New York City sex shop is sued over buildup of condoms, diapers and rubber gloves in plumbing that caused multi-million dollar townhouse to be repeatedly flooded with six feet of sewage.
By: Megan Sheets
A New York City sex shop is being sued by a woman who claims that her townhouse has been repeatedly flooded with sewage due to a build-up of condoms, diapers and rubber gloves.
Susan Haar filed a lawsuit against Sexy Boutique on Tuesday seeking $2 million in damages.
A court summons obtained by DailyMail.com claims that Haar's townhouse at 304 West 18th St in Chelsea 'has had its entire furnished basement repeatedly flooded with raw sewage and human waste/excrement, and its pipes clogged with, among other detritus, condoms, diapers and rubber gloves ' over the past three months, rendering the home 'uninhabitable'.
'On occasion, the sewage has risen up well over the baseboards, and has soaked into the walls, up to a height of approximately six feet,' the suit says.
Desperate to stop the fecal flooding, Haar contacted the NYC Department of Environmental Protection, which used a camera probe to trace the source of the backup to the sex shop around the corner at 155 8th Avenue.
A DEP inspector visited the store and found tubs of condoms and rubber gloves in the bathroom. A dye test confirmed that the store's plumbing is connected to Haar's home.
Haar says the intermittent sewage flooding began last November, 10 days after she put the townhouse - bought for more than $2 million at a foreclosure auction in 2010 - on the market for more than $7 million.
The playwright has been forced to leave her home to escape the stinky situation on multiple occasions. She also had to take the house off the market until the flooding stops.
Haar says the intermittent sewage flooding began last November, 10 days after she put the townhouse - bought for more than $2 million at a foreclosure auction in 2010 - on the market for more than $7 million.
The playwright has been forced to leave her home to escape the stinky situation on multiple occasions. She also had to take the house off the market until the flooding stops.
On Tuesday, the law firm representing Haar in the suit, Newman Ferrara, secured a temporary restraining order restricting the defendants from engaging in activity that could facilitate the sewage backups.
Per that restraining order, no one will be allowed to use the store's bathroom.
According to the lawsuit, the only way to permanently stop the sewage backups would be to seal the pipes connecting Haar's home to the store.
Sexy Boutique's owners have until March 18 to respond to the summons. They have not returned media requests for comment.
The 155 8th St property was found to have more than 100 previous violations and complaints filed with the city, according to Haar's lawsuit.