ALBANY — A 50-unit apartment building on Livingston Avenue that has catered to residents who are older, disabled or military veterans has become overrun with rodents, used needles, garbage, insects and mold, resulting in conditions that Albany code enforcement officials said are unsafe and unfit for living.
The city has filed a petition in state Supreme Court asking a judge to order the property owner from Orange County to correct a multitude of code violations or face potential penalties of up to $1,000 per day until they are addressed. The petition also seeks a court order prohibiting the owner from collecting rent until the violations are corrected — and from having any interest in owning, renting or leasing another residential property in the city.
The petition lists Hari Godhwani, 80, as the chief executive officer of Monroe Plaza, Inc., which purchased the three-story apartment building in December 2023. All of the residential occupancy permits for the apartment building expired 11 months ago. Godhwani, who has an address in Middletown, did not respond to a request for comment…