The NYT and DNAinfo report that three new towers are set to rise across the East River, just south of the Williamsburgh Bridge.
The architect is ODA New York, and the developer is Eliot Sptizer.
Of course development on the area just north of the bridge is already underway with an ambitious project designed by SHoP Architects.
Our view of Brooklyn is going to be very different in the next couple of years.
Here’s the basic message from General Manager Harold Jacob: if you thought building 4’s laundry room was a catastrophe, wait til you see building 2!
June 16, 2015
TO: EAST RIVER COOPERATORS
BUILDING 2
573 / 575 / 577 GRAND STREET
D / E / F – SECTIONSFROM: HAROLD JACOB, GENERAL MANAGER
RE: DRAIN PIPES REPAIR UPDATE
Dear Cooperators:
The laundry room in Building 2 remains closed due to the fact that all the drain lines that feed into the main sewer line are rotted away.
This job is more complicated than in Building 4 which recently had similar leaks, because when they built Building 2, they buried all the lines under the ground, in some areas it is about 7 feet deep. All the excavation is being done by hand and buckets. We have already dug into the filter room, pump room and electric room. We have exposed all the lines there. We are now digging into the laundry room. We have already located 5 leaking lines and the water continues to flow from under the laundry room. In addition, we found 3 buried electric lines which have to be replaced as well. There will also be a need to shut down the water when we replace one of the main drain lines. We will notify you in advance.
Our plumber estimates that it is going to take approximately 5 weeks more to identify and repair all of the leaks. We will then have to backfill each of the holes, pour concrete and replace the tiles in the laundry room. The plumber and the supplier estimate we will not totally complete this job until the week of July 20. We hope to locate all of the leaks within this time frame. Any cooperator who wishes to see the excavation can call the office and I will arrange a walk-through.
We regret the inconvenience it causes but unfortunately there is no way to plan ahead on how to determine that the water and/or electric lines would rot away.
In the meantime you may continue using any of the other laundry rooms in Buildings 1, 3 or 4.
We will keep you updated. As always I highly recommend you to sign up for our e-mail notifications at http://coopvillage.coop/EmailSignup.php.
Joe Hanania reports that at this week’s CB3 transportation meeting, EDC officials revealed that the proposed Grand Street ferry stop will likely not be quite on Grand Street when it opens for service in 2018.
The new location is closer to the pedestrian bridge from the bandshell to Corlears Hook Park, providing better access to the several bus lines that connect Grand Street to the rest of Manhattan.
The Lo-Down reports that an environmental review is now underway, and public hearings on the proposal should be scheduled this fall.
About 75 cooperators met last week to discuss our current pet policy and review some possible alternatives.
We started by outlining some basic facts:
City and federal laws make this policy difficult to enforce:
Recent events helped shape our discussion:
Cooperators broke up into two groups — pro and con — to form competing policy proposals. A third group of cooperators who could see both sides challenged the proposals when they were presented to the whole group.
Team 2 Legs did not want dogs at East River. Since they did not want to see the current policy change, they were tasked with outlining enforcement guidelines.
They used the example of Waterside Plaza, where a no-dog policy is strictly enforced by building staff. Security cameras are monitored at all entrances and any dog seen entering the property is targeted quickly for a notice to cure. Dogs are not permitted to visit the buildings at all.
Dogs that currently live at East River, or any new support animals, would need to be registered with management; a tag would identify these dogs as permitted. Security staff would be responsible for checking tags for all dogs entering the coop. (Our security contract may need to be revised to make this an explicit part of the job description; guards could also be given incentives for catching unregistered dogs.)
The goal of policy enforcement would be to cut down on the lawsuits that have sapped the coop’s finances. Vigilance by staff on the ground should limit the need for lawyers. And consistent application of the no-dog policy would signal to others that it’s not worth trying to game the system.
Team 4 Legs emphatically wanted East River to become a pet-friendly coop. They worked together to develop a proposal for a new policy that would admit dogs to the coop, with some regulations.
By and large, they followed a model that Hillman has adopted on a trial basis, allowing for registration, DNA testing, and behavioral restrictions. (Hillman board member Mathew Quezada, who is also an East River shareholder, attended the meeting and was very encouraging of Hillman’s year-old new policy.)
Dog-lovers emphasized that size and breed did not determine a dog’s behavior, and that bad behavior can and should be regulated. In Hillman, for example, a first complaint is investigated, a second complaint mandates behavior training, and a third complaint allows the coop to evict the dog. Quezada said that Hillman has over 30 registered dogs and only a handful of complaints, all of which have been settled without escalation.
DNA testing in Hillman allows management to investigate whose dog is pooping on the property, and fines can then be added to a cooperator’s monthly maintenance.
Our meeting was weighted heavily toward dog-lovers, but that may just be an indication of their passion — no one has yet determined whether there is a majority of cooperators in favor of changing East River’s policy.
Cooperatively Yours will attempt to gauge interest in a policy change with a survey conducted over the next two weeks. (Though only a full vote by shareholders can change our rules.)
Looks like U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara has been pestering an even bigger coop over its discriminatory behavior.
The Daily News reports that Coop City has reached a settlement that will permit service and support animals and set aside $600,000 for 28 residents whose requests for service animals were denied between 2005 and 2011.
Our dog meeting allowed us to see the newly renovated community room last night. Here are a few pictures of the new floor, new paint, new bathrooms, and new kitchen. There are also new stackable chairs and new, lighter folding tables. (It’s unclear whether the bicycles in the closet are also available to rent for $325?)
So what do you think? Is it more than just a $73,000 facelift?
Cooperatively Yours has not received any word from the board or house committee about whether any policy changes suggested by cooperators will be implemented. There are still no hourly rentals or open use of the space, and there’s been no effort to think through the broader question of how all of our ground floor spaces can be used most effectively (and possibly more profitably).
The New York Times earlier this year addressed the question — “Do ‘no dog’ policies affect apartment values?”
One realtor said that because dog owners have fewer apartments to choose from, they may pay a premium for a building that will let them in. She estimated that pet-friendly apartments may be worth an additional 5-10% on the open market.
An analysis quoted in the same article by Miller Samuel seemed to disagree with at least part of that assessment, showing that 78% of coops and condos sold in the fourth quarter of 2014 allowed pets. So is there a premium the other way, for buyers who specifically don’t want to live around animals? No, no-pet sales consistently underperform the market average.
As predicted last week, building 2 is about to get the same laundry room overhaul that building 4 received over the last month. A memo today from management indicates that work will start on Monday. No timeline for finishing has been set.
The federal lawsuit against East River Housing has been settled, granting two cooperators the right to have a service or assistance animal, and opening a broad exception to any cooperator who can demonstrate the need for a similar four-legged companion.
The coop has agreed to a new “Reasonable Accommodation Policy” that directs management to commit to “granting reasonable accommodations to its rules, policies, practices, or services when such accommodations may be necessary to afford people with disabilities an equal opportunity to use and enjoy their dwellings, as required by federal, state and local law.”
As part of that new policy, assistance animals are allowed for any cooperator who can show that such an animal “alleviates one or more identified symptoms or effects of a person’s disability.” This includes emotional support, and may be supported by any health professional, “including, but not limited to, doctors, physician assistants, psychiatrists, psychologists, or social workers.”
Notably, the new policy makes clear, “While it is East River’s policy to not allow any pets at East River, service or assistance animals are not pets.”
The coop may request that a cooperator choose the smallest animal possible, but may not impose any size limit on service or assistance animals.
As previously reported, the settlement also includes $85,000 compensation to two cooperators, plus an additional $5,400 credit for maintenance and late fees.
You can read the full settlement here.
