Owner Of Remsenburg Party House Sentenced To Jail: Town

REMSENBURG, NY — The owner of what neighbors called a "party house" in Remsenburg was sentenced to 90 days in jail after failure to pay fines and continuing to rent his property in violation of a court order, Southampton Town officials said in a release Tuesday.

According to Southampton Town, Michael Hurley, 56, owner of 28 Club Lane, "failed to pay $15,000 in fines and was immediately ordered to the Suffolk County Jail for 90 days. The sentence stems from a party held at the house in 2014, when a man was seriously injured when he attempted to jump into a backyard pool from a second story window. Police say there were 40 people in the house at the time," the town said.

According to Southampton Town code enforcement investigators, since the initial party rental and incident, Hurley continued to rent his house on numerous weekends, violating a permanent injunction prohibiting him from doing so.

Neighbors, town officials said, "complained that parties went on to all hours of the night and that the atmosphere was destroying their peaceful neighborhood."

Southampton Supervisor Jay Schneiderman said the incident reflects the town's commitment to cracking down on code enforcement violations.

“This was a party house” Schneiderman said. “We won’t tolerate this in any neighborhood in Southampton Town."

Southampton Town Attorney James Burke "successfully prosecuted Hurley for repeatedly violating the town’s rental permit Law," town officials said. Hurley was charged numerous misdemeanors "for illegally renting the property on a transient basis, less than 14 days. After his rental permit was revoked by the town, he disregarded the action, and continued to rent the house, the release said.

Hurley was found in contempt of the court last year when he violated a permanent injunction issued by the New York State Supreme Court' after paying $27,000 in fines, "he was not deterred, as he continued to rent the property in violation of the rental law," a release from Schneiderman's office said.

“We understand that property owners may want to seek rental revenue benefits from their properties but they must do so in a way that doesn’t ruin the enjoyment of neighboring properties," Schneiderman said.

“It is our hope that violators of the town’s code understand that where there are repeated and blatant violations, we will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law. Let this serve as a warning to others who would choose to rent out a home in violation of the town’s rental laws,” Southampton Town Councilman Stan Glinka said.

The permanent injunction against Mr. Hurley remains in place, preventing him from “allowing or permitting. . . the subject premises for any other uses or purposes other than as set forth on the certificate of occupancy”, and his rental permit remains revoked, Schneiderman said.

Southampton’s newly appointed code compliance administrator Steven Troyd applauded the effort. “This is an example of the diligent work and sustained effort that has been and will continue to be a hallmark of the code enforcement division," he said. "Ensuring that properties are utilized in a code-compliant manner is paramount to the safety of our residents, as well as to visitors to our town. We will continue to seek significant penalties against the most egregious violators."

Hurley is due back in court later this year, and faces additional charges for continuing to rent his property this summer without a rental permit, the town said.

According to town officials, Hurley was not represented by an attorney during his re-sentencing on Sept 26; he was, however, represented by James Toner when he knowingly entered a plea to two misdemeanor charges on July 17, tow officials said. Prior to entry of that plea, he had been represented over the past two years by Thomas Horn and Lawrence Kelly; he next hired Patrick Gunn and later rehired Horn, the town said.

Prior to that, he was represented by Richard Tractenberg in 2014, the town said.

Patch file photo.