Hi Nancy - I am not a lawyer, so this is not legal advice. The first thing I would do (I'm in NY and the process in FL may be different) is contact an attorney who is familiar with condominium law. I know the last thing you need is to incur lawyer fees, but from what you wrote I don't think you have much choice. You may be able to recover these fees under certain circumstances, but that is something the attorney will be able to advise you.

DO NOT approach any of the people you've spoken to who seem to be on your side for statements or other documentation until you've spoken with an attorney. There are legally prescribed ways of obtaining statements that can be used if you have to go to court. If you try to do it without legal advise you may render your supporters' statement ineffective. There will be time enough to get statements if your attorney thinks they are necessary.

Good luck!

It will be an easier sell if you forget the code & sidestep the lawyers. Instead, have your insurance underwriters inspect; it costs nothing, & they'll likely confirm that combustible materials are a problem here, & advise how much your premiums will increase if not removed. [See-through units will make owners think twice about storing materials which seem harmless--e.g. oil-based paint--but actually create risk & are disallowed.]

Hi pk. I've never heard of a co-op or condo having a formal dispute resolution committee. It doesn't mean they don't exist, but in my opinion, dispute resolution is a function of the board.

Can you provide some additional detail about the kinds of disputes a committee would handle? Are they disputes between just shareholders, or disputes between shareholders and the board?

Also, can you give us some idea of the size of your coop; number of apartments/buildings, etc? I can see a board-appointed committee triaging inter-shareholder disputes in a very large development, but acting more in a fact-finding capacity than as a final arbitrator.

I may be wrong, though, since I've never seen a co-op with such a committee.

Steve,

Alternative Dispute Resolution is meant as an alternative to litigation, ie if perhaps a shareholder feels a coop or condo Board is not treating them fairly with regard to bylaws and rules or a discretionary board action or there is a dispute between two shareholders. The committee may not consist of any Board members to settle the dispute. Both the NJ Condominium Act and the Planned Real Estate Development Full disclosure Act require associations to provide a fair and efficient alternative to litigation for unit owners to resolve disputes btwn one another or with the association. The Association Regulation Unit of the NJ Dept of Community Affairs has the authority to require common interest communities to adopt ADR procedures.

At any rate, I'm looking to see if there are any coops in NJ that use ADR in their communities to compare notes. A friend of mine in CA has ADR at her condo association. Thanks for responding though!

Hi PK. Thank you for your explanation of the Alternative Dispute Resolution. It's a very interesting concept for condos, where there is essentially private ownership of each condo unit in a development. This is the first I've heard of ADR, and I've now learned something new. Thank you for taking the time to respond.

Very interesting concept. Does anyone know if there is something similar in New York.

PK
If you like we can provide you with some guidance on setting up your ADR processes/committee for your organization.

We are an alternative dispute resolution provider that works with insurers, municipalities and other entities seeking to create similar ADR programs and offerings.

We have panels of mediators and arbitrators in all states to include NJ that can handle disputes when they arise.

Initially I would suggest you consider creating an ADR clause in your co op and condo members agreement calling for mediation. I can provide you with some samples of ADR clauses if you like as well as info on deigning a dsipute resolutin process or conflict resolution team and mediator training if desired.
It would be helpful to know what sort of ADR offering are program you are interested in.Feel free to call me if you would like to discuss further.
Hillary Earle
Amicus Mediation & Arbitration Group
631.881.0882

and who exactly is steve rosenstein who SEEMS to answer and 'have an opionon' on all these ' questions' ?

Hello/?

If you can't offer information assisting the question, then keep your poorly written responses private.

Hi mo - The first thing I would definitley do is contact the board's attorney, and as soon as possible. There are legal implications when dealing with a hoarder and the possible need to discard some/all of the material in their apartment. Here is a link to a very recent article in Habitat Magazine about this: http://www.habitatmag.com/archive/p_view_article.php?article_id=4300.

Hi Michele,

My firm does both back-office and full-on management, depending on your needs. You can check out our website at www.ebmg.com or you can contact us through e-mail at mblevine@ebmg.com or 212-502-7048 x.201.

Hope that we can help!

Contact me at 718 961 2100

When you get references re management companies don’t just ask the board that hires them but ask longtime residents in the building and never never let your management firm hire your accountants or law firm or there will never be any checks and balances.

In my business as an energy broker/consultant, I have the opportunity to work with many different management firms. I suggest New Bedford Management @ 212-674- 6123 or Rick Elezi Management 212 260-8060 for your size building. Both are very good firms.

Hi Michele - I cannot make a specific recommendation, however there was a recent article in Habitat about Back Office Only operations. Here's the line: http://www.habitatmag.com/archive/p_view_article.php?article_id=4251. I hope this is of some value to you.

Hi Maureen,

Count your blessings that you only have one! :)

Seriously, if you have a manager, have them deal with the shareholder. This way their file will contain documentation in case you have to go to the next enforcement level: court. Also, if there is smell, there might also be vermin which can and will travel throughout the complex. If vermin are present, you face a long amount of time to eradicate them so act quickly.

The problem with having the shareholders getting directly involved is that the issue may not be resolved. Then the shareholders will feel empowered to call the City and you will now have violations on the building. Then you will still not have the necessary documents saved for a court case which will delay enforcement.

If you don’t have a manager, well this is the glory you signed up for when that decision was made. Have no less than two Board members go and approach the offending shareholder.

Good luck!

And... if that apartment-with-smells happens to be a holdover rental (rent stabilized) from the conversion process and is owned by the Management company/sponsor with an original rental tenant?

One thing to consider if the apt. is on the ground floor/lobby—check the garbage shut. We had something similar in my building. It smelled FOUL! And first we thought it was one apt., then another... couldn't exactly pin it down. It ended up that that garbage had collected in the trash shute and it was rotting in there.

If the tenants affected want to approach the neighbor, they certainly can, but it might not be effective. I don't see that it's the Board's job, though. Your best, kindest, and safest approach is to have management handle it. All the neighbors who are affected and taking issue can complain to the manager, giving the argument more weight. But then the request, or dictate, to find and clean up the offending odor should come from the manager of the building. Also consider that something (vermin) has died and is rotting in the walls, causing the odor. Perhaps that tenant is as disturbed by it as is everyone else?

Hi Diana,

Have you looked at the terms of your Proprietary Lease? The responsibilities of the Shareholders and the Cooperative should be laid out pretty clearly in that document. After reviewing your responsibilities in the apartment, you should be able to discern if the Board is not acknowledging a repair that should be their responsibility or if it is up to you to fix (i.e. interior decorative items, windows, etc.)

Hope that helps.

Mark Levine
Excel Bradshaw Management Group, LLC
www.ebmg.com
mblevine@ebmg.com

To whom it may concern:
Hello My name Stacia Thomas. I am writing in search for some assistance. I was informed that there may be a possibility that may father may have invested in a condo at your lindsay co op buildings. Please call at your earliest convenience at (347) 441-9243

Stay proactive. While tenants may somewhat resent an exterminator a lot of times it is how you word the document. I am not sure if you have a service contract already in place, if not I would strongly recommend it. Everyone has to pitch in. The following are some suggestions.

Keep you residents informed (memos, recycle notices by service area etc)
Make sure the staff are following up and sweeping/ cleaning etc
Make sure all you common areas get serviced regularly, service hallways, compactor areas etc
Seal up any visible areas with steel wool or foam.
Have the super create a spread sheet and log areas where there was a problem and when exterminator visited.
When there is construction or an apartment turnover have the exterminator come do a service ( this is very easily done if walls/ piping is exposed)

Hope I was of some help MRM

Yes, MRM...you were very helpful. Thx.

I am a board president who is going through an elevator replacement now. If you have an old elevator then it's just going to get older and older and break down more frequently and for longer periods of time. That's what you will be faced with as parts become obsolete and hard to find. Ne elevators are safer, faster and much more reliable. You need an elevator consultant who will spec out and bid several elevator contractors. The consultant's fee is based on hours worked and should be fairly reasonable.

You are falling for the sales pitch without doing independent research.
The older elevators have amazing quality mechanics (example: Otis.). The new replacement ones must meet code and , sadly, have all sorts of electronics and door motors and etc. that make them much more expensive, in the near future and through their lifetime, to maintain on an annual basis than the old ones. TALK TO THE ELEVATOR MECHANICS - NOT THE CONSULTANTS.

The old elevators are made with a quality that is

If an elevator is a good old OTIS - and has lasterd over 57 years - it will last more.

Th bottom line is - if it is not urgent - don't spend the money - take time to do careful research and don't jump into this expensive trap. The older elevators, if they are made by a good company like Otis - will last for a long time and are very safe.

Afred E.,

I'm in a building with 1960's Otis elevators, and there's a movement afoot to replace them. Naturally, everyone in the industry supports the idea, since they stand to profit. And we're currently in the midst of a month+-long outage because of a scarce part (an armature) that is needed for a generator rebuild. The outage may last another 2 weeks while the part is on order. This is the second extended outage this year for this elevator; the first time the problem was the same--the generator, but at that time it was merely cleaned and not rebuilt.

I'm a member of the board and I love old mechanical things. It has been my experience that they simply made things better back then. I'd love to be able to make the argument that we'd be better off staying with the old system. But because of the recent problems we've had, it's hard to make that case. Frankly, an opinion from the Mad Magazine guy on some discussion forum isn't going to be very persuasive. So: Help me be persuasive. Point me towards some evidence.

Thanks,
Bored Member

Hi - Call some elevator machanics and talk directly to the people who do the mechanical work. Pls let us know what you find out.

The basic structure of the OTIS elevator is sound and can be maintained for a long time. The motors can be rebuilt. The electro mechanical controllers and all associated electrical equipment is another story. It's hard to keep these maintained since these parts are no longer manufactured. This is where the bulk of the problems are with older elevators. It's like comparing a TV from the 60's with all those tubes and transformers with the TV's of today with a few computer chips. The new controllers are just as big but they do a lot more and they add many new safety features.

my neighbor was told they do not make them like this anymore and not to throw it out.

A manned elevator can last a lot longer than an automatic elevator because the automatic controls are where most of the problems will occur. As long as thje operator stays sober you should be OK.

The basic structure of the OTIS elevator is sound and can be maintained for a long time. The motors can be rebuilt. The electro mechanical controllers and all associated electrical equipment is another story. It's hard to keep these maintained since these parts are no longer manufactured. This is where the bulk of the problems are with older elevators. It's like comparing a TV from the 60's with all those tubes and transformers with the TV's of today with a few computer chips. The new controllers are just as big but they do a lot more and they add many new safety features.

I am a board president who is going through an elevator replacement now. If you have an old elevator then it's just going to get older and older and break down more frequently and for longer periods of time. That's what you will be faced with as parts become obsolete and hard to find. Ne elevators are safer, faster and much more reliable. You need an elevator consultant who will spec out and bid several elevator contractors. The consultant's fee is based on hours worked and should be fairly reasonable.

We went through an elevator replacement about 7 years ago. Our building is 8 stories with just the one elevator, so accessibility for shareholders on the upper floors was a factor. Here are some of the lessons we learned from the replacement experience:
* I think all elevator replacements today incorporate sophisticated computer circuitry to enable convenience and safety features. These controllers are not as rugged as the old relay banks. The room that houses the computerized controllers will need to be environmentally controlled (temperature and humidity) and the power to the circuitry should be filtered and regulated. A failure in the computer will almost always cause the elevator to stop. This is something you don't want to happen when there are people on board.
* The parts being replaced, especially if they are very old, can have high value on the resale market. Don't just let your renovation company cart them away. See if you can get an appraisal and then try to negotiate a price decrease with your renovation company. A Google search on the internet would be a good place to start.
* To help our shareholders who lived on the upper floors move packages up and down, we hired a full time porter during the months the elevator was out of commission. Our renovation took place over the summer, so we hired students who wanted to earn the extra $$$. The summer had its drawbacks because stairwells are not usually air conditioned. We ultimately had to install a large through-the-wall unit to prevent heat-related problems.
* Pre-planning as much as possible before the elevator was taken offline, and keeping the shareholders as informed and up-to-date as possible was key to keeping aggravation to a minimum. No one enjoyed having to trek up and down flights of stairs, but as long as people knew how things were going and when they could expect elevator service to return, they accepted the aggravation gracefully. One happy benefit from the elevator being offline was that we had a much more fit community at the end of the renovation.

Good luck with your project if you decide to renovate.