This one really slipped between the cracks.
After notifying a Queens homeowner that his sidewalk had cracks requiring repair within 45 days, the city finally got around to completing the job — 14 years later, in 2010!
But in the interim, the house was sold — and the new owner is up in arms over the $1,122.48 charge for the fix-up.
Now she’s fighting the unexpected bill.
“They came, and they marked it off and then repaired it,” recalled Linda Ferrone, who moved into 219-36 Stewart Ave., in Hollis Hills, with her husband and three kids three years ago.
She claimed she was unaware the sidewalk had been deemed dangerous, saying, “They never mentioned any bill for it.”
Alas, the bill was in the mail, added to her property taxes.
She said she paid the entire tab to avoid interest charges and is now seeking a refund.
State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Queens), who has taken up Ferrone’s cause, called on the city to cough up the money.
“It is simply ridiculous to ask the city to perform unannounced and unexpected work and charge the homeowner . . . for it,” he declared. “If you get a violation, the city is supposed to give you 45 days notice. But she never got a notice.”
The city took a different view of the matter.
Officials explained that an inspection of the sidewalk made on Aug. 6, 1995, determined it was defective.
Records indicate that someone performed a patch job that wasn’t up to code and that 56 square feet still had to be redone. In 1996, the owner at the time, Rafael Diaz, was issued a violation to make the correction.
And that’s where things stood until last year.
Officials said that the buyer at the time of purchase is responsible for determining if a property has any outstanding violations, which the new owner is responsible for clearing.
“One way or another, she would have had to pay to get this fixed,” said one official.