Section 20-910. Air conditioning prohibitions

a. For the purposes of this
  section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
    1. "Chain of stores" shall mean five or more stores located within the
  city of New York that are engaged in the same general field of  business
  and  conduct  business  under  the  same  business name or operate under
  common ownership or management or pursuant to a franchise agreement with
  the same franchisor.
    2. "Commercial building  or  structure"  shall  mean  an  building  or
  structure  classified  in accordance with section BC 302 of the New York
  city building code in occupancy group B or  M,  except  that  such  term
  shall not include a small store.
    3.  "Door" shall mean any door used to close off any exterior entrance
  to a commercial building or structure and that when open allows for  the
  co-mingling  of indoor and outdoor air, but shall not include doors that
  (i) adjoin indoor seating areas where food or beverages are  served  and
  link such areas to outdoor space or outdoor seating areas, or (ii) allow
  for  direct  table service of food or beverages to outdoor seating areas
  during times when servers are actively engaged in serving such areas.
    4. "Person" shall mean (i) with respect to the portion of a commercial
  building or structure that is a retail or wholesale  establishment  that
  sells  goods  or  provides services to consumers, the owner or lessee of
  such establishment; and (ii) with respect to  any  other  portion  of  a
  commercial  building  or  structure,  the record owner or lessee of such
  building or structure.
    5. "Small store" shall mean a retail or wholesale  establishment  that
  sells  goods  or  provides services to consumers and occupies under four
  thousand square feet of retail or  wholesale  space,  excluding  storage
  space, and is not one of a chain of stores.
    b.  Except  as  provided in subdivision c of this section, it shall be
  unlawful to keep open any exterior door  of  a  commercial  building  or
  structure  while  an  air  conditioner  or  central  cooling  system  is
  operating that cools the area adjacent to such door, except as needed to
  permit the ingress and egress of people and the delivery and shipping of
  goods.
    c. The provisions of this section shall not apply  when  an  emergency
  situation exists that requires an exterior door to be kept open.
    d.  The  department shall have the authority to enforce the provisions
  of subdivision b of this section. A  proceeding  to  recover  any  civil
  penalty  prescribed  by subdivision e of this section shall be commenced
  by the service of a notice of violation, which shall  be  returnable  to
  the  environmental  control board. The environmental control board shall
  have the power to impose any civil penalty prescribed by  subdivision  e
  of this section.
    e.  Any  person  who  violates  this  section  shall receive a written
  warning for the first violation, and shall be liable for a civil penalty
  in the amount of two hundred dollars for each open  door  for  a  second
  violation  within  an eighteen month period and four hundred dollars for
  each open door for any third and subsequent violation within an eighteen
  month period.