A Chelsea-based woman is suing a neighboring sex shop after her home allegedly became "uninhabitable" when sewage buildup began leaking into her townhouse. Sexy Boutique, located on 155 8th Ave. in NYC, was allegedly the source of the sewage, which included backed up condoms, diapers, and rubber gloves that had reportedly deteriorated the floors in Susan Haar's home.
According to the lawsuit filed on Tuesday, Haar is seeking $2 million in damages from the sex shop. The plaintiff claimed that the six-foot buildup had risen into her furnished basement. "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 alleges.
"Among other things, the baseboards, walls, floor tiles, doors and cabinetry will need to be replaced as they are irreparably contaminated, but plaintiffs are precluded from doing so until the cause of the backups has been rectified." In addition to the infrastructural damage, Haar has also claimed that the sewage has given her home a putrid smell.
Haar, a playwright, reportedly bought the townhouse, located at 304 W. 18th St, in a foreclosure auction in 2010. She then put the house on the market in November, which is around the same time she began dealing with intermittent flooding. According to a camera investigation conducted in December, it was determined that the backup was stemming from Sexy Boutique, who has yet to respond to the lawsuit.
Haar's attorney Newman Ferrara has not issued a statement in regards to the suit. However, according to public documents published on Tuesday, her legal team was able to access a restraining order that will disallow anyone from using the bathroom at the sex shop.
