§ 34 — Rooms in basements and cellars

§ 34. Rooms in basements and cellars. 1. In any multiple dwelling\nerected after April eighteenth, nineteen hundred twenty-nine, every room\nin a cellar or basement shall have a permit as provided in subdivision\nfive of section three hundred and, except as provided in subdivision six\nof this section, shall comply with the following conditions:\n a. Such rooms shall be everywhere at least eight feet high from the\nfloor to the ceiling, except that in a basement room as many as four\nbeams twelve inches or less in width and extending six inches or less\nbelow the ceiling may be disregarded.\n b. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph f, the ceiling of every\nsuch room in the front part of the dwelling, or in an apartment or suite\nextending to the front part, shall be at every point of such room at\nleast four feet six inches above the curb level directly in front of\nsuch point on the street in front of the dwelling; and the ceiling of\nevery other such room, unless the yard of the dwelling is sixty feet or\nmore in depth or extends to a street along its entire width, shall be at\nevery point of such room at least two feet above the curb level directly\nin front of such point on the street in front of the dwelling. Every\nyard or court upon which any such cellar or basement room or apartment\nopens shall, conform to the requirements of subdivision eight of section\ntwenty-six. Every such room, except as otherwise provided in paragraphs\ne and f, shall be an integral part of an apartment or suite containing\nat least one room with a window opening directly upon a street or yard.\nExcept as provided in paragrahs e and f, and if the yard of such a\ndwelling is less than sixty feet in depth there shall be not more than\none apartment or suite in any cellar therein and any such apartment or\nsuite shall contain not more than five rooms, shall be supplied with\nwater closet and bath accommodations, and shall not open upon any court\nless than five feet in width. Every part of such an apartment or suite\nshall either be within twenty-five feet of the inner surface of the\nfront or rear wall of the dwelling or have a window opening upon a court\nof at least the dimensions prescribed in section tweny-six, but never\nless than ten feet wide.\n c. Every such cellar or basement room shall have access to a\nwater-closet constructed and arranged as prescribed in section\nseventy-six.\n d. Every such room shall have a window or windows complying with the\nrequirements of section thirty. The aggregate area of windows in each\nsuch room, except as provided in paragraph f, shall be at least\none-eighth of the horizontal area of the room. Each such window shall be\nconstructed so that the upper half of its area can be opened, and shall\nopen upon a street, court or yard. The underside of the top stop-bead of\neach such window shall be within twelve inches of the ceiling. One\nwindow in each such room shall have an area of at least twelve square\nfeet.\n e. In addition to a janitor's apartment three rooms or less may also\nbe provided in the cellar of such a dwelling exclusively for the use of\npersons regularly and continuously employed in the maintenance of such\ndwelling. Every such room shall be completely separated from any other\nroom or private hall and shall comply with all the provisions respecting\na janitor's apartment except those relating to water-closet and bath,\nbut there shall be at least one water-closet and bath accessible from\neach such room without passing through a janitor's apartment. No other\nrooms in such a cellar shall be occupied for living or sleeping\npurposes, except as permitted in paragraphs b and f. Whenever a\njanitor's apartment in the cellar of such a dwelling, or a room therein,\nis expressly excepted from a requirement in any provision of this\nchapter, such exception shall apply also to any cellar room lawfully\noccupied as in this paragraph provided.\n f. (1) When the lot of such a dwelling abuts upon two or more streets\nand the difference in level between the highest and the lowest points of\nthe curbs adjoining the lot is more than ten feet, a room below the\nhighest curb point may be used for living purposes provided it opens\nupon a street or upon a lawful court or yard which connects directly\nwith a street or, if the floor of such room is not more than twelve feet\nbelow the highest curb point, upon an interior court with a least\ndimension of not less than thirty feet if such court is situated on a\nlot line, and otherwise with a least dimension not less than fifty feet.\nEvery such room shall be at least nine feet high from finished floor to\nfinished ceiling. When any such room or an apartment containing it faces\na street, the ceiling of the room at every point shall be at least four\nfeet six inches above the curb level of such street directly in front of\nsuch point. For the purpose of determining the required dimensions of a\ncourt or yard of any dwelling subject to the provisions of this\nsub-paragraph, the height of such dwelling shall be measured from the\nlowest point of such court or yard.\n (2) When the lot of such a multiple dwelling does not run through from\nstreet to street and there is a difference in level exceeding twenty\nfeet between the highest point of the curb in front of the dwelling and\nthe lowest point of the curb on a street directly in the rear of the\ndwelling which street is within one hundred twenty-five feet of the rear\nline of the lot, a room below the level of the highest point of the curb\nin front of the dwelling may be used for living purposes provided such\nroom opens upon a yard or a court adjoining a yard. The floor of any\nsuch room shall be at least six inches above the level of every part of\nevery yard and court upon which such room opens and of the curb on the\nstreet in the rear of such dwelling and also of all intervening ground\nbetween the rear street and the rear lot line. Every such room shall be\nat least nine feet high from finished floor to finished ceiling. The\nrequired dimensions of a yard, or of a court adjoining a yard, on which\nsuch a room opens in any dwelling subject to the provisions of this\nsub-paragraph, shall be determined by the height of such dwelling\nmeasured from the lowest point of such yard or court.\n (3) In any portion of a multiple dwelling arranged for living purposes\nbelow the curb level under authority of either of the sub-paragraphs\nabove there shall be no wood beams, wood lintels or other wood\nstructural members, nor shall any wood or other inflammable material be\nused in any partitions, furrings or ceilings.\n 2. Every multiple dwelling erected after April eighteenth, nineteen\nhundred twenty-nine, whenever the department shall deem it necessary,\nshall have all walls below the ground level and all cellar or lower\nfloors damp-proofed and water-proofed. Such damp-proofing and\nwater-proofing shall run throughout the cellar or other lowest floor and\nthrough and up the walls as high as the ground level.\n 3. Every cellar and basement in every multiple dwelling shall be\nproperly lighted and ventilated to the satisfaction of the department.\n 4. In every multiple dwelling the cellar walls and ceilings, except in\nrooms occupied as provided in paragraph f of subdivision one or in\nsubdivision six, shall either be constructed of light-colored material\nor be thoroughly whitewashed or painted a light color by the owner, and\nshall be so maintained. Such whitewash or paint shall be renewed\nwhenever necessary, as may be determined and required by the department.\n 5. Notwithstanding any provisions of this section or of subdivision\nfive of section three hundred, an apartment or room in a cellar which\nwas occupied for living purposes at any time on or after October first,\nnineteen hundred fifty-two may thereafter continue to be occupied for\nsuch purposes until July first, nineteen hundred sixty-seven, in\naccordance with the conditions imposed by subdivision five of section\ntwo hundred sixteen.\n 6. An apartment in a cellar or basement of any multiple dwelling may\nbe used for living purposes provided all of the following conditions are\ncomplied with:\n a. Such apartment has at least one half of its height and all of its\nwindow surfaces above every part of an "adequate adjacent space." Such\n"adequate adjacent space" shall be open to the sky, shall be properly\ndrained to the satisfaction of the department, and shall be a continuous\nsurface area outside the dwelling not less than thirty feet in its least\ndimension and abutting at same level, or directly below, every part of\nthe exterior walls of such apartment and of every other apartment on the\nsame floor. Such "adequate adjacent space" shall include only space\nwhich is located on the same lot or plot as the dwelling or on a street\nor public place or space.\n b. Every living room of such apartment is everywhere at least eight\nfeet high from the floor to the ceiling in dwellings erected after July\nfirst, nineteen hundred fifty-seven, and seven feet in dwellings erected\nprior thereto.\n c. All parts of the exterior walls of the dwelling which are below\nground level and on the same floor as such apartment or above such floor\nare dampproof to the satisfaction of the department and the floor of\nsuch apartment is dampproof and waterproof.\n d. The yard and every court of the dwelling containing such apartment\nare adequately drained to the satisfaction of the department.\n e. If any part of the apartment is below the "adequate adjacent space"\nreferred to in paragraph a of this subdivision, all ceilings, walls and\npartitions of such apartment are fire-retarded or the rooms and spaces\nwithin such apartment are protected by a sprinkler system to the\nsatisfaction of the department.\n f. Such apartment and every part of the floor on which it is situated\nmeet all of the requirements which would be in effect for such floor if\nnone of the rooms thereon were used for living purposes.\n g. Such apartment complies with all of the requirements for apartments\nin the same dwelling which are not in a cellar or basement.\n h. The floor on which such apartment is situated, if a cellar, shall\nnevertheless be counted as a story for the purpose of all requirements\nexcept those relating to the height of the dwelling.\n