New York City has officially announced updates to Local Law 126, which mandates regular inspections of parking garages across the five boroughs. As part of the city’s ongoing effort to ensure structural safety and protect the public, the revisions focus on inspection frequency, reporting requirements, and the qualifications of licensed engineers involved in these assessments.

The Importance of Local Law 126

Local Law 126 was enacted in 2021, following a series of high-profile parking garage collapses and increasing concerns about the aging infrastructure of many facilities throughout the city. Under the law, all parking structures must be inspected periodically by a qualified licensed professional to identify potential safety hazards, structural deficiencies, or deteriorating conditions.

Key Updates in the Law

The 2024 amendments to Local Law 126 introduce several critical changes aimed at improving the law’s effectiveness and ensuring that property owners comply with safety regulations.

New Inspection Frequency Guidelines

The updated law now mandates more frequent inspections for garages. The new schedule requires an initial annual inspection followed by a more in-depth inspection on a six year cycle, similar to Local Law 11 façade inspection requirements PLUS annual checklist inspections. All condition assessments, annual inspections, and checklist inspections must be conducted on behalf of the building and must be performed by a NYC QPSI (Qualified Parking Structure Inspector).

Cycles & Boroughs Inspection & Report Deadlines

The deadlines for parking structure inspections and maintenance/repairs are organized into cycles, with each cycle further divided into three sub-cycles. The specific Community District where a parking structure is located determines whether it falls into sub-cycle A, B, or C. For parking structures located in:

• Manhattan Community Districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7: January 1, 2022 - December 31, 2023

• Manhattan Community Districts 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and Brooklyn Community Districts: January 1, 2024 - December 31, 2025

• Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island Community Districts: January 1, 2026 - December 31, 2027

For a complete overview of subject parking structures and their corresponding filing cycles, see the Parking Structure Inspections Map*. Note: This initial list is based on City records. Building owners with professional engineers are responsible for accurately determining whether their property meets the inspection requirements.

Significant Amount of Parking Structures Still Need Inspections

According to the New York City Department of Buildings database, an analysis of the current status of parking structure inspections in New York City reveals that a significant number of facilities have yet to comply with the inspection requirements. Out of the total parking garages across the city, over 4,800 have not filed the necessary inspection reports.

Breaking down the data by borough:

• Queens has the highest number of non-compliant structures, with approximately 1,890 parking garages still needing to file their inspection reports.

• Manhattan follows closely with around 1,600 garages yet to comply.

• Brooklyn has approximately 1,500 garages that have not completed their inspections.

• The Bronx has 644 garages that still need to file.

• Staten Island has the fewest with 52 unfiled reports.

This backlog highlights a critical need for increased efforts to ensure compliance, particularly in the larger boroughs like Queens, Manhattan, and Brooklyn, where the highest numbers of unfiled reports are concentrated. The large number of unfiled reports could pose risks to public safety and may result in significant fines for property owners if not addressed promptly. The city may need to enhance outreach and enforcement to ensure that these structures are inspected and reported on within the required deadlines.

Increased Penalties for Violations

According to Local Law 70 Amendment, New York City Council has updated the administrative code that significantly increases penalties for violations issued by the Department of Buildings (DOB) to parking structures. These changes, building upon Local Law 126 of 2021, introduce stricter fines for various types of violations, especially those deemed “immediately hazardous.”

Key points of the amendment include:

• A minimum civil penalty of $2,500 for violations related to DOB notices.

• A $5,000 minimum fine for any immediately hazardous violations.

• For particularly serious breaches, such as those compromising structural integrity, penalties can go as high as $20,000.

• Repeat offenders face even steeper fines, with second violations incurring higher minimum penalties than the first.

These heightened penalties are designed to ensure that parking structure owners comply with safety regulations, with the goal of preventing accidents and ensuring public safety. 

Looking Ahead

As New York City continues to modernize its aging infrastructure, Local Law 126 is one of many measures aimed at safeguarding the public. By updating the inspection requirements, the city hopes to prevent future tragedies and maintain a robust standard of structural safety.

Property owners and engineers alike should take note of these updates and prioritize compliance to avoid penalties and, most importantly, ensure the safety of New York City’s residents and visitors.

For more information on Local Law 126 and the recent amendments, property owners and industry professionals are encouraged to visit the NYC Department of Buildings website or contact the DOB directly.

* https://www.nyc.gov/assets/buildings/html/parking-structure-insp-map.html

Joe DiPompeo, PE is president of Structural Workshop, LLC, Mountain Lakes, N.J.