WHAT’S IN STORE SUMMER 2017
UPCOMING EVENTS Annual Members Conference October 16-17, 2017 Westchester Marriott Hotel Tarrytown, New York
Annual Real Estate & Investment Forum January 9th, 2018 Union League Club New York City, New York
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
LETTER FROM THE CEO
Frank Crivello Chairman, Storage Deluxe
……….and I love New York!!! For the past few months I have had the pleasure of traveling throughout our great state. From Manhattan to Catskill to Albany and Geneva, I have truly seen that New York is a beautiful place to live and work.
Peter Ferraro, Sr. CEO, NYSSA Jon Dario Vice Chairman
MISSION STATEMENT NYSSA is a not-for-profit corporation formed in 1982. The purpose of the Association is to provide a powerful network of information and a wealth of experience to those who are in or wish to enter the self-storage industry. As a member, you benefit from the advice and experience of industry insiders and other self-storage operators throughout New York State. The primary aim of NYSSA is to give each owner/ operator a support system for dealing with lien law and auction questions, building code issues, property tax strategies, manager education and industry visibility. Our goal is to link the entire industry in New York State, to act as legislative watchdog and to be the VOICE of the self-storage industry in the Empire State!
Kelley Redl-Hardisty Guardian Self Storage
Tom Garden Secretary, Syrasoft Management Software Barry Feinman Treasurer, Spot On Self Storage Joshua Goldman Bargold Storage
What’s In Store is produced by the New York Self Storage Association (NYSSA) as a service to its members and the self storage industry. It is distributed by NYSSA on a quarterly basis. We welcome all comments and articles of interest. You may contact us through our email or website.
Annual Members Conference October 16-17, 2017 Westchester Marriott Hotel Tarrytown, New York
Annual Real Estate & Investment Forum January 9th, 2018 Union League Club New York City, New York
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This spring, the Department of City Planning held a hearing on the NYC IBZ proposal where the NYSSA submitted testimony alongside the national Self Storage Association. As you know, this is the zoning proposal announced by the City of New York to restrict self-storage development within the 21 Industrial Business Zones (IBZs) across the city. Self-storage facilities are a vital resource for small businesses and other non-residential users. This selfstorage restriction will make storage less available and more expensive, thereby hurting our small businesses, non-profit organizations and consumers. The NYSSA is committed to taking the right steps at the right times to achieve the best possible result for the industry.
David Schwartz Executive Director, Gotham Government Relations & Communications
WHAT’S IN STORE NEWSLETTERS
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The New York Self Storage Association and I have been busy dealing with many issues these last few months.
Nick Malagisi Sperry Van Ness
The NYSSA and the SSA also had several successful “lobbying days” at our state legislature in Albany with the help of Gotham Government Relations, where we are fighting for electronic verified mailing and reasonable late fee charges. As of this writing, both of these legislations are moving along the NYS Senate and Assembly, and we will continue to update you on any official changes. Thank you to the SSA’s Marcus Dunn for joining us in Albany!
Ron Pope ABC Self Storage
On another note, we had two very successful conferences in Albany and Geneva. Our members truly showed us that they are active supporters of the industry!!
Pete Gioiello Storage Post
Our Albany Legal Luncheon was very well attended thanks to the hard work of our Board Members Barry Feinman and Garo Derian. We were joined by two prominent attorneys who spoke to over forty attendees. Due to our Board Members’ hard work and diligence, we were able to make a donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s Northeast New York chapter.
DID YOU RECEIVE YOUR INVOICE?
Last month, NYSSA sent out yearly membership dues to every member. If there are any concerns or if you have not received your invoice, please contact our office immediately!
KEEP IN TOUCH WITH NYSSA
www.nyselfstorage.org • 518.431.1106 Email: admin@nyselfstorage.org Facebook: New York Self Storage Association Twitter: @NY_Self_Storage
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In Geneva, we owe a special thanks to another Board Member Nick Malagisi, who worked for months with Gotham to provide a great program. We had seventy-five guests join us for a full day of programs regarding auctions, insurance and legal issues. Zack Odell from the Finger Lakes Land Trust was our luncheon speaker and the recipient of a $500.00 donation. Both luncheons were very well received and we were able to enlist several new members. Special thanks to Denisse Giron and Reyanna Bhairam for their hard work and professionalism. It is not too early to start thinking about our Annual Fall Conference in Tarrytown. Please prepare to start registration later this summer. Last year’s conference was a huge success. As always, wishing you the best of health, happiness and God Bless !! Peter Ferraro Sr.
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Annual Geneva Luncheon & Seminar at Belhurst Castle The following panel included Richard Witka of Bader Company, Damon Emerson of StorSmart Insurance, and Mario Macaluso of Storage Business Owners Alliance on the importance of including insurance in every occupancy agreement. One point was made abundantly clear to the attendees: Tenant insurance protects everyone! After lunch, David Schwartz of Gotham Government Relations gave a political update to the firm’s efforts up in Albany. For a full recap of the Association’s suggestions to the state Lien Law, please check out Gotham’s Legislative Update article. Lastly, Patrick Quigley, Esq. from Harter Secrest & Emery took legal questions from the audience.
The Association held our annual Geneva Luncheon on Thursday, June 8th at the Belhurst Castle with a great turnout! Surrounded by the verdant beauty of Upstate New York’s Finger Lakes wine region and perched beside Seneca Lake, our luncheon at the Belhurst Castle offered our attendees the perfect mix of a cozy getaway and a great educational experience. Owners, operators, vendors and speakers were among the 72 attendees who gathered to discuss relevant topics and issues regarding self-storage. The program began with an introduction by Peter Ferraro, CEO, who thanked our location hosts, Gotham Government Relations, and, most importantly, our sponsors for helping to organize and support the event.
The Association’s Board of Directors is happy to say that we were able to make another donation to a worthy cause during the event. During lunch, guests were introduced to Zach Odell of the Finger Lakes Trust Fund, a nonprofit organization founded to protect forests, farmlands, gorges, and shorelines in the Finger Lakes region of New York. Peter Ferraro presented the Trust Fund with a generous donation on behalf of the Association. A special note of thanks to our dedicated sponsors: Flexospan Steel Building, Trachte Building Systems, SVN Commercial Realty, Argus Self Storage Sales Network, Monolith Solar, StorageStuff.Bid, and Harter Secrest & Emery.
The day began discussing both live and online auctions with Cheli Rosa of StorageStuff.Bid, Jamie Pendt of EPS Auctions, Todd Jantzi of Bontraga Auctions, and Russ Scherrer of Auctions International. The panel was moderated by Charlie Fritts from Storage Investment Management Inc. Each side made compelling arguments for their services: both offer a complete marketing campaign and guide clients through correct lien sales by following the state law. However, live auctioneers may have convinced a few attendees by showcasing their famous, fast-talking chants right there in the room!
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This is a Thank You Note the Association received from the Finger Lakes Land Trust after our event in Geneva. We are happy and proud to support great organizations such as this one. Dear Mr. Ferraro, Thank you for your generous donation of $500.00 to the Finger Lakes Land Trust, given at the NYSSA’S Annual Geneva Luncheon and Seminar on June 8th. It was a pleasure getting to know you and all of your colleagues over lunch at Belhurst Castle. Your support will help us continue conserving forever the lands and waters of the Finger Lakes region, ensuring scenic vistas, local foods, clean water, and wild places for everyone. Across our beautiful 12-county region, the Land Trust is actively pursuing new conservation projects and carefully stewarding the lands we’ve already protected. The Land Trust recently partnered with the Department of Environmental Conservation and the Finger Lakes Trails Conference to protect one mile of the Finger Lakes Trail and 144-acres adjoining the Danby State Forest, just outside Ithaca. In a rapidly developing area of Canandaigua, we protected Catalpa Farm with a conservation easement that will forever keep 596-acres of prime farmland in agriculture. Learn more about these and other projects at fllt.org. The Land Trust hopes to see you out on the trail this summer! To help you find a new adventure, the Land Trust has launched Go Finger Lakes, a new web site offered as a free public service to help residents and visitors discover the best locations in the region for outdoor recreation. I encourage you to visit the site at gofingerlakes.org where you will find over 55 mapped locations featuring 650 miles of trails- all ready for exploring! Please free to contact me directly at zackodell@fllt.org or (585) 576-1017 to discuss the Land Trust’s conservation work throughout the region. Sincerely, Zachary Odell Director of Land Protection PS - Thank you for the wonderful lunch and insightful conversation.
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Langan is a Great Place to Work!
“AND I
NEW YORK!”
Langan, a new member of the Association and a premier provider of integrated land development engineering and environmental consulting services, ranked in the Top 20 of Zweig Group’s “Best Firms to Work For” in the multi-discipline and civil engineering categories. The Best Firms to Work For award recognizes the top architecture, structural engineering, civil engineering, environmental, geotechincal engineering, landscape architecture/planning, and multidiscipline firms in the US and Canada based on their workplace practices, employee benefits, employee retention rates, and much more. The winners will be celebrated at the Hot Firm and A/E Industry Awards Conference held at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel in Seattle, Washington on September 21-22, 2017.
NEW YORK SELF STORAGE ASSOCIATION PRESENTS THE
2017 ANNUAL FALL MEMBERS CONFERENCE OCTOBER 16 - 17, 2017
Westchester Marriott 670 White Plains Rd, Tarrytown, NY 10591 NYSSA Member Admission: $200 • Non-Member Admission: $250
The
Choice in
New York State
Argus Brokers have the nation’s most extensive national marketing program, local expertise and a proven track record of over $2 Billion in self-storage transactions.
Cocktail Reception evening of October 16: 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Full Day Forum October 17, starting at 9:00am
Management Skills, Public Relations, and Legal Sessions Special Announcements will be made – Don’t miss out!
Please visit nyselfstorage.org to register, purchase sponsorships, and reserve your exhibit table! Hotel Rooms Available, please call: 914.631.2200 For more information: admin@nyselfstorage.org • 518.431.1106 6
Westmoreland, NY SOLD!
West Hurley, NY SOLD!
Contact Guy today to discuss your self-storage investment goals! Guy Blake, CCIM Pyramid Brokerage Company 845-522-5900 gblake@pyramidbrokerage.com
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What’s Happening at Your Facility? Did you recently undergo renovations? Did you change the name of your storage facility? Did your staff volunteer at a local community organization? The staff at NYSSA loves to hear news about your facility so that we can share it with our community! Tell us how your year is going! Feel free to send us pictures, changes in management, or any stories you'd like to share with us -we want to share the good news! All matters can be sent directly to admin@nyselfstorage.org. We look forward to hearing from you!
Design & Development Mistakes to Avoid By Steve Hajewski A good developer makes self-storage construction look easy. But the reality is that it’s not that simple. A lot of planning and preparation goes into getting the details right. Here is a list of some of the most common mistakes that we see developers making on a daily basis. Failing to consult the right professionals at the right time Before you can develop a plan, you need to identify a market with a need for storage, find a buildable parcel, and identify the buildable area on that parcel. After that, you’ll need to invest in the services of a local civil engineer (and talk to the city engineer) to determine the specific constraints of your land. Many new developers skip this preparation and call a building supplier and ask where they should build, ask for plans to be drawn on land they don’t own, or ask for a building price without knowing what they plan to build. This isn’t a good use of anyone’s time. Don’t worry about unit mix early in the process – ask your building company for a ballpark price per square foot and worry about the design later. Not buying the right land. Deciding where to build is quite possibly the most important of all decisions that you’ll make in this
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process. If you spend too much, you’ll have a hard time breaking even. Doing your homework up front will help guide you to what size parcel you should be looking for. Of the clients that I have seen struggle in this business, most of them either overbuilt in a first phase, or built too far away from their target client base. Making assumptions Did you assume you can build the project without sprinklers or firewalls? Did you assume no pond was needed? Contact the government bodies that will approve and inspect your project early in your planning process to determine the restrictions you’ll face. Get answers in writing. Fire and stormwater regulations have changed in recent years. In one example, a developer neglected to consult their local fire marshal and insisted that their state’s requirement for firewalls between each unit did not apply to the project. Now, the owner is facing consequences with the local fire marshal. Being “old school” Old school motorcycles are cool. Old school selfstorage facilities are not. Consumers respond well to high tech features and security in this industry. Plan up front to install wiring and electric service to support
NEW YORK SELF STORAGE ASSOCIATION
gates, cameras, and a kiosk on your site. If you cannot afford the bells and whistles on your first phase, devise a layout that’ll make it possible later. Offices, parking, and kiosks should be laid out to be accessible from outside of gated areas. Budget for software, a good web site, and plan to accept credit cards. Establishing a proper accounting system and point of sale software from the day you open will simplify running the business. Accepting credit cards will give you the edge over facilities that don’t, and the benefit of longer rentals with an autopay system outweighs the fees associated with accepting credit cards.
Top Ranked in Upstate New York
Unrealistic Timelines I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but no three story building that has not yet been designed is going up anywhere in three months. The process of buying land, planning a site, acquiring entitlements and building permits, preparing the site, pouring foundations, and erecting buildings can easily stretch into years. The more complex the project, the more time it will take to design and approve it. The reality is that during the boom that we are currently seeing, most projects will take a little longer to complete.
Harter Secrest & Emery’s Real Estate Practice has been top tier ranked by U.S. News/Best Lawyers since 2011.
With proper planning, developing your facility should go relatively smoothly. Surround yourself with experienced professionals, and listen to their experiences. Go into the project willing to invest in your project’s design stage, because this will ultimately result in the best possible final project. If you build a site and have regrets afterwards, you are in good company (incidentally, “I wish I had built a nicer office” and I wish I had more land” are probably two big ones). But with proper planning, you can minimize your regrets and establish a path for future expansion as the business prospers.
Steve Hajewski is the Marketing Manager for Trachte Building. He has been involved in the self-storage industry since 2005. In addition to his duties at Trachte, he also owns and operates a self-storage business in Wisconsin.
For more information please contact Patrick Quigley, Partner, at 585.231.1164 or pquigley@hselaw.com.
hselaw.com 1600 Bausch & Lomb Place, Rochester, NY 14604
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LC Realty, headed by Linda Cinelli, sells Highland Park Industrial Park & Self Storage
Peekskill, New York: The LC Realty Team, an Affiliate with Argus Self Storage Self Storage Sales Network (ISS Best of Brokers 2016) announced the sale of Highland Park Industrial Park and Highland Self Storage. The sale consisted of two properties on 18 acres. This was a first generation building built in 1986. The construction of the storage and industrial building was built in phases. The income from the industrial was stable, but the self-storage portion had declined and was economically at 31%. The buyers were Peekskill Park Estates DBA Spare Cube. The company saw the potential and, after two years, LC Realty was able to close this sale. Many obstacles caused delays and financial constraints, but the realty team worked with patience. The buyers plan to redevelop the facility and bring new first generation space to the market of Peekskill.
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3 Easy Things to Know
(l-r: Bill Bassett, Michael Murphy, Laura Murphy, and Chris Murphy, Anthony Lifrieri)
Great Things Coming From Mamaroneck Our office loves to hear about all of our members’ successes. Lately, we’ve been hearing great things from the Murphy Brothers, who head Mamaroneck Self Storage. Murphy Brothers Contracting was honored at the 26th Annual BOMA Hall of Honor Awards Dinner as the recipient of The Best of BOMA Westchester County’s Signature Award in the category of “Re-position / Re-purpose Award” for Mamaroneck Self Storage. In a separate ceremony, the self-storage facility also received a Westchester County 2017 Earth Day Award for the facility’s energy-efficient features built into the design. The Westchester IDA had granted a sales tax relief incentive to the project while under construction, enabling the Murphy Brothers to wrap the savings into a more energy-efficient building strategy. The award was presented to Murphy Brothers Contracting by Deputy County Executive Kevin Plunkett, on behalf of County Executive Rob Astorino.
The luxury of a licensed, bonded, and insured auction company combined with the ease and simplicity of online bidding. ? Need a VIN search? We can do it! ? Tenant in bankruptcy? We can help! ? Active military tenant? We can help! Flexible platform! We will bill you any way you like. We will also send you EOM reports in the format that works best for you! We will share our marketing analytics with you, so you know we are working for you!
With all of our lobbying efforts going on at the state capitol, NYSSA thought it be fit to host an education luncheon in the area. Dozens of self-storage operators and managers gathered at the Blu Stone Bistro in Latham where they reviewed auctions, the Lien Law, training managers, ADA regulations, and much more with local prominent attorneys. After introducing themselves to the room, attendees were joined by Peter McDaniel, Esq of Conway & Kirby, PLLC who reviewed notes from the firm’s partner, Andrew Kirby, Esq. Some attendees were quick to jump in to ask questions, which began a lively discussion on changing state regulations. With the help of your generosity, the Association was able to make a donation to the Northeast New York Make-A-Wish Foundation. The Chief Executive Officer, William Trigg, visited the event during lunch to receive a check from NYSSA Board Members Peter Ferraro, Sr. and Barry Feinman.
Murphy Brothers Contracting is owned and operated by brothers and partners, Chris and Sean Murphy. Celebrating their 39th year in the construction business, the company is known throughout Westchester & Fairfield County for building beautifully designed custom homes and picture-perfect whole home renovations, as well as distinctive light commercial projects and, now, award-winning energy-efficient self-storage facilities.
After lunch, Matthew Dillon, Esq. of Carter Conboy shared updates on the Americans with Disabilities Act. Mr. Dillon has been a very active member of the Association for years, and we are very grateful that he was able to join us again. We would like to thank all of our generous sponsors for their support: Bast Hatfield Construction, Kinderhook Bank, Catskill Hudson Bank, Monolith Solar, Syrasoft, and Aurora Insurance!
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Albany Legal Luncheon was a Hit!
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Gotham’s Legislative Update Dear Members, We have been making a lot of buzz and movement about the self-storage industry in Albany! We are excited to say that we’ve made movement on two changes to the state Lien Law by passing two bills in the Senate. Although these are not permanent changes yet, we expect to keep fighting in Albany until it fully passes. When session began in January, we actively lobbied in the New York State Capitol Building, in Albany and fulfilled our game plan with a win! We advocated for two bills for state legislation that positively supports our self-storage industry. As we have shared with all of our members, NYSSA proposed a bill that would amend Section 182 of the Lien law to include e-mail as a means to notify occupants of self-storage facilities. This bill was sponsored by Senator Bill Larkin and passed on the very last day of session! We will continue to meet with Assembly members, including our sponsor Assemblyman Matthew Titone to get it on the Assembly’s agenda. We did not stop here and proposed another amendment to establish late fee standards. Senate Bill 5626 was carried by Senator Pamela Helming, who quickly worked to move it through the Senate. We hope to do the same with our Assembly sponsor, Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages. We would like to thank the Board Members and national Self Storage Association for joining us in Albany. Our group went to the capitol several times with SSA’s Marcus Dunn to fight for our industry together. These bills are not in effect yet, but we look forward to the next session and passing these two bills through all the way! We always encourage you to reach out to us with any insight, questions, or concerns.
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