Village of Great Neck trustees Tuesday approved a bill permitting bathtubs and showers in the basement of single-family homes.
The new law allows bath tubs and showers to be installed the basement of single-family homes, Village of Great Neck Mayor Ralph Kreitzman said.
“The intent is to accommodate for the needs of current residents or future residents,” Kreitzman said. “These are still going to be one family residences at all times.”
Trustees in May said many houses in the village were built with only one to one and a half bathrooms, and there is often nowhere on the upper levels of homes to install the bathrooms.
Residents said at the time that they were concerned that allowing full bathrooms in basements would lead to homeowners illegally renting their basements out. Concerns were also raised about the possible use of hotplates in basements that were illegally rented out, causing safety issues.
The new law states that for a bathtub or shower to be installed in a basement, the basement must have two exit points, one being the primary exit into the house.
The second exit can either be a door that leads directly to ground level out of the basement or an emergency hatch.
The requirement of a door only applies to single-family homes that have basements which lead directly outside without any steps up, Village Clerk and Treasurer Joe Gill said.
“If your property is such that you walk straight out and be on level ground then that’s an option,” Gill said.
The second option is hatch put in a basement wall about 36-40 inches off the ground that leads to a ladder, which eventually leads outside.
Smoke, heat and carbon monoxide detectors would also be required in basements in which showers and bathtubs were installed.
