For Immediate Release: August 24, 2023
Conact: dobcommunications@buildings.nyc.gov, (212) 393-2126

DOB HOSTS ANNUAL BUILD SAFE | LIVE SAFE CONFERENCE

Annual Industry Meeting Reinforces Agency’s Year-Round Commitment to Safety Outreach

New York, NY – Earlier today Buildings Commissioner Jimmy Oddo gave the keynote address at the Department of Buildings’ 2023 build safe | live safe conference being held in Lower Manhattan. This daylong event features educational seminars that highlight safe construction operations and new regulatory requirements impacting the City’s more than 1 million buildings and approximately 40,000 construction sites. The hottest ticket in town for builders and design professionals working in the Big Apple, this year’s conference includes seminars on important topics like mandatory parking structure inspections, carbon emission limits for large buildings, and the City’s new Get Sheds Down plan for sidewalk sheds.

“Our build safe | live safe conference offers a unique opportunity for us to get face-to-face with our industry partners so we can continue the collaborative work of building a stronger, safer and more resilient City for all New Yorkers,” said Commissioner Oddo. “As we do every year, this conference will highlight important Code requirements the industry must adhere to and reinforces DOB's strong commitment to construction safety.”

As an added bonus, our partners at NYC Accelerator, a Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice (MOCEJ) program, were at the conference to assist attendees with Local Law 97 compliance inquiries. In addition, members of the agency’s DOB NOW operations team were onsite to discuss the latest upgrades to the agency’s online filing and transaction portal.

The conference is attended by hundreds of industry professionals and government regulators. New York State registered design professionals attending the educational seminars can earn required continuing education credits. Seminar topics include:

• Sidewalk Shed Requirements & Pedestrian Protection Updates
• Building Electrification Law: Implementation, Timeline & Filing
• 2022 NYC Construction Codes
• Local Law 97: Compliance, Resources & Understanding the Requirements
• Lot Line Construction Code Requirements
• Office of Alternative Energy: Facts, Functions & Resources
• Site Safety Plan Requirements
• Parking Structures: The Parallels of Code & Inspection
• Underpinning Filing Requirements

To view presentations from previous build safe│live safe conferences and other online seminars, please visit our website.

The Department participates in outreach events throughout the year for the industry, property owners, tenants, and small business owners, to not only inform New Yorkers of the City’s important Code and Zoning regulations but also to assist them with buildings-related issues. Earlier this year, DOB visited construction sites across the City with our construction safety branded food truck for Construction Safety Week, providing free lunch and safety information to hundreds of construction workers in all five boroughs.

In addition, the Department has been setting up remote borough offices during weekends in neighborhoods across the City. Dubbed “DOB in Your Community”, the events are designed for property and small business owners, so they can resolve their buildings-related issues at times and locations convenient to them. The next DOB in Your Community event is happening Saturday, August 26th in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The Department is also partnering with industry groups on a new “DOB NOW on the road” initiative to provide trainings, updates and answer any questions about DOB NOW. In addition our Tuesday night “Buildings After Hours” customer service event is held in our five borough offices for small property owners and small business owners, where they can get 1-on-1 help from DOB experts on their buildings-related issues. If you can’t make it in-person, DOB also holds online events for the public every week.

Photos from today’s event.