Page 1 - NJ Cooperator Summer 2020

Summer 2020 NJCOOPERATOR.COM sional issues.” Good advice in the simplest of times, but especially so now, with both the stakes and emotions running high. From the IREM Pandemic Guide: “Reopening your property responsibly and safely requires prep- aration, communication, and agility. It also requires coordination and cooperation with your stakeholders, including owners, staff, tenants/residents, and service providers. Consider the following continued on page 12 Whether you’re living in a co-op apart- ment building in Manhattan, a condo on Chicago’s Gold Coast, or a townhouse community or HOA in New Jersey, Reno, or Florida, issues of legality and liability are always a concern for owners, board members, and management. And that’s es- pecially true in these challenging times, as American homeowners in detached single- family units, townhomes, and apartments alike confront a crisis for which the vast majority of us have no prior experience or frame of reference. We all care about and want to help our neighbors get through the pandemic. The question is: how can we do that while staying on the right side of current legal, ethical, and personal health parameters? Liability and HIPAA The law causing the most consternation for multifamily community residents try- ing to cope during this crisis was passed in 1996 with the best of intentions. The Health Insurance Portability and Ac- countability Act—commonly known as HIPAA—makes it illegal to divulge or disseminate the particulars of any indi- vidual’s health information without their prior consent. According to the U.S. De- partment of Health and Human Services (HHS), HIPAA “establish\\\[ed\\\] national standards to protect individuals’ medical records and other personal health infor- mation...The Rule requires appropriate safeguards to protect the privacy of per- sonal health information, and sets limits and conditions on the uses and disclosures that may be made of such information without patient authorization.” While few would argue that keeping people’s personal health information pri- As states and municipalities make moves to reopen their economies after weeks of quarantine torpor, the boards and management of multifamily communities nationwide are contemplating what their own reopenings are going to look like. The board of a smaller, self-managed urban walk-up building obviously has different concerns than the board of a sprawling suburban association with multiple shared amenities and entry points. Many administrators are looking for guidance on how to go about balancing residents’ under- standable desire to resume some semblance of normalcy with concerns about the safety and health of those residents, as well as building staff and other employees. To assist boards and property managers in this formidable task, Chicago-based inter- national professional organization the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) re- leased a 19-page PDF on April 30 titled IREM® Pandemic Guide For Real Estate Managers: Resources for Reopening Your Property. The guide supplements IREM’s other pandemic- related resources (you can access the organization’s full coverage here: irem.org/learning/ coronavirus) and outlines the importance of fundamental concepts like clear communica- tion and patience during the reopening process, and also includes thorough checklists for addressing concerns across a variety of properties and scenarios. Below, you’ll find a selection of sections excerpted from the IREM guide—you can access the complete, printable PDF on IREM’s website. According to the guide’s introduc- tion, boards, managers, and residents alike must keep in mind that “the information in this Guide is not intended to cover every situation. Users should seek advice from a quali- fied professional before applying any information contained in this Guide to their own particular circumstances. Users should always obtain appropriate professional advice on medical, legal, structural, organizational, personal, proprietary, public health, or profes- (Editor’s Note: This article is a reprint from a previous edition of The New Jersey Cooperator. The advice and guidance offered here is sound anytime, but is especially vital given the ongoing pandemic and current in- tense sociopolitical climate. We urge all our readers to look out for themselves, and their neighbors.) Multifamily residential buildings pro- vide both privacy and community. Privacy, because a recluse in a dense urban area can have almost anything delivered to his door and thus never have to leave the sanctuary of his apartment; and community, because a single retiree in an active adult commu- nity in New Jersey can enjoy the company of his or her peers, as well as the benefits of supportive services and social activities. Population density is what makes co-ops, HOAs and condos ideal living spaces for anyone—including, and perhaps especially, the most vulnerable residents. Whether we’re talking day-to-day safety or emergency planning, most buildings and HOAs have something on the books to ad- dress both standard operating procedures and things like alerts and evacuations. And that’s great if you’re a relatively young, able-bodied resident — but what if you, or a loved one or neighbor, are elderly, or live with a mental or physical handicap, or are a kid with working parents who takes care of younger siblings? Who looks out for the safety of these folks, and makes sure they’re accounted for should a fire, power outage, or other emergency arise? How can boards, managing agents, and residents promote the safety and security of the more vulnera- ble members of their community, both day- to-day and in emergency situations? What happens during a major weather event? Or an electrical blackout, when power goes off for 24 hours or more? First, let’s examine who the “vulnerable residents” really are. According to Allan B. Fraser, senior building code specialist at the National Fire Protection Association, generally speaking, there are five categories of disability: lack of mobility, impaired vi- sion, deafness or impaired hearing, speech disorders or inabilities, and cognitive dis- Reopening Your Community Tips and Advice from IREM BY COOPER SMITH Helping Out in the Age of Coronavirus Lending a Hand Without Overreaching BY A.J. SIDRANSKY Vulnerable Residents Safety for All BY GREG OLEAR 205 Lexington Avenue, NY, NY 10016 • CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED continued on page 15 continued on page 13