New York launches probe into allegations of Kushner Cos. harassing tenants

The announcement by the Democratic governor comes after tenants at the Austin Nichols House on Kent Avenue in Williamsburg filed a lawsuit and said the company started major construction that released dangerous toxins in the air. They charge that the building was unlivable for tenants, with excessive noise and vermin running rampant, officials said.

"Governor Cuomo has zero tolerance for tenant abuse of any kind and we will aggressively take on landlords who try to intimidate people out of their homes," said New York State Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas.

"To circumvent New York City rent regulation laws it appears Kushner Companies commenced a deliberate campaign to systemically harass tenants out of their apartments using illegal and hazardous construction practices," said Aaron Carr, head of the nonprofit watchdog Housing Rights Initiative that was separately investigating the matter.

Twenty current and former tenants of the property filed a lawsuit Monday seeking $10 million in punitive damages plus whatever a jury decides for compensatory damages.

In a statement, a spokesman for Kushner Companies said the lawsuit is "totally without merit" and that residents "were fully informed about the planned renovation and all work was completed under the full supervision by the New York City Department of Buildings and other regulatory agencies, with full permits and with no violations for these claims."

The Kushner Companies spokesman also said, "Tenants were never pressured to leave their apartments and the market-rate rent stabilization was -- and continues to be -- complied with under applicable rent guidelines. Any complaints during construction (which was completed in 2017) were evaluated and addressed promptly by the property management team. The property management team is committed to continuing to meet the needs of all residents."

This story is breaking and will be updated.