Father’s Day Juneteenth Festival Is A Hit!

By MaryaM HuBBard, CoMMunity relations CoMMittee CHair

June 18, 2023, what a day to remember!! The Community Relations Committee partnered with organizers of Family of Five Foundation, an organization that was created to bring all 5 circles and the family aspect back to Rochdale. Family of Five was started by a group of young men who were born, raised, and even worked in Rochdale, and over the years realized what they knew of Rochdale Village and how family oriented it was while they were growing had since left the community. Countless years ago, they came together and started celebrating Father’s Day with an annual BBQ at the home of a past shareholder that, beacause of growth, later moved to Valley Stream Park in Long Island. Due to Covid-19, like everything else, the BBQ’s were halted with plans to get right back to it once the Covid-19 stopped controlling everyone’s lives. It has always been my dream to host a Juneteenth event here in Rochdale. Although Family of Five actually did a Juneteenth event in 2022, not many of the community members were aware it taking place right in the Rochdale City Park on the basketball courts. As the Community Relations Chairperson, I felt it was a no brainer to partner with Family of Five and make it a big deal. After all, we had Father’s Day to celebrate, and Juneteenth. It’s not always an easy feat when executing these visions but in the end, I always realize just how important it is for me to stay the course.

The collaboration proved to be just that: a family affair that left shareholders requesting more time to just sit out and enjoy the day of peace, love and family. I was able to reach out to members of the community who were then able to grace us with their talent. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank long time shareholder Professor Elizabeth Borden Anderson, founder of African Trends, for endowing us with her background in African History. Shareholder Lisa Raye, founder of Angels Hearts, for endowing the crowd with a poetic flow, and her very talented brother Anthony who beat the cloth off of his drum. Shareholder Sunshine, for recommending the really awesome band oh, what a treat that was! Thank you to the young man that played the trumpet. The music that played throughout the rest of the event was by our very own Queens DJ, Gold Fingers. Thank you to all the Rochdale Village Shareholders that registered to vend with us so that our dollars were able to stay right here in our community. To the hardest working committee members, I know it’s not always easy serving in the public eye, but without you the Community Relations committee would not be able to do all that we do to help the social aspect of the community thrive. We thank all of the shareholders and non-shareholders that didn’t hesitate to jump in to help wherever was needed. Last but not least to the best Grill Master in Rochdale Village, I cannot thank you enough for bringing you giant grill and all the supplies needed to help feed our community some good ole barbeque food.

Initiatives On The Horizon

I have not been perturbed in my goal of continuing the forward momentum of Rochdale Village despite recent developments. Overall, we are doing “ok” financially. This is considering the rise in inflation and labor costs. While we are able to keep up with current bills, the longer-term plan of taking care of Pandemic related arrears will begin to take hold early next year. The second stage of the carrying charge increase of 3.6%, set to be implemented in February of 2024, will further stabilize our financial position. While increases are unpleasant our 2-stage 7.3% increase is more reasonable as compared to some double digit increases our sister Mitchell Lama communities are experiencing. The biggest financial boon being the receipt of the ERTC (“Employee Retention Tax Credit”) by which Rochdale netted $6.1 million bringing our reserves up to approximately $7.6 million.

The maintenance team has been responsive, by and large, to issues reported to the newer Facebook group platform. Please remember regarding Facebook, we encourage posts but please remember to call your group manager for faster results. I review the public safety walkdown reports daily and have seen a marked improvement in the cleanliness of the stairwells. If any shareholder is having issues in your apartment or in the public areas, please reach out to your group manager’s office, central maintenance or the management

- by Marion Scott

- by Jay Williams

General Manager’s Monthly Report for June 2023

office for assistance.

Public Safety has hired over 15 new officers since the year started, pushing us to 79 active officers. This is very close to our pre-COVID staffing levels with our ultimate staffing goal being 100. We have adjusted the starting salary to $23 per hour. This, with the existing benefits and medical package, has enabled us to compete with nearby sites for qualified officers.

The bottom line is that Rochdale is run well. Affirmations of this come in the way of visiting Board members from other Mitchell Lama’s that see our vast well-kept grounds, clean buildings and our departmental processes. As well as its run we also know that it is not perfect. We are aware of the shortfalls that residents see because we see them too. There is a constant dialogue between the Management and our department heads to maintain the processes that work and to tweak the ones that don’t. We implore residents to vocalize suggested needs and wants to the Board and to us. In this way we can streamline service in lockstep with the needs of the community.

Residents Can Help Too

While Rochdale Village Inc. has hired professionals to oversee the day-to-day operation, managing the budget being a part of that, it has been our experience that when cooperators are a part of the process, it instills pride of ownership and great communities become greater. When you look at your financial statements, you will notice that our largest expenses are related to running the Power Plant and Maintenance. This is primarily due to the cost of utilities and an aging infrastructure requiring more care and attention. In addition, we must be mindful that unforeseen circumstances such as snowstorms and gas shutdowns cost us millions of dollars when they occur. While we are not suggesting that residents assist in shoveling snow from the grounds or plumbing repairs there are many ways that you can help.

Though it may seem insignificant, something as simple as turning out lights when not in use can have a major effect on reducing loads. We understand that many want to come home to a comfy apartment after a long day’s work, however, leaving convectors running all day (winter or summer) increases energy consumption. Reporting a runny toilet timely can minimize the impact to our water bill and alert our maintenance staff to underlying issues likes pipe leaks, which has the added ramification of damaging property. Cooperators can assist in or influence our budget in numerous ways. None more important than paying carrying charges on time. Although utility and maintenance costs are incorporated in your monthly charges, this does not make them less real. We will continue to develop strategies to remain fiscally responsible; we only ask that you consider playing a role in this community’s success.