Page 11 - CooperatorNews Chicagoland Spring 2021

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COOPERATORNEWS CHICAGOLAND —
SPRING 2021
11
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on the environmental shi s brought about
by climate change and other factors is also
a smart move. David Mendelson and An-
namaria Morales of QG Landscape based in
New York tell
CooperatorNews
that in new
developments, builders and designers are
planning outdoor space that can remain open
further through the seasons. ey are ac-
counting for not only climate change, but the
changes currently taking place as a result of
the coronavirus pandemic. “Outdoor spaces
have always been a sought-a er commodity,”
says Morales. “Now with COVID, everyone
wants to social distance, and they want to be
outside. … We have to adapt to the new nor-
mal.”
Martin Rosen of the O ce of Planning
and Sustainable Communities at the New Jer-
sey Department of Environmental Protection
(NJDEP) reinforces the bene ts of a holistic
approach to landscape design and mainte-
nance. He says, “As land itself becomes scarce
and ever more precious, outdoor spaces need
to be designed to deliver value in as many
ways as possible; i.e., increasing land values,
rewarding the senses, promoting environ-
mental quality, and enhancing mobility. Sus-
tainable landscapes incorporate and balance
the human desire for beautiful and functional
landscapes with the imperative to preserve
valuable resources.” Looking at every aspect
of a development site—its topography and
layout, natural and arti cial lighting, hard-
scape and so scape, vegetation, irrigation,
and intended or potential uses—can create
a landscape that is sustainable both now and
for years to come.
It’s Easy Being Green
Contrary to the famous assertion of Ker-
mit the Frog, being green is easy—and this
goes for any multifamily property. Even small
and inexpensive changes to the way an asso-
ciation or corporation plans and maintains its
outdoor spaces can have major implications
for the value of the property, the health of the
earth and its inhabitants, and the communi-
ty’s bottom line. Understanding the interrela-
tionship among the three greens—plantings,
money, and sustainability—will help any co-
op, condo, or HOA achieve a beautiful land-
scape that is pleasing and useful to residents,
friendly and bene cial to the planet, and a
long-term value proposition for today’s chal-
lenging times.
■
Darcey Gerstein is Associate Editor and
Sta Writer for CooperatorNews.
protocols you opted out of learning about.
You Can’t Always Get What You Want
Committing to living in a multifam-
ily community means ceding some control
over your home to the common good. Many
shareholders and unit owners react negatively
to interference in their decisions and choices,
but this is a fact of life, especially in co-ops,
where boards have approval rights over al-
most everything—particularly if it involves
any kind of alteration work. In a single-family
home, you can add a whole oor if you want
to; in a co-op, it’s not so easy.
“Unit owners and shareholders should
want
their buildings to have procedures for
alterations,” says Schechter, “because a failure
to carefully review proposed plans for an in-
tended renovation can have dangerous con-
sequences. In addition to an alteration appli-
cation or agreement, the shareholder or unit
owner should also submit a description of the
proposed alteration and architectural plan,
if necessary. ese plans should then be ap-
proved by the building’s architect or engineer
before the work is allowed to commence.”
Shapiro concurs with Schechter’s observa-
tions. “It happens all the time,” she says, “the
‘rules don’t apply to
me
’ attitude. It happens
in particular when unit owners interact with
managers; ‘You can’t tell me what to do, I pay
your salary.’ Unit owners may even go out-
side and try to intervene with vendors like
gardeners, pavers, etc. We’ve known of ven-
dors walking o the job because of interfer-
ence from owners. It’s a real problem in many
communities.”
In the nal analysis, both condo unit own-
ers and co-op shareholders are well advised to
learn how their communities work. Home-
ownership may be the American Dream, but
it’s best not to turn it into your own personal
nightmare through a lack of understanding
of how your community works and how it af-
fects you.
■
A J Sidransky is a sta writer/reporter for
CooperatorNews, and a published novelist.
A LOOK...
continued from page 9
PLANTS...
continued from page 10
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The 3 R’s of Pavement Rehabilitation
G2 2020 Pavement Engineering.indd 1
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