New England Condominium May 2022

Capital Design Projects There’s Always Room for Improvement BY DARCEY GERSTEIN Spring Maintenance Prepare & Perform BY DARCEY GERSTEIN May 2022 NEWENGLANDCONDO.COM 205 Lexington Avenue, NY, NY 10016 • CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED THE CONDO, HOA & CO-OP RESOURCE CONDOMINIUM NEW ENGLAND It’s that time of year again. Birds are chirping; trees are blooming; property managers and co-op and condo boards are addressing their task lists for the change of seasons. Whether it’s a Dorchester duplex or a harbor highrise, a dense city development or a sprawling sub- urban complex, a building up north still shoveling snow or a southern community whose pool is open year-round, spring is the time to give every property a little sprucing up. Early Bird vs. Worm According to the pros, winter’s short, dark days are the perfect time to get a jump on spring planning. Well in advance of the first robin’s appearance, checklists should be in order, vendors and suppliers contacted and scheduled, and staff and board members pre- pared so that everything comes up roses—or tulips—when the weather starts to warm. “Doing the prep work now can possibly save you money in the end,” says Alan Bressler, Chairman of the Board & Chief Operating Officer of Guardian Services in New York, which provides a range of facility services to buildings and communities throughout the North- east, New England, and the Mid-Atlantic. “Getting all your key stakeholders involved early can really improve your facility maintenance operation.” Brian Butler, CMCA, CAM, PCAM, senior vice president—high rise at FirstService Residential Illinois, agrees. “The best thing that a board can do to prepare for the spring is to fight the urge to defer reviewing details or making decisions related to upcoming capital repair needs,” he says. “If boards wait until the spring thaw comes to begin making deci- sions and hiring contractors, they’ll often find that the schedules for the work are tighter, and pricing may be higher than if they had made those decisions during the fall or winter months.” Neil Betoff, president of STAR Building Services in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, says that Noise, Odors, & Leaks: Oh My! How Co-ops & Condos Can Deal with Conflict BY KEITH LORIA Even before the pandemic and social unrest of the last few years, interpersonal conflict and outright hostility often sur- faced in the co-op and condo environ- ment, leaving boards and managers hav- ing to deal with both legitimate grievances and conflicts that are less than rational. Whether a conflict arises between neigh- bors, between residents and management, or between tenants and the board, it’s vital to address it swiftly and diplomatically to maintain a functioning, livable commu- nity. Sources of Problems Michelle P. Quinn, a partner with Gallet Dreyer & Berkey, LLP in New York, says typically, the three main sources of conflict concern odors, noise, and leaks—and dur- ing the pandemic, when people were home so much more, these issues became even more prevalent. “Odors could have to do with a build- ing’s ventilation system, so that’s some- thing that is fixable. But then there are odors that can range from someone not liking their neighbor’s cooking—but these people chose to live in a multiple dwelling and those are the functionalities of doing so—to the collection of smells that might come from hoarders or those with lots of animals,” she says. Michael J. Ciarlo, a partner with Man- hattan-based Nadel & Ciarlo, P.C., notes that these are particularly difficult sources of conflict because they are usually be- tween two neighbors, and it becomes a he said/she said situation. “Sometimes it can be resolved by hav- ing the offending neighbor install carpet- ing in their apartment, which is usually There’s a riddle in a popular children’s book that asks, ‘What’s the largest room in the world?’ After much consideration and many incorrect guesses, one of the characters in the book has the answer: “Why, the largest room in the world is room for improvement!” If you’ve lived in a multifamily com- munity for any amount of time, it’s hard to argue with that statement. A residen- tial building or complex can always stand to be improved, whether with an aes- thetic update, design overhaul, or an up- grade of its machinery or systems—but even the most discretionary improve- ments can open a Pandora’s box of regu- latory requirements. Likewise, upgrades intended to make a multifamily building or community code compliant very often force some design and decor decisions— so making a ‘simple’ improvement is of- ten anything but. Best Laid Plans With so many variables in play and potential points at which things can go awry with a capital design project, the pros say the best way to ensure that it goes smoothly is to do as much up-front planning and organizing as possible. Ac- cording to Michael Refat, the Canton, Massachusetts-based Regional Director for national property management com- pany FirstService Residential, that starts with lining up a team of competent pro- fessionals to advise on all aspects of the project before it gets going, starting with an engineer. “We always advise the trustees, be- fore they engage in any kind of renova- tions, to get a consulting engineer \\\[who can\\\] advise them if the project will trig- ger code compliance or not,” says Refat. “Usually \\\[clients\\\] think that redesigning the lobby or the hallway is a matter of cosmetics. But when they start the proj- ect, they’re confronted with the reality that there is a large added expense to bring the alarm system, the fire suppres- sion system, the sprinkler system, the panels into compliance; otherwise, \\\[the continued on page 16 continued on page 14 his company is already largely booked up into April. “\\\[Late Febru- ary\\\] is the perfect time to do your spring cleaning walk through, in large part because you want to get on the vendor’s work schedule,” he advises. And Scott Dalley, a real estate management consultant based in Maine, suggests boards start preparing for the upcoming sea- son six months in advance. “If you wait until springtime to engage continued on page 14