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was sent from there to two other city agencies in St. George, another in Manhattan, and one in
Astoria, Queens. No one was interested and stepped up to help, he said.
The next sign of trouble was Lara's quarterly real-estate tax bill for November 2005 to February 2006.
He showed a reporter the original document, pointing out the Statement Details that included three
separate charges for city exterminating services.
"The city came and put rat poison in the vacant lot [next door], and posted a warning sign. But I got
the bill," he said, shaking his head.
It was not until last year that the Laras felt certain that careless city inspectors were incorrectly
identifying the overgrown, often-littered, vacant lot on the other side of their house, as 340A York
Ave., the address of their garage.
Based on an inspection on Nov. 13, 2008, the Laras received a Notice of Violation (NOV) from the
city's Health Department, citing two conditions at the 340A York Ave. address:
"High weeds exists [sic] in that dense weeds approximately three to four feet high observed inside the
left fence and exterior of the garage."
"Rubbish conditions exists [sic] in that discarded lumber, cut tree wood, and scattered recyclables
observed inside the left exterior garage, creating harborage conditions conducive the rodent
infestation."
The couple was dumbfounded because the violations described conditions on the vacant lot adjacent
to their home, not on their property. The NOV required an appearance on Jan. 21, 2009 at 1 p.m. for a
hearing before the health department's administrative tribunal at 66 John St., in downtown Manhattan.
"I had to take the day off," said Lara, who now works part-time for Access-A-Ride. He and his wife
arrived on time, waited an hour to be called, and were told to reschedule another appointment because
the inspector who wrote the violations was not present.
The new appointment coincided with a date when the Laras were away on vacation. Back home, Lara
traveled again to John Street to explain and, he said, was told that another appointment date would be
sent to him in the mail.
Nothing came until last month, when he received a letter from the tribunal, warning him about the
additional $800 in fines. The $800 fine can be traced back to two official documents that Lara showed
to a reporter last week.
A health department Pest Control Services inspection on Sept. 29, 2008 identified 340A York Ave. -
where the Laras' garage is located -- as a public area with a "vacant lot or exterior" with "rubbish/high
weeds." Partially illegible handwritten comments on the one-page form noted "dense high
vegetation," and "condition for rodent."
The Lara garage is not a public area: The building occupies the entire front lot, separated from their
home by a walkway leading to a covered concrete patio and, beyond that, a mature garden.
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