CooperatorNews New York Expo 2021

October 2021 COOPERATORNEWS.COM ments as follows: “Let’s say I need to replace a roof—so I call in an engi- neer who specializes in roofs. Th ey come out and inspect the property and then create a request for proposal, or RFP. From there, the engineer will draw up project specs and a bid package that will be sent to between three and fi ve vendors, depending on the preferences of the board. Also, vendors and contractors are very busy—so if you only send an RFP to three, you may not fi nd one.” To ensure fairness and impartiality, says attorney Hubert Cutolo, NEW YORK THE CO-OP & CONDO RESOURCE COOPERATORNEWS 205 Lexington Avenue, NY, NY 10016 • CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED Th e tragic partial collapse and subse- quent demolition of the Champlain Towers South Condominium in Surfside, Florida, this past June revealed some gaping holes in the structures, governance, and oversight of the country’s multifamily buildings. Many condo, co-op, and HOA boards and owners have awoken to the consequences of deferred maintenance, poor planning, and indecision. Municipalities have taken steps to bolster their laws and regulations around inspection and repair of tall buildings. Th e real estate market has also taken note of the value of re- sponsible leadership and due diligence when it comes to multifamily transactions. Periodic reassessment of longstanding practices or overlooked loopholes is a good practice for any industry. But reactionary reforms or knee-jerk responses to such an overwhelming—if exceedingly rare—disas- ter can have their own downsides. Coopera- torNews takes a look at three aspects of mul- tifamily housing that bear review in the wake of Surfside and other catastrophic building failures, and some caveats that should be considered along the way. Building Better Boards Th e vast majority of co-op, condo, and HOA board members are volunteers, with no formal requirements or prerequisites for serving—just the will and the time, and usu- ally a minimum age and duration of owner- ship in good standing, as spelled out in the One truism of home ownership is that there is always something that needs to be fi xed or upgraded. Th at’s true in condo and co-op communities as well, both large and small. Th ere’s always a roof to replace or a boiler to upgrade, or a lobby to refurbish. Th e challenge is fi nding the right contractors to get these jobs done effi ciently and eff ectively at a cost that the building or HOA can handle. Types of Jobs Work in and around multifamily buildings usually falls into two categories: one-time, big- ticket capital improvements like roof or boiler replacements or façade overhauls, and smaller, recurring maintenance work like pest control and landscaping/snow removal. While the scale and frequency of the work falling under each category are diff erent, the vendors and contrac- tors that do the work are identifi ed and engaged through the same process of research, bid solicitation, fi nal selection, and awarding of contracts. How Does the Bidding Process Work? Michele Schlossberg is an account executive with Gumley Haft , a management company based in New York City. “Th e funny thing about the bidding process is that it’s pretty similar for both large capital improvement jobs and annual vendor services,” she says. “What’s diff erent are the pre-bid activities.” Schlossberg describes the bidding process for large capital improve- The recent flash flooding resulting from Hurricane Ida and other torren- tial summer storms around the nation has come as something of a wake-up call for homeowners and local governments alike. The real-world effects of climate change are upon us, even in areas where such events were rare before—if they oc- curred at all—and certainly in places like New York City, where the destruction of Hurricane Sandy back in 2012 argu- ably marked the start of an era of more frequent, much more intense inclement weather events. The potential for flash flooding in ur- ban environments has raised a particu- lar concern for co-op and condomini- um owners in buildings or associations where there are units at or below grade. Such units are more common than you may think; smaller associations and corporations that occupy brownstone or other low-rise-type buildings often have ground-floor or semi-subterranean garden units. They’re also common in neighborhoods—such as Washington Heights in upper Manhattan, for ex- ample—where the natural topography means that large numbers of ground floor units are partially subterranean. Surprise “There are certain neighborhoods and types of buildings that have more subter- ranean or partially subterranean units than others,” says Nicole Beauchamp, an agent with Engel & Volkers, a real estate brokerage company located in Manhat- tan. “Often these units are in buildings and neighborhoods that wouldn’t neces- sarily come to mind, including Washing- ton Heights and Beekman Place. Lobby- level apartments are frequently under sidewalk level.” The Bidding Process Finding the Best People at the Best Price BY A. J. SIDRANSKY Building Better in Surfside’s Wake Out of Tragedy Comes Reform BY DARCEY GERSTEIN Flood Risk Rises for Condos & Co-ops How to be Physically & Financially Ready BY A. J. SIDRANSKY continued on page 23 continued on page 22 continued on page 24 NEW YORK’S BIGGEST & BEST CO-OP, CONDO & APT EXPO! JACOB K. JAVITS CONVENTION CENTER — THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28, 10-4:30 FREE REGISTRATION: COOPEXPOFALL.COM LIVE AND IN PERSON