Co-op City’s official newspaper serving the world’s largest cooperative community. Vol. 50 No. 39
© Copyright 2015 Co-op City Times
Saturday, October 3, 2015
Former St. Lucia Director of Audit hired as Riverbay’s new Director of Internal Audit for close to a year, the Board and the The former Director of Audit for the Audit Committee recently hired the Caribbean nation of St. Lucia, extensively qualified Ms. Averil M. James-Bonnette, James-Bonnette for the joined Riverbay Corporation position. this week as its new Director The new internal audiof Internal Audit. tor will report directly to Ever since the new Board the Board of Directors majority, under the leadership and the Audit Committee of Riverbay President Cleve of the Board of Directors. Taylor, took control of the Ms. James-Bonnette, community’s decision making who started in her new process in the late spring of position this past Monday, told the Co-op City 2014, the Board and its Audit Times this week that Committee made it a priority there are many similarito hire a qualified individual to serve as an internal auditor for Averil M. James-Bonnette ties between overseeing the finances of a govthe community, specifically ernment, such as St. Lucia’s, and overcharged with overseeing the financial seeing the finances of a large commefficiency and integrity of the corporation unity such as Co-op City. on a full time basis. Riverbay has not had “I find the two jobs to be quite simia person filling the position of internal auditor since the retirement of the former lar,” the former Director of Audit for St. Director of Internal Audit in 2010. After (Continued on page 2) searching for and interviewing candidates BY BILL STUTTIG
Annual Co-op City College, Career & Resource Fair today in Dreiser PepsiCola and LinkedIn among presenters
Today, Saturday, October 3, the 4th annual Co-op City College, Career & Resource Fair will be held in the Dreiser Auditorium beginning at 10 a.m. and all are encouraged to attend. Organized by Riverbay’s Second Vice President Evelyn Turner and sponsored by the Riverbay Fund, this year’s presen-
BY ROZAAN BOONE
ters will include PepsiCola, LinkedIn, an online professional networking directory; the Scholarship Lady, and a number of professionals from a variety of fields, including medical doctors and engineers. Community youth in Grades 3 through high school are encouraged to (Continued on page 4)
Hurricane Weather Advisory
There is a possibility that the East Coast may be hit by Hurricane Joaquin this weekend, or, should it not hit us directly, we may experience strong winds, heavy rain and flooding. If you have a terrace or patio, please remove all items or tie them down securely so they cannot be moved or lifted by strong winds. Keep a supply of water, flashlights, batteries, a battery-operated radio and canned goods in the unlikely event there is a loss of power. Candles are not recommended because they can cause fire. In the event of emergency, Public Safety may be reached at 718-6713050; emergency maintenance can be reached at 718-320-3300, press option 3. It’s always best to shelter in place, so please remain in your homes, unless directed otherwise by official
personnel. Please also keep away from windows to avoid injury from flying debris. Being prepared is key to one’s safety. Thank you for your cooperation and be safe.
25¢
Talks on Friday could determine future management of Co-op City Riverbay Board President Cleve Taylor and other Riverbay officials are scheduled to hold their first face-to-face meeting with the Co-op City lenders who are demanding that Riverbay hire an outside managing agent. The meeting between Riverbay and the lenders was scheduled to be held in Manhattan yesterday, Friday, Oct. 2. U.S. Congressman Eliot Engel, who represents Co-op City in Washington, D.C., was on the list of participants expected at the meeting. Those lenders – Wells Fargo bank, the federal Housing and Urban Development agency (HUD) and the state Department of Housing and Community Renewal (HCR) – insist that terms of Co-op City’s $621 million, low-interest mortgage leave it solely up to the lenders to determine who can run Co-op City. Taylor and a majority of Riverbay BY JIM ROBERTS
Board members have refused to accept the lenders’ demand to submit the name of a new managing agent for the lenders to approve. Following a comprehensive, six-month search for an independent management firm, those Board members decided that Co-op City’s shareholders will be best served by continuing to self-manage Riverbay as it has been since last November when previous managing agent, Marion Scott Real Estate, Inc., was removed by an ad-hoc committee of the Board of Directors. Others expected to participate in the Oct. 2 meeting include Riverbay Board First Vice President Linda Berk, Treasurer Bernard Cylich, Interim General Manager Noel Ellison, Director of Finance Peter Merola, Senior Attorney Michael Munns, General Counsel Jeffrey Buss, State Assemblyman Mike (Continued on page 4)
Boiler delivery this weekend postponed
Due to Hurricane Joaquin, the delivery of the new boiler which was scheduled for after midnight on Sunday-Monday, October 4-5, has been postponed. As a result, the No Parking intervals along Co-op City Boulevard on those two days have also been cancelled. As soon as delivery of the boiler has been rescheduled by the New York City Department of Trabnsportation (DOT), shareholders will be informed. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
Public Safety, 45th Precinct break up large youth confrontation Officers from Public Safety and the 45th Precinct worked quickly last Friday afternoon to break up and disperse a number of very large and potentially dangerous gatherings of young people near the vicinity of Bartow Avenue. Captain James Keappock, who, with the assistance of Patrol Sergeant Elizabeth DelValle, helped command several Public Safety officers who were called to help disperse and diffuse any potential violence in the busy shopping area between Co-op City and the Bay Plaza shopping complex, said that the sudden youth gathering of between 150 and 200 high school and junior high school students near Bartow Avenue and Asch Loop and surrounding areas was exacerbated by a flurry of social media activity between a large number of youth telling of a potential confrontation between groups of students. Keappock said that the Public Safety BY BILL STUTTIG
Department was alerted to the potential trouble by the 45th Precinct Community Affairs office who noticed the heavy chatter on Facebook in the moments before the gathering was to take place. Officers from both agencies acted quickly and worked together and separately at breaking up the several gatherings of youth before they grew too large to handle and control, thus posing a danger to the general public. But Keappock added that breaking up the large gatherings proved troublesome because as one group was moved without incident, another would repeatedly form a block away. As this was going on, several Public Safety officers had to be reassigned to deal with a serious auto accident involving a pedestrian on the other side of the community. Nevertheless, several officers from both agencies worked continuously at dispersing the youth groups throughout (Continued on page 2)