Page 8 - CooperatorNews May 2021

8 COOPERATORNEWS — MAY 2021 COOPERATORNEWS.COM We handle all sprinkler system inspections and violations. • Sprinkler System Design and Installation • Maintenance, repair and service • Flow and Pressure tests • Violation Removals • Monthly Inspections • Stand Pipes and Fire Pumps Big Apple Fire Sprinkler Co. Inc. 64-20 Laurel Hill Blvd. Woodside NY 11377 • 718-205-8580 • Fax 718-205-4590 Email: alevitt@bigapplesprinkler.com = Big Apple Fire Sprinkler_Oct2011.qxp:Layout 1 9/20/11 2:07 PM Page 1 of varied heights, including children. “Each section describes recommended characteris- tics but also includes advisory notes that al- low for nuances in consideration.” A full PDF of the guidelines can be found here: https:// www1.nyc.gov/assets/ddc/downloads/publi- cations/guides-manuals/universal-design-ny. pdf In the final analysis, Universal Design— design for everyone—is a concept whose time is definitely here, but also one that has evolved organically over decades. It has also meshed and grown with the practical implications of the Americans with Disabilities Act to make real and lasting changes in how we build, what we build, and who we build it for. n A J Sidransky is a staff writer/reporter for CooperatorNews, and a published novelist. UNIVERSAL... continued from page 7 NoMad neighborhood, were incorporating multipurpose “flex spaces” into apartment designs. In terms of COVID, she says, “As people work from home, and as their kids learn from home, they need the rooms and areas within those homes to play more than one role. Now flex spaces have become a seri- ous value-add for buyers, because they offer room to set up a home office or library, or a learning space for children. This is a trend we anticipate will soon become widespread.” Gia Milazzo Smith, owner of Designs By Gia, serves clients in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, and sees the same trends happening in New England. “I see a lot of people that are going to be working from home permanently,” she says. “People have now proved that they can work from home successfully, so their com- panies are giving up some of their big, expen- sive office spaces. So I have a lot of clients in that position who are looking to make more permanent changes to their workspaces. I have other clients who are not so sure wheth- er they are going back to an office, and they’re making more temporary changes so they can undo those changes quickly.” The same holds true for common and amenity spaces in multifamily communities, say the experts. Predicting that telecommut- ing will remain prevalent in the city’s work- force, designers at New York City-based ALine “foresee that there will be demand for either flexible coworking spaces or single oc- cupancy pods within residential buildings.” Knowing that amenity space can be limited in co-op and condo buildings, ALine suggests in a recent blog post “to create an amenity space that has flexibility for many different uses” by installing convertible furniture or furnishings that are easy to rearrange or to store away. Some examples they give include “collaps- ible conference tables, segmental seating ar- INTERIOR DESIGN... continued from page 1 rangements, pop-up desks, and modular wall panels.” Flexibility is also essential for designers and clients themselves. Like no other time before it, the Era of COVID has forced people to adapt quickly, to put their lives on hold, and to endure a constantly changing stream of guidance and regulations with virtually no warning. While they look to imbue spaces with flexibility, both designers and their cli- ents also have had to tap into their own abil- ity to be flexible and understanding to make these projects successful. Architect and inte- rior designer Eric Mullendore, whose epony- mous firm has reimagined and refreshed in- terior spaces in Chicago condos and co-ops for nearly 20 years, tells CooperatorNews that during COVID, “I have seen clients displaced and their routines interrupted, and have seen great patience in accommodating their proj- ects being delayed months after they initially expected it to be completed. “Patience and understanding, compassion and empathy—not terms we usually ascribe to the work we do,” Mullendore continues, “yet they have been wonderfully incorporated into just getting through this period together.” Materials & Technology With today’s emphasis on wellness and cleanliness, many designers are recommend- ing fabrics, surfaces, and structures that have antimicrobial properties or that are easy and safe to keep clean and free of germs. Simple adjustments like “not as many throw pillows” in lobbies and common areas, as recommend- ed by Milazzo Smith, make for fewer touch- able surfaces to clean and fewer passable items that can spread germs. She has also seen many homeowners who had been putting off im- provements to kitchens and bathrooms tak- ing this opportunity to do that work—and to incorporate not only easily cleanable materi- als, but also room for storage of more cleaning supplies and other bulk items. For wellness upgrades in common areas, ALine studios provides a list of products and materials that have aesthetic as well as func- tional appeal. They recommend Type II vinyl wallcovering for “its durability, cleanability, and customization options,” noting that there are yet more wallcovering products that can be cleaned with harsher chemicals such as bleach without fading or deteriorating. Such fabrics can also be considered for furnishings in common areas, they say. For countertops and reception desks, ALine recommends non-porous materials like quartz and soapstone for their ease of cleaning and maintaining. Quartz in par- ticular is durable, versatile, and attractive, they say. Without pores or holes, it is easier to disinfect and is also stain-resistant. “Consid- ering that quartz may not fit into every build- ing’s aesthetic or budget,” notes ALine, “there is the option to apply quartz to the writing surface of a desk only.” “For high end buildings that wish to pro- mote wellness without sacrificing design,” ALine offers upscale hand sanitizer dispens- ers that “are available in a variety of colors, finishes, and materials. Some can even be