A. wrote to ask: “The crane on top of 45 Park Place looks like it is falling apart. It hasn’t been operational in over two years, probably closer to three. Does anyone, any city agency inspect it?”

She followed up a couple months later, when she a moving elevator and some activity there, but I think that’s probably the last time there was any action. She has also recorded what looks like construction materials falling off the building.

The Department of Buildings filled me in last December (I know, always behind!) and here’s the rundown on the site and the crane:

The tower construction site at 45 Place is under a Full Stop Work Order, which has been in effect since December 2019 when the contractor of record withdrew from the project. The property owner is legally required to maintain their site in a safe condition, which includes hiring construction professionals to perform housekeeping work at the site.

In order to restart construction at the work site, the property owners must hire a new registered general contractor for the new building project, renew any expired permits, and request a DOB inspection of the tower. If all of the paperwork is in order, and the DOB finds no unsafe conditions on the site during the inspection, they may lift the Stop Work Order.

The tower crane located at 45 Park Place is currently parked in a weathervane configuration, as per the engineering plans for when the crane is not in use. When configured to weathervane, the crane is allowed to rotate in the direction of the wind, which prevents unnecessary wind load on the device. Weathervaning tower cranes do not pose a danger to the public.

The crane is owned by U.S. CRANE & RIGGING, LLC. The applicant of record for the crane is Professional Engineer STEVE VALJATO of VALJATO ENGINEERING P.C The owners and the engineer are legally responsible for ensuring that the crane at the location is kept in safe working order, and is not posing a hazard to the public.

The DOB’s Cranes and Derricks unit most recently inspected the crane on Monday, 12/5/22. (NB: We emailed in December, so they have likely been by since.) During the inspection, the inspector determined that the FAA Beacon Light on the top of the crane was not on. As a result the DOB issued a violation to the contractor and ordered them to make any necessary repairs so that they can turn on the beacon light.