BLOCK ASSOCATIONS

Steven Zirinsky, who serves on the board of a West 104th Street co-op between West End Avenue and Riverside Drive, wanted his block, like others nearby, to have historic-looking streetlights instead of the standard-issue variety. But this hope seemed beyond the board’s reach – until he thought to hook up with the West 104th Street Block Association, which encompasses about 500 households and raised roughly $10,000 from neighbors to make the streetlights a reality.

Block associations are catalysts for a wide range of activities: They host yard sales and holiday parties, plant flowers and trees, lobby politicians and police for security, and get involved in neighborhood issues. Most raise money through donations from residents, boards, and businesses. Some have dues.

Block Beautiful

Co-op and condo boards can support their block association by contributing money and/or encouraging their residents and shareholders to get active with their time or checkbooks. Indeed, says Richard Eric Weigle, president of the Grove Street Block Association (GSBA) in Greenwich Village, homeowners themselves rather than the board as a formal entity "are the ones who should be the most involved because it is more to their advantage to make the block as beautiful and as safe as it can be." Weigle’s group spends time, energy and money on beautification objectives such as tree and flower plantings and repair projects.

“All of this directly impacts real-estate values,” says Weigle, who has lived in the same rent-stabilized apartment for 33 years. “I expect a lot more from the co-op and condo owners than the renters,” Weigle observes with a laugh. He says that he tells them, “If you don’t want to work, then write me a check, if you don’t have the money, you should [donate some time and] help me.”

Margery Reifler, who previously served on her co-op board at 2 Grove Street, is active in the GSBA and notes that one of the advantages of a block association is the strength in numbers. If a problem arises concerning a noisy bar, crime, or a questionable development, the block association carries more weight with officials than an individual or single property does.

“The clout we have as a group goes a long way,” Reifler says. To that end, she notes that her local association is also a member of an umbrella group, The Greenwich Village Block Associations, which encompasses about 35 associations in that area. “Our power is incredibly expanded because of that.”

The umbrella group has been key in securing donations from movie production companies that shoot films in the area, says Reifler, who adds that the group has sent e-mails to residents alerting them to upcoming inconveniences that will be caused by filming.

Similarly, The Atlantic Avenue Betterment Association in Brooklyn has been key in keeping residents informed about parking and traffic difficulties and the local Atlantic Yards development project. “We try to get involved with what’s going on in our entire neighborhood, not just the block,” explains Carolyn Casey, who lives in a 57-unit co-op on Atlantic Avenue and served on her board for about nine years. The group has invited local politicians, school-board officials, and other governmental types to come “and listen to our gripes,” she adds.