291 East 4th Street, Manhattan, NY 10009

291 East 4th Street is a 5-story, 14-unit Old Law Tenement building located in the East Village and owned by Hector Domingo. The building, constructed in 1900, has experienced significant maintenance challenges in recent years, particularly regarding heat and hot water systems. Between May and November 2024, there were five separate emergency complaints about heat and hot water problems throughout the entire building, with multiple instances where Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) inspectors were unable to gain access to perform necessary inspections.

More recently, from March to June 2025, there has been an ongoing issue with rodent sightings, with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) issuing follow-up inspections and finding violations in May 2025. The building's maintenance record shows several concerning patterns, including multiple violations related to building systems and infrastructure. In 2023, there were complaints about electrical and lighting issues, particularly in August when multiple lighting fixtures throughout the building's common areas were found to be defective.

The building also faces some challenges in its public areas, with open violations (as of August 2023) regarding broken lighting fixtures in hallways and stairwells across multiple floors, and a violation related to insufficient garbage receptacles. While the building has passed multiple rodent inspections in 2023-2024, the recent complaints in 2025 indicate ongoing pest management challenges. However, it's worth noting that the building has maintained a clean record for bedbug incidents from 2019 through December 2024, with no reported infestations during this period.