You are reading

Airbnb Suspends Bayside Squatters From Renting Rooms in Crime-Plagued House

State Sen. John Liu and Assembly Member Edward Braunstein called on Airbnb Friday to ban listings for a crime-plagued house at 208-16 38th Ave. in Bayside. They also asked the Department of Buildings to issue a vacate order (Photo courtesy of State Sen. John Liu’s office)

March 28, 2022 By Christian Murray

A rally held outside a Bayside house Friday calling on Airbnb to stop listing a property with problematic occupants has proved successful– with the company notifying elected officials that it has canceled all bookings.

Bayside residents and elected officials held a rally outside a house at 208-16 38th Ave. where there have been numerous complaints about squatters illegally renting it via Airbnb. The house has been a source of late night parties, excessive noise and confrontations with neighbors.

The officials called for Airbnb to ban the property from being listed and for the city to issue a vacate order on the home. The issue came to head following a shooting that took place outside the house during the early hours on Saturday, March 19, when shots were fired at a group of teens looking to park their vehicle on the way to a party at the house.

Multiple shots were fired, according to police, with one passenger in the vehicle struck in the torso and taken to hospital in stable condition. Meanwhile, another bullet went through a different vehicle piecing a child’s car seat.

State Sen. John Liu and Assemblyman Edward Braunstein held the rally, where they blasted Airbnb and the city for not clamping down on the squatters. They, along with Congresswoman Grace Meng, wrote a joint letter to Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky demanding that the company ban all listings pertaining to the house.

On Saturday, Meng said that she had been contacted by Airbnb and that the company said that it had canceled all bookings under the address and suspended the listing indefinitely.

“I appreciate Airbnb’s prompt response to my office and its willingness to remedy this situation,” Meng said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing my conversations with the company. As I’ve said, residents of this neighborhood must not have their safety put at risk and their quality of life disrupted, and State Sen. John Liu, Assemblyman Ed Braunstein and I will continue to keep up this fight.”

Braunstein was also thankful to Airbnb for taking steps.

The announcement came less than 24 hours after he had blasted the company for allowing the squatters to rent rooms.

“The pattern of disregard and disrespect shown by the individuals squatting at the single-family residence on 38th Avenue escalated to violence last week [March 19] when illegal Airbnb guests brazenly opened fire on the surrounding streets,” Braunstein said at the rally.

“Several times in the past, my office has worked with residents to get Airbnb listings at the property shut down, only for it to appear again under another account,” Braunstein added Friday, when he called for a permanent ban.

“I thank Airbnb for hearing the community’s concerns,” Braunstein said in a statement Saturday. “Moving forward, we will all continue to carefully monitor the activity at this address.”

Liu is also calling on the Dept. of Buildings to issue a vacate order on the house.

“There are several problems at this location that are preventing a satisfying resolution for our community,” Liu said Friday. “At the end of the day, the city needs to be the one to step up and recognize the dangers here as reason enough to vacate the premises and keep our community safe.”

Bayside residents and elected officials held a rally outside a house at 208-16 38th Ave. Friday (GMaps)

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Jamaica man sentenced to life for brutal triple murder of girlfriend, her son and cousin in 2022: DA

A Jamaica man was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in Queens Supreme Court on Friday for the 2022 murders of his girlfriend, her son, and her cousin.

Travis Blake, 31, of 155th Street, was convicted by a jury last month of first-degree murder and other counts for the triple slaying in June 2022. The bodies of his victims were discovered with an array of puncture and blunt force wounds in a state of decomposition in their shared Jamaica home.

Hard Rock CEO outlines vendor opportunities for $8B Metropolitan Park casino project

May. 2, 2025 By Shane O’Brien

Hard Rock International Chairman and CEO Jim Allen addressed hundreds of Queens-based vendors and small business owners Thursday morning at the Queens Theatre, outlining how they could play a key role in shaping the proposed $8 billion Metropolitan Park casino and entertainment complex near Citi Field—if the project is awarded one of the three downstate gaming licenses up for grabs later this year.

Masked thieves steal thousands from senior woman in Murray Hill robbery: NYPD

Police from the 111th Precinct in Bayside are looking for two masked purse snatchers who targeted a 70-year-old woman on a residential street in Murray Hill and allegedly grabbed her pocketbook that contained thousands of dollars.

The grand larceny occurred just after 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 16, as the senior was walking near 45th Avenue and 196th Street, a block west of Francis Lewis Boulevard, just south of Northern Boulevard. The stranger approached her from behind and snatched the pocketbook from her hand and then fled the crime scene in a black Chevrolet traveling westbound toward Utopia Parkway. The woman was not injured during the encounter.

Beyond brunch: Unique ways to celebrate Mother’s Day in Queens

May. 2, 2025 By Jessica Militello

With Mother’s Day just over a week away, there’s still plenty of time to plan something meaningful in Queens to celebrate the special women in your life. While brunch or dinner is always a classic choice, there are also unique and memorable ways to mark the occasion with family and friends. From candle-making workshops and floral arranging classes to beer tastings and hands-on crafting, here are some fun and heartfelt ways to celebrate Mother’s Day right here in the community.

Long Islander gets 20 years in prison for ‘sadistic’ months-long crime spree in Queens: DA

A Long Island man was sentenced to 20 years in prison Wednesday in Queens Supreme Court after pleading guilty to kidnapping, robbery, and promoting prostitution for three separate incidents.

Gil Iphael, 25, of Copiague Street in Valley Stream, lured his victims to Queens locations for sex with the help of his co-defendant, then his victims were detained, assaulted, and robbed. In one instance, Iphael tried to cut off a man’s toe and threatened to mutilate his genitals.