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Co-op City Times 01/25/2025

Page 1

Vol. 60 No. 4

January 25, 2025

$1.25

Read us online: issuu.com/cctimes • Follow us on social media: IG/X/Threads @coopcitytimes • @coopcitytimes.bsky.social

Water Bill, Vandalism, Riverbay Workforce, Ice on Garages & Insurance Among Topics at Jan. 22nd Gallery Session BY ROZAAN BOONE AND DANIELLE CRUZ

Freezing temperatures did not faze the shareholders who came to the Einstein Center for the January 22nd Open Board meeting where five speakers addressed the Board and Management during the Gallery Session before the Board transitioned to the business portion of the meeting. The first speaker, shareholder Daniel Azizo, asked about Co-op City’s water bill, noting that at the last Board meeting, someone mentioned that the bill was not fully paid and that a loan has to be taken out to pay the water bill. He then

requested an update on if the community’s water bill has been paid; if there is a loan, what the loan terms are, who the loan provider is and if it is a line of credit attached to the mortgage lender? Board President Rod Saunders responded that there may have been a misunderstanding and that Riverbay is current on its water bill. He explained that the confusion may have resulted when the community was given an explanation of the $51M allocation from the State Legislature – $50M for capital expenses and $1M Photo by Danielle Cruz for operating expenses. (Continued on page 2)

Jan. 22 Open Board Meeting held in Einstein Center BY DANIELLE CRUZ

The Riverbay Board of Directors held their first Open Board Meeting of the year at the Einstein Community Center, Rm. 45, on Wednesday, January 22. Before the Board voted on several resolutions, shareholders were able to address the Board and Riverbay Management during the Gallery Session. After the Gallery Session was concluded, the meeting was then called to order by Board President Rod Saunders, who started the meeting by handing the mic over to the Board directors, Riverbay Management team and department directors, allowing each a chance to introduce themselves again to the community.

After the introductions, President Saunders turned the mic over to Riverbay Assistant Executive General Manager Cary Smith III, who presented a summary of the monthly Management Report and provided updates to the community about the ongoing efforts to staff the Public Safety department, the Garage Elevator Modernization Project, the 2-year budget planning process, and the upcoming Income Affidavit seminars being offered to the community. (See Management Report on page 1.) During the Management Report, Mr. Smith shared an update about the recruitment process for the next training class and announced that so far 18 candidates have made it through the pre-employment screening process and were qualified for hire (Continued on page 4)

Be on the Look-out! Starting next Saturday, Feb. 1, the Coop City Times will include a special feature highlighting the directors overseeing each of the Riverbay departments. Each director will briefly describe their department’s responsibilities and how they contribute to the larger mission of service to the Riverbay Corporation and its shareholders. Going forward, each will record a brief video to the shown on the Riverbay Crawler to familiarize shareholders with the staff and what their jobs entail. Stay tuned!

2025 Window Guard Forms Due Feb. 15 The Annual Window Guard form mailed to Co-op City households must be completed and returned by Saturday, February 15, 2025. You are required to fill out and tear off the response card, place the completed card into the pre-paid envelope and drop it in the mail. You can also respond by phone, online or by faxing the completed card back. Please follow the instructions included in the mailing.

Management Report (The following Management Report was presented at the January 22, 2025 Open Board Meeting held in the Einstein Center.) Management Report

Marvin Walton

Executive General Manager Greetings, shareholders of Riverbay Corporation. This Management Report provides updates with the following elements: • Staffing – Public Safety Department • Garage Elevator Modernization • 2-year Budget Planning • Annual Income Affidavits • Convector initiatives Public Safety Staffing Staffing levels in CCPD dropped from (49) forty-nine or 53% to (34) or 37% of the 93 Peace Officer positions budgeted in CCPD. As of today, below is a summary of recruitment efforts for the upcoming Academy: • 23 recruits began the pre-employment screening process in December 2024. • 22 recruits who passed the recent agility testing were scheduled for the psychological assessment; 1 was not approved and conditional offer was withdrawn. • 1 candidate did not successfully complete the pre-employment screening and conditional offer was withdrawn. • 21 (20 new candidates and 1 from previous recruitment) were scheduled for physical assessment with the medical director; 1 candidate withdrew candidacy. (Continued on page 9)

Newly Adopted Local Laws Look to Assess Needs of NORCs BY BRANDON ORTIZ

Two newly adopted New York City Local Laws aim to assess the well-being and organize a plan for seniors citywide. Spearheaded by the New York City Council Committee on Aging, Local Law 1 of 2025 introduces a three-year study on Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCS) and Neighborhood Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (N-NORCS). The goal of the study is to “identify potential NORCs and N-NORCs, assess the needs of older adults, evaluate necessary improvements, and collect data on demographic trends and health outcomes,” according to the legislation. (Continued on page 5)

First Income Affidavit Seminar to be Held Tuesday, Jan. 28 BY ROZAAN BOONE

The first in a series of monthly seminars to review the annual Income Affidavit form and filing options will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 7-8 p.m. in the Dreiser Auditorium, and shareholders can attend either in-person or virtually on Zoom. To attend the seminar virtually, type the following url into your browser: https://

zoom.us/j/92041465788?pwd=obk3ESTlqL4rPr3pnb6bvWTYjyLv6E.1, or use https://bit.ly/4hkkorj, or scan the QR Code at right. This information is also available on the Riverbay Crawler, channel 12 (MATV) and channel 591 (Altice), and flyers posted in your building. The annual Income Affidavit period begins in April and, in preparation, Management will present bi-monthly seminars in February and March. These seminars will

be facilitated by Capstone Strategy Group, the vendor Riverbay contracted to digitize the Income Affidavit form. At each session, Capstone representatives will review the Income Affidavit form including the steps to complete the form, how to return the completed Affidavit, and answer shareholders’ questions. All shareholders, regardless of if they intend to continue filing a paper Income Affidavit or will utilize the newer electronic filing option, are encouraged to attend at least one of the seminars to learn more about the work that is being done to simplify the process. “In the last two years since we launched the pilot electronic filing of the annual Income Affidavit, we have been getting more traction among shareholders and we’re hoping this will be a breakthrough year with (Continued on page 8) more shareholders taking advantage of the


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Co-op City Times 01/25/2025 by Co-op City Times - Issuu