Written by Bill Morris on May 11, 2016
Here’s a story about a woman only cat lovers could love.
Written by Tom Soter on June 17, 2015
The co-op's pool was quite literally slip, slidin' away.
The 142-unit co-op, at 2575 Palisade Avenue in the Riverdale section of The Bronx, is a paradise of sorts — at least according to Harry Amer, a resident since 1980 and board president since 1982. "Everybody has a beautiful view of the Hudson River and the Palisades," says Amer. "There are no buildings to the west of us, [just] a greenbelt, the trees, and Metro North train rails. Other than that, you feel like you're more in the country than in New York City."
Yet the seven-member board found it had trouble in paradise — trouble with a capital 'T' and that rhymes with 'P' and that stands for pool.
Written by Frank Lovece on October 31, 2014
Trip-and-fall cases are the bane of all buildings, co-ops and condos most definitely included. And while you can't foresee every circumstance that might cause a resident or a visitor, including first responders, to fall and hurt themselves, there are steps a prudent board can take to minimize the risk. As Habitat has written, for instance, you can make sure your floor drains are clear and uncluttered, to prevent flooding when sprinklers go off, and you can choose not to hold meetings in an unfinished commercial space.
Our latest suggestion, based on a real-life trip-and-fall court case: If you have ramp at your door, make sure it has handrails on both sides. Because believe it or not, here's what can happen.
September 29, 2014
Updated Oct. 3 — When the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) shut down the gas in one of the three Skyview-on-the-Hudson buildings, in the Riverdale section of The Bronx, the co-op had to spend over $100,000 in upgrades before getting service returned after nearly two weeks. The co-op found it more cost- and time-effective to preemptively replace the hose connection behind the stove in every unit rather than find which ones had leaks.
Written by Bill Morris; additonal material by Frank Lovece on December 31, 1969
Sept. 16, 2009 — New York City hasn't been hit as hard by bankruptcies and mortgage foreclosures as other parts of the country, but this recession has been taking its toll. So it was no great shock when a shareholder at a 77-unit, red-brick co-op in Riverdale, The Bronx, started falling behind on his monthly maintenance payments.
What is remarkable is how the board turned one shareholder's misfortune into a bonanza for the entire co-op.
Written by Kathryn Farrell on November 06, 2013
You can hear the smile in Mary Ann Dowling’s voice when she talks about the sense of community in her Bronx co-op. “It’s a mixture of people — some young, and the majority of [recent] sales are young couples with kids but there are people who have lived here since the building was built” in 1953, says Dowling, the board president at Briar Oaks in Riverdale. “It’s a real community.”
Written by Tom Soter on February 11, 2014
Her name was Kim and she lived in Forest Hills, Queens, in a 100-unit cooperative. She was on the co-op board and was talking, with great animation, about a shareholder who had "disappeared" and mysteriously left his apartment empty. My ears perked up. Was this a story of drama and intrigue, one that would offer new insights into board life?
Today Habitat introduces "Teachable Moments," an occasional feature in which leading management professionals offer quick takes on various topics of interest to co-op and condo board members. In the first of this series, four industry veterans give mini-lessons on how to find creative solutions to problems that resist the usual approaches.
April 08, 2013
Recent news affecting co-op / condo buyers, sellers, boards and residents. Yet another restaurant, yet another building fighting it: Like the planned Denny's in FiDi and a still-unnamed Mexican place in Tribeca, the Atlantic Terrace co-op in Brooklyn (left) wants to say arrivederci to Tony Roma's. Plus, a shareholder's riled in Riverdale and we remember the Rembrandt, New York City's first co-op. And co-op / condo boards won't want to miss the lawsuit alleging a scam of Weekend at Bernie's proportions!
Written by Steven Hochberg on March 05, 2013
I served for 25 years as the president of my co-op board (and hope to serve on the board again, perhaps). We are a 20-story, 339-unit cooperative building located in the Riverdale section of The Bronx, with a diverse cross-section of people. In my quarter-decade of service I learned many things, but one of the most important was to be flexible. What do I mean by that? Rules are important. Generally speaking, they must be enforced. But wise condo and co-op boards can and should know when to make exceptions. Over the years as president, I learned when to do that.