CooperatorNews Chicagoland EXPO 2021
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Expo 2021                           CHICAGO.COOPERATORNEWS.COM  CHICAGOLAND  THE CONDO, HOA & CO-OP RESOURCE  COOPERATORNEWS  Receiverships and   Conservatorships 101  Understanding a Powerful   Legal Tool  BY A. J. SIDRANSKY  continued on page 25  205 Lexington Avenue, NY, NY 10016 • CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED  continued on page 24  New Green Tech for the   Multifamily Sector  Shiny, Tiny…& Brainy  BY DARCEY GERSTEIN  continued on page 22  In the beginning … there was light. And all this time later, we are finally harness-  ing light’s energy to power our cities, our buildings, and our everyday devices—mostly   because all of the energy sources we’ve used until now emit incalculable amounts of   carbon and other dangerous particles into the atmosphere, causing what is now widely   understood to be a global climate catastrophe.   While the light was good, it was also expensive. Capturing energy from the sun   requires acres and acres of enormous photovoltaic panels. Storage and distribution of   that energy requires yet another set of costly infrastructure. And scaling and applying   this technology to an off-the-grid cabin in the woods is much different from getting it   to power an 80-story high-rise in a large city.   But over the last few decades—and particularly over the last few years, as we’ve   reached our climate reckoning in the wake of disasters of near-biblical proportions—  the technology and components for making and providing non-fossil-burning power   are becoming cheaper, smarter, and more widely available.    The Solar Scale  Experts in the field of clean energy contend that the last 20 years have seen a huge   reduction in the cost of manufacturing and installing photovol-  taic modules. One of these experts is Frank van Mierlo, CEO   of 1366 Technologies Inc., a company based in Bedford, Mas-  sachusetts, that is at the forefront of solar technology develop-  ment and production. In a recent podcast called “The Science   of Solar,” Mierlo states that the first solar technology was devel-  oped in 1954 by Bell Labs. At that time, a solar panel’s cost per   kilowatt-hour was about $10. Today, he says, it’s about 4¢ to 5¢.   When a property or individual finds   itself or himself in a situation that   threatens the continued economic vi-  ability of the asset or estate our laws pro-  vide a supervised level of assistance from   qualified third parties.  In the case of real   property that assistance is known as   re-  ceivership.    In the case of an individual   it is known as   conservatorship.    In both   cases the goal is to stabilize and preserve   the value of real property and/or per-  sonal estate.  What is a Receivership and   When is it Used?  Kris Kasten, an attorney specializing   in condominium and community law   and principal of Altus Legal in Chicago,   says, “In Illinois, a receivership is a ju-  dicial process pursuant to which a per-  son  is  appointed  by  a  court  to  manage   the real estate of another. Receiverships   are used in a variety of circumstances.    Those circumstances include but are   not limited to: (1) managing, conserv-  ing, or operating mortgaged real estate   in a mortgage foreclosure action; (2)   completing unfinished construction of   buildings; (3) winding up dissolved cor-  porations, partnerships, or limited liabil-  ity companies; (4) remedying violations   of municipal or state building codes; (5)   operating,  managing, and  conserving  a   distressed condominium property; and   New Kids   on the Board  First-Person Advice for   Newly Elected Directors  BY DARCEY GERSTEIN  Across the country, one of the biggest   challenges  to governing  co-ops, condo-  miniums, and homeowners associations   is fi nding new members who are will-  ing to volunteer their time and energy   to serve on their community’s board of   directors. In addition to a time commit-  ment that can seem onerous to those   whose lives are already packed with work,   families, hobbies, households, and more,   board service comes with myriad tasks,   responsibilities, and politicking. Aft er all,   who would want to take an unpaid gig   that potentially makes you the recipient   of all your neighbors’ grievances?   Oh, right—I did. Seven years ago, in an   eff ort to help a small cohort of relatively   new shareholders redirect a long pattern   of what we saw as dysfunctionality, fi nan-  cial  mismanagement, and abdication  of   fi duciary duty among previous boards, I   ran for a seat on the board of the co-op   where I live in Lower Manhattan, New   York. In a 1,700-unit community where   around half of the shareholders acquired   their units during the decades when the   corporation operated under Title I of the   Federal Housing Act of 1949 (inelegantly   titled “Slum Clearance and Community   Development and Redevelopment”), get-  ting new members elected was not an   easy feat. It entailed weeks of campaign-  ing, printing and distributing fl iers about   my qualifi cation and intentions, and even   positioning myself in the lobbies with my   two toddlers and free lemonade.   Th  is is my story about becoming a   New Kid on the Board that I hope will of-  fer some advice and resources that might   be useful to others who are new to their   own co-op, condo, or HOA board; those   who are considering board service; or   CHICAGOLAND’S BIGGEST & BEST   CO-OP, CONDO & APT EXPO!  NAVY PIER — THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 10-4:30  FREE REGISTRATION: ILEXPO.COM  LIVE AND IN PERSON


































































































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