Co-op City Times 12/07/13

Page 1

Co-op City’s official newspaper serving the world’s largest cooperative community.

Vol. 48 No. 49

Riverbay receives more than $383,000 for participating in Con Ed’s summer demand response events This week, representatives of Energy Spectrum, Riverbay’s energy consultants, delivered two checks totaling approximately $383,649 to Riverbay’s Finance Director for the community’s participation in the Con Ed Rider U and Rider S demand response programs during the summer of 2013. “We’re very appreciative of the shareholders, along with the Power Plant operators, for the hard work that goes into participating in these programs,” said David Ahrens, Managing Director of Energy Spectrum. “We look forward to the summer of 2014.” Con Ed’s Rider U program or the Distribution Load Relief Program (DLRP), runs from May through October, and is designed to help Con Edison resolve distribution problems on its electrical networks. Basically, participants, such as the Co-op City Power Plant, are given 1-2 hours BY ROZAAN BOONE

advance notice to reduce their electric demand, then there is either an hour of testing, or five-hour events. The Rider S program, or the Commercial System Relief System, runs concurrent with the DLRP and is open to customers who can curtail load or bring on certain on-site generation to reduce their demand with a minimum of 21 hour notice before a planned event which is generally called when the day-ahead forecasted load level is at least 96 percent of Con Ed’s forecasted summer system peak. Riverbay is in a night peaking network. Both of these programs offer financial incentives for those who have the ability to curtail load during network emergencies. It was developed to complement the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) demand response program, according to Con Edison’s website. While Riverbay has

Thousands of Co-op City residents turned out for one or more of a series of three informational presentations on the recent bulk sale proposal made to Co-op City by Cablevision. On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, overflow crowds crammed into the Dreiser, Bartow and Einstein Centers, respectively, to hear details of the proposal which, if accepted, can save the bulk of the community’s cable customers up to $50.95 on their monthly cable bills. Ben Topor, Vice President of Sales BY BILL STUTTIG

25¢

and Retention for Cablevision, made the presentation at each of the three centers on consecutive evenings. During the first half of each meeting, Topor explained the exact details of the proposal, including the monthly savings, which, according to Cablevision, will amount to $50.95 for the vast majority of customers in Co-op City no matter what tier of service they presently receive or plan to receive when and if the bulk sale agreement is approved. Specifically, as Topor pointed out (Continued on page 2)

(Continued on page 3)

Ongoing NYC Health & Nutrition survey includes 60 households from Co-op City

The New York City Health Department and the CUNY School of Public Health have announced that they are conducting the second New York City Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NYC HANES). Until early next year, adults from 3,000 randomly selected NYC households, including 60 from Co-op City, will be asked to answer survey questions and take a physical exam that will provide a picture of the city’s health almost 10 years after the first NYC HANES. Funded by the de Beaumont Foundation, the survey enables researchers to examine changes in New Yorkers’ health over two points in time and assess the impact of several health policies that have occurred since 2004. “NYC HANES helps us get a better look at how New Yorkers are doing and determine ways we can improve the city’s health,” said NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley. “For example, ten years ago, blood tests in NYC HANES showed that New Yorkers were breathing in more second-hand smoke than elsewhere in the country. In part because of these results, the city’s parks, beaches and hospital entrances are now smoke-free. An

Cablevision explains bulk sale offer to overflow crowds at all three centers

© Copyright 2013 Co-op City Times

Saturday, December 7, 2013

updated NYC HANES will allow us to gain critical insights about overall health in New York City and will directly set directions for public health for the next decade.” “Unlike many health surveys, which are based entirely on self-report, NYC HANES asks participants to take a brief physical exam and to provide blood, urine and saliva samples for lab tests to assess for common health conditions. This allows us to gain critical new insights about overall health in New York City,” said Ayman A.E. ElMohandes, MD, MPH, the new dean of the CUNY School of Public Health, which is conducting the NYC HANES 2013 survey in partnership with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. “It’s also why the participation of those selected is so critical to the success of NYC HANES. Our rigorous statistical methods have ensured that those selected to participate in this survey represent New York City’s six million adult residents. And by comparing the new findings to those from 2004, we can analyze more objectively how the health of New Yorkers (Continued on page 4)

Ben Topor, Vice President of Sales and Retention for Cablevision, explains the details of the cable company’s bulk sale offer to Co-op City before a standing-room-only crowd in Room 31 of the Bartow Community Center Tuesday evening. Overflow crowds jammed into all three community centers this week to hear details, ask questions and express concerns before deciding whether or not they will vote to accept Cablevision’s offer. Photo by Bill Stuttig

REMINDER: NYS registration deadline for Basic STAR tax credit is December 31, 2013

Co-op City shareholders who are recipients of Basic STAR (School Tax Relief Exemption) are reminded that the deadline to register with the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance in order to receive the credit in 2014 and in subsequent years is December 31, 2013. Shareholders who receive Enhanced STAR do not have to participate in this registration process with the state and should continue to do what they have been doing all along – either reapply each year for STAR or opt in for automatic annual income verification. The Basic STAR registration process was undertaken by the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance this year in an effort to protect taxpayers from inappropriate or fraudulent STAR claims, and it is a one-time assignment. According to the State Department of Finance and Taxation website, once registration is completed BY ROZAAN S. BOONE

by the December 31st deadline, homeowners who are receiving Basic STAR will not have to re-register every year. Going forward, based on the information provided in the registration process, the Tax Department will monitor homeowners’ eligibility in future years. Earlier this year, the State Department of Taxation and Finance mailed a code to each Basic STAR recipient’s primary address which has to be used to complete the registration process. If you are currently receiving Basic STAR credit and have not received your code, you should contact the department at (518) 457-2036 for further directions. Basic STAR recipients can register for the 2013/2014 STAR tax credit at the New York State Taxation and Finance Department’s website at www.tax.ny.gov, or by calling the (Continued on page 4)


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.