Page 7 - NY Cooperator June 2019

COOPERATOR.COM THE COOPERATOR —JUNE 2019 7 ROSENWACH TANK THE FIRST NAME IN QUALITY CEDAR WOOD TANKS WE ARE CERTIFIED and IT MATTERS! 718.729.4900 43-02 Ditmars Boulevard, 2nd Fl., Astoria, NY 11105 www.rosenwachgroup.com Rosenwach is proud to announce that Rosenwach’s tanks are certified to NSF/ANSI 61 by NSF International, a leading global independent public health and safety organization. NSF/ANSI 61 addresses crucial aspects of drinking water system components such as whether contaminants that leach or migrate from the product/material into the drinking water are below acceptable levels in finished waters. To receive certification, Rosenwach Tank submitted product samples to NSF that underwent rigorous testing to recognized standards, and agreed to manufacturing facility audits and periodic retesting to verify continued conformance to the standards. The NSF mark is our customers’ assurance that our prod- uct has been tested by one of the most respected indepen- dent certification organizations. Only products bearing the NSF mark are certified. system if need be?” Making the Decision Clearly, cost is an issue for most co-op and condo boards when making a major capital decision such as elevator upgrad- ing. Caracappa offers the following ad- vice: “There’s no ‘thank you’ for making a decision based on money, or how the el- evator will operate going forward. There’s no measurement for this. Most clients want results with the minimum of incon- venience. You make a recommendation to clients based on the reality of their sit- uation.” In the end, cost may simply be an important factor in determining whether you upgrade your building’s elevators, and to what extent. But the condition of your machinery and the prospect of a future emergency may well outweigh the shorter-term financial concerns. New Requirements As stated earlier, two new regulations concerning elevators – especially auto- matic ones – in New York City buildings could also impact the decision to up- grade. By January 1st of 2020, all build- ings with automatic elevators will be re- quired to install a system to monitor and prevent automatic operation with faulty door contact circuits. And by 2027, all elevators must have emergency brakes as well. Automatic elevators are any eleva- tors that don’t require a manual closing of a gate or door or other apparatus to ini- tiate elevator movement, buttons not in- cluded. If your building happens to have an elevator attendant who only pushes a button, the new regulation affects you too. “The door locks required for Janu- ary 2020 can cost $15,000-$25,000 per car,” Warshavsky says. He has a couple of boards that have backed off from full modernization in favor of just door mon- itoring due to the high cost. Additionally, he notes that with 2027 around the cor- ner, the installation of emergency brake systems required as of that date should now be considered as a part of any mod- ernization program. Caracappa adds that his firm consid- ers both the door locks and the emergen- cy brakes in all modernization estimates it undertakes. n AJ Sidransky is a staff writer at The Co- operator, and a published novelist. ELEVATORS... continued from page 6 Meanwhile, New York Assemblyman Robert Rodriguez and Sen. Brian Kava- nagh had earlier called for abolishing the condo and co-op tax abatement for the top 10 percent of owners (with proper- ties worth $200,000 or more, according to the non-profit Citizens Housing Plan- ning Council), and using the $170 million from that to finance the embattled New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), reported City Limits. n David Chiu is an associate editor at The Co- operator. REPORT:... continued from page 6 ests of the most privileged at the expense of everyone else.” n Mike Odenthal is a staff writer at The Co- operator. MOMENTUM... continued from page 6 continued on page 7