Sidewalk Sheds at New York City Owned Buildings: Injury Claims May Require Notice Within 90 Days
Gorayeb & Associates, P.C.
New York City has about 1,200 fewer sidewalk sheds than it did in January, a drop of roughly 15 percent in 10 months, Mayor Zohran Mamdani's office announced October 19. The New York Post reported October 25 that some of the worst offenders are buildings the city owns, including 2 Lafayette Street, managed by the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, where a shed has wrapped all four sides since 2014 alongside four Buildings Department violations for the shed, six for an unsafe facade, and $194,000 in unpaid fines. Gorayeb & Associates, P.C., the New York construction accident firm known as The People's Lawyers, is issuing this advisory because people hurt under a shed on city property rarely know the rules for suing the city are different.
Under rules adopted after Local Laws 48 and 51 of 2025, shed permits must be renewed every 90 days, and the Buildings Department expects to begin imposing graduated monthly penalties in early 2027 on sheds left standing more than 180 days without meaningful repair progress. At 2 Lafayette, the Department of Design and Construction told the Post it is concluding the design phase of a facade restoration.
"We see the same pattern on city property that we see on the worst private buildings," said Christopher J. Gorayeb, founding partner of Gorayeb & Associates. "The shed goes up fast, the repair waits for years, and the people walking underneath assume somebody is watching it."
A pedestrian hurt by a falling object, broken decking, or a dark passage under a shed on a private building generally has three years to sue. When the owner is the City of New York, General Municipal Law Section 50e requires a notice of claim within 90 days of the injury before any lawsuit can proceed. Judges may allow a late notice, but only within one year and 90 days, and only at their discretion. Most public authorities follow the same rule.
Workers face the same deadline. Laborers who erect and dismantle sheds, and the masons and ironworkers who repair the facades behind them, are protected by Labor Law Sections 240 and 241(6), which apply to the city as an owner the same way they apply to a private landlord. A worker hurt on a city facade job who waits for his compensation case to settle before calling a lawyer can lose his claim against the owner entirely.
"Find out who owns the building before you do anything else," Gorayeb said. "If it belongs to the city, you have 90 days, and that clock started the day you got hurt. Most people learn that in month four."
About Gorayeb & Associates, P.C.
Founded in 1986 by Christopher J. Gorayeb, Gorayeb & Associates, P.C. is a New York personal injury law firm concentrating in construction accident and occupational injury litigation. The firm has recovered more than $2 billion for more than 12,000 injured workers and their families. Known to the communities it serves as The People's Lawyers, the firm provides bilingual representation in English and Spanish throughout New York City and New York State. More information is available at https://www.gorayeb.com/en/.
Sources
New York Post, Why NYC Owned Buildings Are Some of the Worst Violators of Shed Program, October 25, 2026
https://nypost.com/2026/10/25/business/nyc-owned-buildings-some-of-the-worst-violators-of-shed-program/
NYC Mayor's Office, Mamdani Administration Announces 1,200 Sidewalk Sheds Taken Down, October 19, 2026
https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/10/mamdani-administration-announces-1-200-sidewalk-sheds-taken-down
NYC Mayor's Office, Mamdani Administration Taking Down Sidewalk Sheds, August 20, 2026
https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/08/mamdani-administration-taking-down-sidewalk-sheds-and-improving-
New York General Municipal Law Section 50e
https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/GMU/50-E
Decoteau v City of New York, 2012 NY Slip Op 05384
https://www.nycourts.gov/REPORTER/3dseries/2012/2012_05384.htm
New York Labor Law Section 240
https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/LAB/240
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