department shall deem it necessary, shall have all walls below the ground level  and  all  cellar  or  lower floors   damp-proofed   and   water-proofed.   Such   damp-proofing  and water-proofing shall run throughout the cellar or other lowest floor and through and up the walls as high as the ground level.   3. Every cellar and basement  in  every  multiple  dwelling  shall  be properly lighted and ventilated to the satisfaction of the department.   4. In every multiple dwelling the cellar walls and ceilings, except in rooms  occupied  as  provided  in  paragraph  f of subdivision one or in subdivision six, shall either be constructed of  light-colored  material or  be thoroughly whitewashed or painted a light color by the owner, and shall be so  maintained.  Such  whitewash  or  paint  shall  be  renewed whenever necessary, as may be determined and required by the department.   5.  Notwithstanding  any  provisions of this section or of subdivision five of section three hundred, an apartment or room in  a  cellar  which was  occupied for living purposes at any time on or after October first,  nineteen hundred fifty-two may thereafter continue to  be  occupied  for such  purposes  until  July  first,  nineteen  hundred  sixty-seven,  in accordance with the conditions imposed by subdivision  five  of  section two hundred sixteen.   6.  An  apartment in a cellar or basement of any multiple dwelling may be used for living purposes provided all of the following conditions are complied with:   a. Such apartment has at least one half of its height and all  of  its window  surfaces  above every part of an "adequate adjacent space." Such "adequate adjacent space" shall be open to the sky,  shall  be  properly drained to the satisfaction of the department, and shall be a continuous surface area outside the dwelling not less than thirty feet in its least dimension  and  abutting at same level, or directly below, every part of the exterior walls of such apartment and of every other apartment on the same floor. Such "adequate adjacent  space"  shall  include  only  space which  is located on the same lot or plot as the dwelling or on a street or public place or space.   b. Every living room of such apartment is everywhere  at  least  eight feet  high from the floor to the ceiling in dwellings erected after July first, nineteen hundred fifty-seven, and seven feet in dwellings erected prior thereto.   c. All parts of the exterior walls of the  dwelling  which  are  below ground level and on the same floor as such apartment or above such floor are  dampproof  to  the  satisfaction of the department and the floor of such apartment is dampproof and waterproof.   d. The yard and every court of the dwelling containing such  apartment are adequately drained to the satisfaction of the department.   e. If any part of the apartment is below the "adequate adjacent space" referred  to in paragraph a of this subdivision, all ceilings, walls and partitions of such apartment are fire-retarded or the rooms  and  spaces within  such  apartment  are  protected  by  a  sprinkler  system to the satisfaction of the department.   f. Such apartment and every part of the floor on which it is  situated meet  all of the requirements which would be in effect for such floor if none of the rooms thereon were used for living purposes.   g. Such apartment complies with all of the requirements for apartments in the same dwelling which are not in a cellar or basement.   h. The floor on which such apartment is situated, if a  cellar,  shall nevertheless  be  counted as a story for the purpose of all requirements except those relating to the height of the dwelling.