2003 Sep
2003 Sep Vol. 23, No. 9
Focus on...Energy Consevation
One Man's Trash...Is Still Trash
Two hundred years ago, a visitor to New York City remarked that the teeming sprawl was a "nasal disaster, where some streets smell like bad eggs dissolved in ammonia."¯ Read More
The Green Guerillas
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, "The earth laughs in flowers."¯ If that's the case, then the Green Guerillas are grinning from ear to ear. While some outreach programs spend a lot of their time working phones and crunching numbers to get work done, this New York-based organization has been brightening neighborhoods and spirits by getting their hands dirty - literally - for 30 years. The Green Guerillas, made up of over 800 volunteers, dozens of employees and generous donors, both corporate and private, have been changing the face of New York for decades using a different set of tools - vegetable seeds, flower pots, topsoil and mural paintings, just to name a few. Read More
Sidewalk Liability
Property owners will now be responsible for the maintenance and repair of public sidewalks in front of their buildings following passage of legislation that transfers liability from the city to the owners of multi-family dwellings. Read More
Bracing for the Cold
Last winter's frigid temperatures shocked many city dwellers accustomed to the mild temperatures that have been the new norm in New York for several years. New Yorkers donned down coats, insulated boots, and thermal underwear, and millions watched solemnly as their heating bills soared. Read More
Die Hard
Still convinced you've got plant-killing "black thumbs?"¯ No problem. The following is a list of plants you'd need a stake through the heart to destroy. Go ahead - do your worst. With these troopers you'll finally get the satisfaction of keeping plants alive and thriving. Who knows? You just might become a plant person after all. Read More
Houseplant Husbandry
Still a few paychecks shy of that country cottage? Cubicles got you down? If that's the case, you might consider bringing a little whiff of the outdoors inside with some lush, green houseplants. Read More
Getting The Lead Out
1960: New York City becomes the first municipality in the country to ban sale of lead paint. Nationwide restrictions on the manufacture and use of lead-based paint did not come into effect until 1978. Read More
State Appeals Court Invalidates Lead Paint Law
The City Council will meet to adopt a new lead paint abatement law following a state Court of Appeals decision July 1 that invalidated the current Local Law 38. The council's Committee on Housing and Buildings will convene in mid-September to consider proposed legislation governing lead paint standards in residential buildings. Read More
Keep the Juices Flowing
When the co-op board of 31 Jane Street in New York City decided to upgrade their building's windows, the directors decided to purchase window glass that came with an Energy Star rating. "Initially we were going to pay for the window project outright,"¯ says Toni Kamins, Jane Street resident and board president, "but getting Energy Star window glass enabled us to get a loan for the project with interest subsidized by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Getting an subsidized loan saved us thousands of dollars in interest."¯ Read More
Preventative Maintenance Schedule
The above is a recommended schedule of maintenance. You should consult your boiler manufacturer just in case additional maintenance is required. Safety is always the first consideration in boiler operations. Efficiency is second. Read More
Stoking the Fires
In a few months, the hot summer weather will be just a distant memory, and all that time spent trying to get cool will be behind us. Instead, co-op and condo residents will be turning up the thermostat for some soothing warmth. Now is the time to make sure the boilers that keep our buildings toasty are in good working order and ready to face the challenges of those icy winter nights. Read More
Winterizing Your Building
Winter is the harshest season when it comes to wear-and-tear on residential buildings. Not only does ice collect in cracks and spaces between bricks and masonry, contributing to faƧade deterioration, but salt also erodes surfaces, boilers and steam pipes work overtime, and more hours of darkness mean higher electrical and gas bills. Read More
Lessons From the Blackout of 2003
On Thursday, August 14, 2003, New York City experienced a blackout of major proportions, part of an event that affected eight states and part of Canada as well. The Cooperative Coalition to Prevent Blackouts (CCPB), and the Federation of New York Housing Cooperatives and Condominiums (FNYHC) - one of the coalition's founding members - has been warning the various state and federal agencies for years that an event such as this was bound to happen. The mystery of why it happened and who is to blame is still under investigation, but it appears a single mishap paralyzed the Northeast, plunging more than 50 million people into darkness, stranding residents and commuters, shutting down public transportation, and costing an estimated billions of dollars in lost business and spoiled provisions. Read More
Squeeze Your Own Juice
During the recent citywide blackout, most everyone found themselves somewhere in the dark, and the city's co-ops and condos were no exception. The 24-hour crisis left nearly everyone in New York's five boroughs (and much of the Northeast) asking this question: Where were you when the lights went out? For most of us, the answer was simple: stuck. But if your building had a co-generation system, the answer might have been, "I was in my air-conditioned living room, drinking iced tea and watching news coverage of the blackout on television."¯ Buildings with partial or full co-generation systems at least had some chance of providing energy to their residents throughout the crisis. And if your building decides to turn to co-generation, perhaps you won't be left in the dark if there's ever a sequel to Blackout 2003. Read More
