Page 15 - CooperatorNews New York September 2021

COOPERATORNEWS.COM
COOPERATORNEWS —
SEPTEMBER 2021
15
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Fran L
dential floor must be a second floor. Addi-
tionally, walls must have ‘give’ on first floor it’s critical to put appropriate capital reserve
walls to allow water through. This maintains plans in place.
structural integrity of the building. The walls
will give way to the pressure of waves with-
out causing structural problems.”
Newer standards also recommend “get-
ting your critical infrastructure high above “In today’s construction, we are very mind-
the floodplain,” Keating continues. “Unless ful of climate change,” he says. “Everything
you have a full ring around you, dikes don’t from paint, to compound, to insulation and
work.” This means that both owners of ex-
isting properties and builders of new ones eco-friendly green standard. Green building
must place critical building systems above materials with low/no embodied carbon are
the potential water line. In many cases, that on the rise. These materials produce little to
now means the second floor rather than in a no carbon or other greenhouse gases, and
basement, because the second floor has less are overall environmentally more beneficial.
residential value than higher floors, and less Many projects are now one hundred percent
commercial value than the ground, or first, green. Architects are really stepping it up as
floor.
Zimmerman concurs, adding, “There is a hering to new building requirements. They
trend to move utilities upstairs, out of base-
ments. Over time, with higher water levels,
etc., it makes sense to move infrastructure “The timeframe to make your plans is now,”
to higher ground or levels. In the end it’s a says Keating. “Don’t wait. Insurance is get-
more cost-effective solution. In beachfront ting more and more complicated. Insurance
properties on Long Island, we notice more companies always look to avoid risk, so they
and more that utili-
ty boxes are built on
platforms free of the
building and five to
six feet above grade
because of storm
surges. We learned
this from Sandy.”
Another major
concern is reduc-
ing the environmental impact of residential worth the risk. There will be fewer and fewer
buildings. In New York City, the enactment companies offering protection.”
of Local Law 97, requiring the reduction of
individual carbon footprints, phases in over also consider the future well-being of their
the next decade. It brings strict requirements physical plant. “There should be some kind
for all building owners—including co-op of best business practice, like guidelines for
and condominium properties—to control what kind of reserves must be maintained,”
energy use. “Rising temperatures are ironi-
cally increasing energy use,” says Varsalo-
na. “More electricity is needed if you have for instance, so that money is available for
steam-generated systems, for instance. Sadly, major capital expenditures. Boards should
the impact is that you use more energy to hire architects and engineers to explore their
combat the changes, which perpetuates the vulnerabilities—and as we learned from the
cycle. We must come up with ways to update Surfside condo building collapse in Florida,
old systems and make them more efficient. reserve funds will become more and more
We must start planning and retooling now, critical. No board president wants to be
not only to achieve our climate goals, but to faced with a report that says the property
also not be penalized by the new law.” Re-
treating from fossil fuels to more sustain-
able, renewable sources like solar energy is
optimal here, if not easy.
In terms of maintaining and preparing our late.” Climate change is no longer an abstract
buildings for worsening conditions, the pros concept to be debated based on what side of
say it’s critical to put capital improvement the political divide you place yourself on. It’s
plans in effect now. Zimmerman stresses real, and according to both the science and
that circumstances have changed. “Saltwater the practical advice of professionals work-
rots out power lines,” he says. “Driving rain, ing in the field, it’s time to start acting, rather
hotter heat, and colder cold has a corrosive than reacting. At this point, an ounce of pre-
effect on all mechanical systems, long term. vention is worth way more than a pound of
We might not see the effect in the short term, cure. Start mitigating now.
but we will see it in the deterioration of roofs,
facades, and infrastructure happening that
much sooner. We might have gotten 30 years
from a roof before. Now we will get 20 or 25
years. It’s a harsher environment—and that’s
the real effect on the built environment”—so
Practical Applications
Edwin Suarez, president of New York-
based Jomavi Contracting, observes that
changes in approach are already underway.
other materials have changed to fulfill an
well, in both how they plan a job and in ad-
are taking climate change seriously.”
Another concern is risk management.
may refuse to insure
some projects or
buildings. The more
storms,
wildfires,
etc., we have, the
more insurance pre-
miums will go up—
and [may] reach
a threshold where
insurers feel it’s not
Co-op and condominium boards must
says Zimmerman. “Required capital funds
of a certain percentage of value of property
needs millions of dollars of work and they
have $100 in the reserve account.”
“You’ve got to do it now,” says Varsalona.
“If you don’t start now, you will be caught
n
A J Sidransky is a staff writer/reporter for
CooperatorNews, and the author of several
published novels.
“The timeframe to
make your plans is
now.”
—Kevin Keating