Illegal Billboard Incurs Almost $1 Million in Fines!

Residents of a co-op near Astor Place are fuming over a Buildings Department crackdown on a billboard that brings in $5,000 a month for upkeep on their building. Since 2007, DOB inspectors have issued more than 70 violations, totaling $955,000, against the co-op board, OTR Media and two sign hanging companies for billboards advertising King of the Hill, the Turner Cartoon Network, and now Boost Mobile. The offenses include not having a permit, hanging an ad exceeding 500 square feet and placing the sign more than 40 feet above the curb. Patrick Curley, a member of the co-op board who has lived there since 1978, says a vintage sign from the '30s advertising men's suits used to be painted there, so he thinks the billboard permit should be grandfathered in. But department spokesman Tony Sclafani tells the Daily News it doesn't really work that way: "We will not tolerate any individuals or companies who disregard the law to make a profit."