New York sues Nob Hill owners over repeated safety violations

New York Attorney General Letitia James and Syracuse Mayor Sharon Owens sued the owners and managers of Nob Hill Apartments on July 15, accusing them of years of unsafe conditions, tenant-rights violations and illegal business practices at the 101 Lafayette Road complex. Nob Hill was cited 413 times for city and state code violations from 2019 through 2026, and 69 violations were still unresolved as of June 2026.

The filing seeks to force repairs within 30 days and to bar companies and individuals tied to the property. It invokes Executive Law §63(12) and cites zoning, property maintenance, fire code, General Obligations Law, General Business Law and habitability claims.

Tenants reported pest infestations, broken elevators, busted doors and locks, sewage backups, overflowing trash, no heat or air conditioning, and security problems that included theft, fights and stolen cars. James called the February fire a preventable tragedy, while Owens said the owners had to be held accountable for neglect.

Syracuse firefighters responded at 4:10 a.m. on Feb. 28 to Building 3 at Nob Hill, where flames and smoke were coming from the rear of the 5½-story building. More than 70 firefighters responded, crews used ground ladders to rescue occupants trapped by smoke and heat, and the fire was under control in about an hour before being fully extinguished after two hours. City officials declared Building 3 unfit for occupancy, and the Red Cross helped displaced residents after one person died and dozens of tenants were forced out.

A July 15 fire update concluded the blaze originated in the rear living space of the apartment but classified the cause as undetermined under NFPA 921. The Onondaga County Medical Examiner said the person found dead in the apartment died from thermal injuries and smoke inhalation, while a second deceased person found elsewhere on the property did not die as a result of the fire.

The lawsuit follows an April 2026 city case over about $340,000 in unpaid code-violation fines and comes after more than 20 tenants filed individual suits seeking lower rents and rent refunds. More than 100 resident complaints were filed in the years before the fire, and the nearly 700-unit complex was under round-the-clock private security after the February blaze.