156 West 86th Street, Manhattan, NY 10024

156 West 86th Street is a 12-story, 34-unit residential building constructed in 1916 and currently owned by Harry Schessel. The Upper West Side property has experienced recurring heating and hot water issues throughout the 2024-2025 winter season, with eight emergency complaints filed between October 2024 and February 2025, though inspections were often unable to gain access for verification. While the building has consistently passed annual rodent inspections, with the most recent inspection in March 2025 showing no violations, there have been several notable housing maintenance violations.

In August 2023, the building was cited for multiple issues including defective self-closing doors in stairwells A and B, while current open violations from 2022 and 2023 pertain to a bathroom sink waste line issue in apartment 2C and a certificate of inspection posting requirement near first-floor mailboxes. The building's management faced significant penalties in 2019 related to construction safety compliance, with active environmental violations for failing to post required tenant protection documents ($6,250 each) and a previous fine that has since been resolved. Despite these issues, the building has maintained a clean bedbug record, with no reported infestations since at least 2019, and recent inspections have shown compliance with basic building maintenance requirements.

The Department of Buildings has issued multiple permits for various repairs and improvements over the past five years, with most permits related to emergency work. During 2019-2021, there were violations related to energy efficiency score posting requirements, though these were ultimately dismissed. The property appears to have maintained overall structural integrity, passing annual rodent inspections and regularly addressing building maintenance issues as they arise, though the recurring heat and hot water problems during winter months suggest ongoing building system challenges that require attention.