Court Tickets Issued in Partial New Rochelle Building Collapse

Some residents in an apartment building that suffered a partial collapse Friday are now being allowed to live there.

Paul Vacca, New Rochelle's Building Official, said he received a letter from a structural engineer for 234 Drake Ave. that said the front apartments which face the street are structurally sound. The apartments along the back of the building still are not safe for occupancy.

Around 7:45 p.m. Friday, the New Rochelle Fire Department received a call about the partial collapse.

Chief Louis DiMeglio said fire crews found that a huge section of stucco had come off the rear of the building.

"We taped off the building and then went inside and tried to assess damage," he said.

DiMeglio said Vacca was called to the scene and the residents in the C and D lines in the rear of the building were ordered out.

The fire department returned Saturday morning on a follow up and determined that the entire building should be evacuated.

Vacca said the stucco fell from the rear elevation of the gabled portion of the building, revealing the wood frame.

"There were stress cracks on the inside," he said, prompting the decision to evacuate the residents in the rear of the building.

"Water must have gotten in between the stucco and the wood framing," Vacca said.

He said there were eight court appearance tickets issued against the building's manager, Direct Management Corp. of Queens.

Some of the apartments were undergoing renovations without proper building permits, Vacca said.

No one at Direct Management Corp. would agree to answer any questions Monday.

DiMeglio said the fire department was in the process of determining what violations it would be issuing.

The fire department alerted the Red Cross of the evacuations, and temporary shelter was set up at the Drake Avenue fire house.

Spokeswoman Carolyn Sherwin said there were 13 apartments that were occupied. Three were vacant.

She said residents in the front of the building were allowed back in to their apartments around 6:30 p.m. Saturday. Five families could not move back in, Sherwin said.

Emergency housing was provided for one family, she said, adding that the Red Cross was going to follow up with the residents still displaced to make sure they have backup plans.

"We were glad a lot of the families could get back in," Sherwin said. "You expect the worst and hope for the best."