Category: Maintenance

On almost any given block in New York City, it’s easy to see how things have changed in architecture and construction over the decades. Historic buildings like the New York Public Library or Grand Central Station are noted for their ext…

 Doing a major window replacement or repair project in a building that’s home to hundreds of people isn’t easy. There are any number of scheduling and access considerations, and time  is obviously of the essence, as it’s impractical and un…

 According to some sources, the word “tips” is actually an acronym—it’s short for “To Insure Prompt Service,” and the list of people who are commonly tipped—at least in the United States—includes everyone from hair and nail salon workers t…

 In the late 1980s, seeking high-growth, low-risk investment opportunities, and  with an affinity for brick and mortar, European pension funds began to invest  heavily in the American real estate market. So much money poured into the Unite…

 No doubt about it, the Big Apple is a pedestrian town: according to the New York  City Department of Transportation (DOT), over eight million people tread the  city’s approximately 12,750 square miles of sidewalks each day.    New …

 Even before the landmark “Pullman” case in 2003 in which a co-op board and shareholders voted unanimously to evict an especially  troublesome and disruptive shareholder from their building—New York co-op residents have grumbled about “obj…

 "Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.” An immortal line from a beloved movie, and perhaps a reflection of how many  Western urbanites over the years have viewed the large pockets of Asian  immigrants that have settled in their cities. Chinato…

Ever since the first hydraulic passenger elevator was installed in New York City in 1870, the city has relied upon elevators to support its upward growth. Given that few would care to contemplate living or working in a 20-story walk-up,…

Clean laundry. It’s one of those basic things without which we would go mad but which we rarely stop to consider. Within New York’s co-op and condo complexes, laundry room facilities are an integral part of a happy, functioning environm…

If you’re part of a co-op and condo community, you’ve definitely had to deal with the New York City’s Building Codes. They’re a complex set of regulations, documents, amendments, local laws and more, regulating all sorts of things, from …