March 17, 1999

MAYOR MASIELLO LAUNCHES SA VE OUR STREETS "OPERATION NORTH STREET"
March 17,1999
Contact: Peter K. Cutler (716) 851-5841

BUFFALO (3/17/99) - Citing numerous incidents of nuisance-related activities, most notably illicit drug activity and subsequent arrests, Mayor Anthony M. Masiello today announced civil legal action against the owners of Symphony North Apartments, 303 North Street.

"It is inconceivable that the owners of 303 North Street have failed to take corrective action following repeated drug arrests and other nuisance complaints," stated Mayor Masiello. "We are here today to announce that the owners of 303 North Street have been served legal notification that requires them, through civil action pursued by the City of Buffalo, to eradicate all drug and nuisance activity in or around this building. I will not tolerate such activity here or at any other residence in the City of Buffalo."

The city, through the Corporation Counsel's Office, will pursue legal action against the owners of Symphony North Apartments via the Nuisance Abatement Law, which is a city ordinance that allows the city to commence a State Supreme Court action to have a property declared a public nuisance.

The Nuisance Abatement Law is most often used when there is a frequent pattern of drug and/or prostitution offenses at a property. In 1998, the city successfully shut down the Lake Hotel (201 West Huron St.) using this law. The ultimate sanction that a court can impose under the Nuisance Abatement Law is the complete closure of a building for up to one year with monetary penalties against the owner. "Our goal is restore confidence among our law abiding citizens who have been subjected to this intolerable activity," said the Mayor. "The Save Our Streets program is working, as evidenced by today's Operation North Street, but it won't end here. From the West Side to the East Side, to every neighborhood throughout the City of Buffalo, let drug dealers, prostitutes and negligent landlords know one thing: if you sell drugs, if you engage in prostitution, if you permit any identified nuisance activity to persist on your private property, you will be evicted and you could lose the property outright. The City of Buffalo, which is aggressively rebuilding neighborhoods for law abiding citizens, will not allow this corrosive, aberrant behavior to persist."

The city has pursued this action via the Nuisance Abatement Law rather than the Bawdy House Law (the state statute, otherwise known as Real Property Actions and Proceeding Law) because the of the substantial nature of the persisting problem at 303 North Street. Rather than bring individual action against the tenants of the apartment building, today's action marks a comprehensive action to help solve the problem. The city, however, will still utilize Bawdy in cases when it is most expedient and effective in eradicating drug and/or nuisance-related activity in private homes.

Beginning in 1995, the Narcotics and Vice Bureau of the Buffalo Police Department began distributing notices including Bawdy House Law information to property owners where documented incidents of drug activity occurred. The Police Department considers a "documented incident" to be one where a search warrant has been executed, drugs have been found and arrests have been made. The Police Department has worked in close collaboration with the Corporation Counsel's office on these matters.

Following the success of neighborhood-based programs such as Weed and Seed, Mayor Masiello formed the Save Our Streets Task Force in 1997. The Task Force includes representatives of various City of Buffalo departments (e.g., Police, Community Development) and law enforcement personnel and various agencies from county, state and federal levels of government. The mission of the Task Force is to terminate drug activity and treat targeted buildings with a coordinated approach, including bringing properties into compliance with city and county building and health codes, providing information to Social Service and law enforcement agencies of individuals who fall under their jurisdiction, attempting to work solutions through the owners of the real property and/or seeking legal remedies via nuisance abatement laws, Bawdy House Law or ultimate forfeiture of real property, if the civil actions fail.

"I commend the members of the Save Our Streets Task Force in their tireless effort in assisting my administration in cleaning-up our neighborhoods and helping to restore confidence among our law abiding citizens," stated Mayor Masiello. "The Masiello Administration is the first administration in the city to use the Nuisance Abatement law."

"Our goal is restore confidence among our law abiding citizens who have been subjected to this intolerable activity," said the Mayor. "The Save Our Streets program is working, as evidenced by today's Operation North Street, but it won't end here. From the West Side to the East Side, to every neighborhood throughout the City of Buffalo, let drug dealers, prostitutes and negligent landlords know one thing: if you sell drugs, if you engage in prostitution, if you penult any identified nuisance activity to persist on your private property, you will be evicted and you could lose the property outright. The City of Buffalo, which is aggressively rebuilding neighborhoods for law abiding citizens, will not allow this corrosive, aberrant behavior to persist."