No Can Do

By Gene Williams
Staff Writer

February 8 -- Gerard Soussan says he’s tired of listening to City Hall talk trash. He’s ready to sue unless someone down there can tell him what to do with his garbage can.

He can’t keep in on the street, Soussan said. His garage is too small. He doesn’t have an alley. And he can’t carry it up and down the stairs.

What’s more, Soussan’s effort to build a niche for his can has turned into a seven-month-long ordeal that has moved all the way to the City Council, which will take up the matter in closed session Tuesday.

“One division doesn’t know what the other one is doing,” said Soussan, who owns a two-story home in Sunset Park. “It’s sheer incompetence.”

City officials said Soussan’s dispute stems from “just one little embarrassing mistake” by a good hard worker.

The worker, said Building and Safety head Tim McCormick, didn’t know about a little known provision when mistakenly issuing a permit over the counter for Soussan to carve a niche in a retaining wall.

“This is a rare thing, the first time in the five years I’ve been here someone has asked for it,” McCormick said. “Unfortunately, one of the staff members wasn’t aware there was a restriction. People make mistakes.”

Soussan’s said his problems began when he returned from vacation last July, and found a citation for keeping his garbage container on the narrow public easement in front of his house.

Although he had been keeping it there for 25 years without any trouble, he paid the $250 fine and a 10 percent late fee and went about searching for a solution to his problem, Soussan said.

Soussan’s house sits on a hillside above Pier Avenue, where there is no alley for garbage collection. Moving the heavy container up and down the many steps from his house to the street was not an option, he says, especially with his bad back.

Nor could he use his garage. Soussan says it barely fits his car, and finding parking on the street is difficult at best. Soussan’s block does not have permit parking for residents.

But some of the neighbors, who were complying with the law, complained that Soussan was leaving his can in front of the house, City officials said.

“Our municipal code is pretty clear that you can’t have your trash receptacle in your front yard,” McCormick said. “We have received complaints about it on more than one occasion.”

After paying the fine, Soussan saw only one way to address the problem. He had a small section removed from his retaining wall and carved a niche out of the hillside.

He was ready to have the project completed with cement blocks and a gate when the City told him he needed a building permit, Soussan said. That’s when things got really complicated.

Over the next few months, Soussan says he spent several mornings at City hall with five different employees of the City’s Planning Department. In August he paid a building engineer $2,000 to draw up plans.

Through it all, Soussan says he kept his cool. “I was graceful about it,” he said.

Then, just when he thought he would get the necessary approval, he was told he needed to get a waiver from the City’s Waste Management division, Soussan said.

According to Soussan, an employee at Waste Management called the whole thing ridiculous and quickly granted the waiver. He returned to the planning department and, in October, finally got his permit.

But his problems were not over yet. A few days later he received a letter from the City saying that the permit had been revoked, Sousan claims.

“He did need a permit, but he had to repair the wall,” McCormick said. “There is some concern” about the wall’s integrity, he said. “The wall must be put back.”

Sousan wasn’t pleased with the decision.

“I got nasty about it and wrote a nasty letter,” said Soussan, who is an attorney. In the letter he told the City, “Either let me proceed or I will bring a law suit.”

In November, Soussan says he was contacted by City Attorney Barry Rosenbaum. According to Soussan, Rosenbaum said, “I will handle the matter. You will hear from me soon.”

Soussan says that Rosenbaum called back two weeks ago, eager to settle. According to Soussan, the City is willing to reimburse him for the cost of the permit and the $2,000 he paid for blue prints.

Not included in the settlement, however, is a solution to his dilemma.

He told Rosenbaum, “I will not settle unless you tell me what to do with my trash can.”

Rosenbaum declined to comment, noting that there was potential litigation.

There is at least one reason to hope for a swift resolution. When the rains came last month, neighbors complained about the missing piece of the wall, City officials said.

“We’re allowing it (the potential legal challenge) to play out,” McCormick said. “ We’re monitoring (the wall). It’s okay for the short term.”

Soussan must replace the wall, McCormick said, “unless the council wants to make a special consideration or change the law.”