2003 Sep
Focus on... Energy Consevation

During the recent citywide blackout, most everyone found themselves somewhere in the dark, and the city's co-ops and condos were no exception. The 24-hour crisis left nearly everyone in New York's five boroughs (and much of the Northeast) …

On Thursday, August 14, 2003, New York City experienced a blackout of major proportions, part of an event that affected eight states and part of Canada as well. The Cooperative Coalition to Prevent Blackouts (CCPB), and the Federation of N…

Winter is the harshest season when it comes to wear-and-tear on residential buildings. Not only does ice collect in cracks and spaces between bricks and masonry, contributing to façade deterioration, but salt also erodes surfaces, boile…

In a few months, the hot summer weather will be just a distant memory, and all that time spent trying to get cool will be behind us. Instead, co-op and condo residents will be turning up the thermostat for some soothing warmth. Now is the …

Daily: Check water level Check oil level and make note of level {if gas, read gas meter}. Determine daily consumption Check oil level in compressor {#4 and #6 oil burners} Check water temperature and oil pressure ga…

When the co-op board of 31 Jane Street in New York City decided to upgrade their building's windows, the directors decided to purchase window glass that came with an Energy Star rating. "Initially we were going to pay for the window projec…

The City Council will meet to adopt a new lead paint abatement law following a state Court of Appeals decision July 1 that invalidated the current Local Law 38. The council's Committee on Housing and Buildings will convene in mid-September…

1960: New York City becomes the first municipality in the country to ban sale of lead paint. Nationwide restrictions on the manufacture and use of lead-based paint did not come into effect until 1978. 1982: Local Law 1 of 1982 - New …

Still a few paychecks shy of that country cottage? Cubicles got you down? If that's the case, you might consider bringing a little whiff of the outdoors inside with some lush, green houseplants. "But wait," you say. "I can't keep a m…

Still convinced you've got plant-killing "black thumbs?" No problem. The following is a list of plants you'd need a stake through the heart to destroy. Go ahead - do your worst. With these troopers you'll finally get the satisfaction of…

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, "The earth laughs in flowers." If that's the case, then the Green Guerillas are grinning from ear to ear. While some outreach programs spend a lot of their time working phones and crunching numbers to get wo…

Last winter's frigid temperatures shocked many city dwellers accustomed to the mild temperatures that have been the new norm in New York for several years. New Yorkers donned down coats, insulated boots, and thermal underwear, and millions…

Property owners will now be responsible for the maintenance and repair of public sidewalks in front of their buildings following passage of legislation that transfers liability from the city to the owners of multi-family dwellings. Ma…

Two hundred years ago, a visitor to New York City remarked that the teeming sprawl was a "nasal disaster, where some streets smell like bad eggs dissolved in ammonia." While few would suggest that the city reeks today quite like it d…