Co-op City Times 11/15/14

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Co-op City’s official newspaper serving the world’s largest cooperative community. © Copyright 2014 Co-op City Times

Vol. 49 No. 46

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Interest appears strong as bids for Co-op City’s management position come due on Wednesday The deadline for submitting formal bid proposals to be considered as the next managing agent/general manager of Co-op City is 5 p.m. Wednesday, November 19th and Board Director Bernie Cylich, chair of the ad hoc Board committee overseeing the entire search process, said this week that he is enthused by the level of interest in the job expressed by numerous top management firms from throughout the region. “We are encouraged by the high BY BILL STUTTIG

level of interest that appears to be out there,” Director Cylich said this week, “and feel confident that the process will go smoothly once the committee and the Board have the chance to formerly review the submitted proposals.” Director Cylich said that so far more than a dozen potential management candidates have requested bid packages, a process which includes paying a $150 registration fee. He (Continued on page 4)

Co-op City’s Director of Operations Kevin Keenan (c) leads a group of potential managing agent candidates on a tour of the community’s hidden underground infrastructure. The group, the second such group to tour Co-op City in recent weeks, was briefed on a wide variety of the community’s unique components including the Power Plant, the Public Safety Command Center and the shopping centers. Photo by Bill Stuttig

Carrying Charge payment for November, 2014

Wednesday, November 26, will be the last business day of the month since the Riverbay offices will be closed on Thursday and Friday, November 27 & 28 respectively, in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. Therefore, Wednesday, November 26th is the last day to pay your carrying charges to avoid legal action. Thank you for your cooperation.

—Riverbay Finance Department

Two Ebola seminars scheduled to be held in Co-op City this week BY ROZAAN BOONE Two seminars on the Ebola virus will be held in Co-op City this coming week with the first taking place on Tuesday, November 18, 7 p.m. in the Dreiser Auditorium, and the second on Saturday, November 22, in Room 4 of the Dreiser Center, 1-5 p.m. On Tuesday, November 18, from 78:30 p.m., Riverbay Corporation is partnering with the North Bronx Health Network, which includes North Central Bronx Hospital and Jacobi Medical Center, for the first seminar, which will be held in the Dreiser Auditorium, and is open to Co-op City residents, and the general public.

The guest speaker will be Dr. Elizabeth Jenny-Avital, Infectious Disease Specialist at Jacobi Medical Center. Representatives from the NYC Department of Health will also be in attendance and educational literature will be distributed to those attending. Questions will be taken from the audience and those with concerns are encouraged to attend to get answers. The second presentation will take place on Saturday, November 22, 1-5 p.m. in Room 4 of the Dreiser Center (See page 3) when the Drammeh Center, along with the African American (Continued on page 2)

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Board authorizes settlement talks in hourly wage lawsuit Settlement talks are underway between the Riverbay Corp. and the lawyers who sued the housing company on behalf of five Riverbay hourly employees who allege that hundreds of Riverbay workers weren't paid overtime wages they were entitled to under the law. A potential settlement of the federal lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan by five current and former Riverbay Corp. employees in April 2013, could wind up costing Riverbay several million dollars, and could result in “dire consequences” for the corporation, according to Cleve Taylor, current Riverbay Board president who took office in June, 2014. Marion Scott, Inc., the managing agent for Riverbay, is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit. Marion Scott, Inc. also faces the same financial liability. For the past 18 months, the two sides have presented arguments before Federal Judge John G. Koeltl about whether the plaintiffs in the case should be granted "class action" status allowing the case to proceed to trial on behalf of all current and former Riverbay BY JIM ROBERTS

workers who might have been underpaid. The plaintiffs allege that they were given comp time instead of being paid for overtime work; that they were underpaid for some overtime work because nighttime differentials weren't included in overtime calculations; and that workers who punched in before or after their scheduled shifts weren't paid for the work they did before or after their scheduled shift. In August, Judge Koeltl rejected arguments by Trivella & Forte, Riverbay's labor and employment attorneys, that the employees couldn't sue the company as a class action and also rejected arguments that the case should be dismissed. Judge Koeltl found that the case should proceed as a class action covering approximately 1,700 current and former employees. Judge Koeltl also determined that two of the individual plaintiffs were entitled to summary judgment on some of their overtime claims. Judge Koeltl found that two of the collective bargaining agreements entered into by (Continued on page 2)

Adjustments made to new washers being tested in Buildings 10 & 20 as cooperators give feedback New, state-of-the-art washing machines being tested in Buildings 10 and 20 have resulted in some adjustments being made before the contract is presented to the Riverbay Board for approval and the washers are installed throughout the development. The new Wascomat Crossover 22 lb. washers, which are considered top of the line in the laundry industry, were BY ROZAAN BOONE

installed in the laundry rooms in Buildings 10 and 20 about 2 months ago and are being tested by the shareholders in those two buildings. Co-op City’s Assistant General Manager Joe Boiko said that the new washers give more water and have a stronger base computer so there are fewer shut-downs as a result of oversudsing and (Continued on page 4)

A washer with clear glass (above right) has been installed in the Building 20 laundry room as requested by cooperators in Buildings 10 & 20 who have been testing the new Wascomat Crossover 22 lb. washers over the past 2 months. Cooperators in these two buildings who have not yet filled out the laundry room surveys are asked to do so as soon as possible so their feedback can be considered before the washers are installed throughout the development. Photo by Bill Stuttig


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