Today Is the Deadline to File Online Survey on Sidewalk Sheds

Co-op and condo boards that have had sidewalk sheds outside their buildings for more than 90 days have until midnight to file an online survey with the Department of Buildings (DOB), part of the city's new initiative known as Get Sheds Down.

The survey, available at the DOB NOW portal, asks why the shed was put up and the timeline for when it will be taken down.

Get Sheds Down was launched last month by Mayor Eric Adams and DOB Commissioner Jimmy Oddo. The goal is to expedite the dismantling of the unloved sidewalk sheds, which now number 9,000 citywide, have an average age of nearly 500 days, and cover some 400 miles of city sidewalks.

Many property owners leave the sheds up for long periods of time — for years in some cases — as a cheaper alternative to completing costly repairs. “This plan will flip the script so that property owners are incentivized to complete safety work and remove sheds instead of leaving up these eyesores year after year," Adams said when announcing the initiative.

Sheds are required whenever work on a building envelope is under way that might endanger pedestrians. The vast majority of that work is mandated by the Facade Inspection and Safety Program, formerly known as Local Law 11, which requires inspection and repair every five years of buildings taller than six stories.

Members of the Council of New York Cooperatives and Condominiums who have questions about the online survey are urged to contact the council by phone at (212) 496-7400 or by email at info@cnyc.coop.