Page 4 - NJ Cooperator Summer 2020

4 THE NEW JERSEY COOPERATOR —SUMMER 2020 NJCOOPERATOR.COM Industry Pulse Events The Cooperator Introduces FREE Webinars —a New Resource for Boards and Managers at njcooperator.com/events The Cooperator, a Yale Robbins publica- tion, has been a resource for the boards, man- agers, and residents of condos, HOAs, and co-ops for nearly two decades, both in print and online - and we are pleased to announce a new addition to our toolkit. Yale Robbins Productions has launched CooperatorEvents, a new series of FREE educational ‘town-hall’ style webinars, sponsored by leaders in the multifamily industry and focusing on issues and challenges facing today’s boards. We have assembled expert panels on everything from legal questions around the COVID-19 pandemic to optimizing your insurance cov- erage to disinfecting your community’s pool. Registration and attendance is FREE to all - just visit njcooperator.com/events, choose the webinar you’d like to attend, and sign up. It’s that simple. You’ll get an email link and reminders for the event, and will have the opportunity to submit questions for the pan- elists before AND during the webinar itself. Past events are archived and available on-de- mand on njcooperator.com/events. Serving on your board is a big job, and a big respon- sibility, but sound, timely advice from indus- try veterans can help lighten the load and make your building or association run more smoothly. We’re committed to helping you achieve that, and look forward to ‘seeing’ you at an upcoming webinar! Labor Condo Workers Strike in Jersey City The James Monroe Condominium in the Newport area of Jersey City has been in the local news lately over a bargaining dispute involving its building service workers. The Hudson County View , along with websites nj.com and tapintojerseycity.net, reported on a walk-out by laborers at the high-rise, located at 45 River Drive South, at the end of April. Eleven porters, handymen, and concierges employed at the building walked off the job to protest what they say is the condo board’s refusal to bargain in good faith. According to the outlets, the labor con- tract between the employees—13 members of the New York-based property services union 32BJ SEIU—and the condo expired on December 31, 2019. As negotiations pro- ceeded coincident with the onset of the coro- navirus crisis, the workers say that as a show of good will, they agreed to extend the terms of the expired contract until the crisis sub- sided. However, as the Hudson County View reports, the condo board instead wants to slash wages as well as eliminate pensions and overtime. The View adds that the condo board has filed a claim with the National Labor Relations Board alleging that the union is the one that is bargaining in bad faith. Concierge Billy Valdez, who has worked at the James Monroe for 30 years and par- ticipates on the bargaining committee for the workers, was quoted by the outlet as saying, “They want to cut our pay by $4 per hour. This has been the same board for the past few years, and this is the first time we’ve had to endure this. It’s like he just flipped the switch. He never offered great contracts before, but we can’t go along with the elimi- nation of overtime and our pensions.” Tapintojerseycity.net reported that the ensuing strike lasted 24 hours. Using appro- priate social distancing measures, striking workers held signs spelling out “SHAME ON YOU JAMES MONROE CONDO BOARD” across the street from the 443-unit building, visible to some of the residents as they shelter in their homes. With support from SEIU 32BJ vice presi- dent and New Jersey director Kevin Brown, Ward E Councilman James Solomon, and a significant proportion of the James Monroe Condo residents themselves, the strikers resumed work to provide services deemed essential to the building and its occupants. Valdez is quoted by TapInto as saying, “We understand that, as essential workers, the residents of the building need us to keep them safe and keep everyday life going.” Councilman Solomon echoed that senti- ment in a statement, saying that “The work- ers at the James Monroe Condo are on the front lines. I stand with them as they fight against a condo board that seeks cuts to their wages in the midst of this pandemic.” Brown concurred, adding, “…The board’s attempts to make substantial cuts to wages and other important job benefits even as the COVID-19 crisis goes on is nothing short of revolting. Many residents, including those who have already shown their support for the workers, recognize their value much more clearly than the board does.” Follow-up reporting by nj.com reveals that an anonymous group of residents has appealed to their neighbors in a let- ter supporting the workers saying, in part, “\\\[A\\\]t the start of the global epidemic our staff contacted the Union requesting that contract negotiations should be placed on a back burner for the duration of the crisis so that they could focus on providing all neces- sary services to the residents of this building. Kindly note that our staff has been here for us during snowstorms, hurricanes, floods and now a global pandemic. They have left their own families to protect ours.” Meanwhile, according to nj.com, James Monroe Condominium Association President Padman Palani and Vice President Peter Sonza would neither confirm nor deny details of the contract proposal, saying that they are waiting to speak to their lawyer before speaking further out of fear of jeop- ardizing negotiations, which are ongoing. Sonza says that the union is employing a common tactic of getting residents and the press involved to put pressure on the board. He claims that workers in the building are the highest paid luxury condo staff in Jersey City, but did not provide specifics on wages. Law & Legislation Hoboken High-Rise Moves Forward after Protracted Court Battle The New Jersey Supreme Court has reject- ed an attempt by the City of Hoboken to halt plans to construct two residential high-rises on a Hudson River pier, reports New Jersey Law Journal. The city sought retroactive application of a pair of ordinances that would prohibit residential use of piers, but the court rejected such application. Because the ordinances concern zoning, says the Law Journal , they are subject to Municipal Land Use Law (MLUL) provisions barring retroactive appli- cation of zoning changes within two years of the issuance of final approval. The court also rejected a claim by the city that there is a public health and safety excep- tion to the part of the MLUL that grants the two-year exemption from zoning changes after a project is approved. The Law Journal cites the court ruling that says that the plain language of the statute, as well as relevant case law, provides no way around the two- year exemption from zoning changes after a final approval is granted. The Law Journal contends that this recent ruling is “the latest development in a bitter and protracted litigation battle” between Hoboken and Shipyard Associates—the developer that plans to build two 11-story buildings on the pier. Back in 1997, according to the Law Journal , the city approved plans for con- struction of tennis courts and a tennis pavil- ion within a wider area that would include several luxury high-rise buildings, parking garages, commercial buildings, and a water- front promenade. When Shipyard Associates sought permission to construct two addi- tional buildings in the place of the tennis facilities in 2011, Hoboken expressed oppo- sition to the plan. After Hoboken’s planning board neglect- ed to hold a hearing when it denied the appli- cation for the project in July 2012, Shipyard filed its own suit seeking automatic approval of its application under the MLUL. A judge granted the request; Hoboken appealed. The Appellate Division affirmed the award of automatic approval, and the Supreme Court declined to hear Hoboken’s appeal—giving Shipyard the green light to proceed. While Shipyard’s suit was pending in 2013, Hoboken passed the ordinances pro- hibiting residential uses on piers. Following the project’s approval in court, Shipyard brought an action challenging the ordi- nances’ applicability, says the Law Journal . The trial court and Appellate Division agreed with Shipyard. According to a statement by Shipyard attorney Kevin Coakley, of Connell Foley in Roseland, “We were pleased with the Supreme Court’s clear and thorough opin- ion that upholds the protections for vested rights that were created by the Legislature. This important decision concludes a series of lawsuits and affirms the principle that zon- ing requirements cannot be retroactively changed to undo final land use approvals. We look forward to working with the City as we move forward.” Industry News Associa Offers COVID-19 and Other Education to NJ Associations In a news release, Associa Community Management Corporation of New Jersey (CMC NJ) announces expansion of its edu- cational initiatives for boards to help them navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. The release states that Associa CMC NJ president Michael Pesce recently par- ticipated as a panelist in a webinar titled “Community Associations and COVID-19— What You Need to Know,” presented by the Institute for Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) of the New Jersey Bar Association. As one of five panelists, Pesce discussed priori- ties, practices, and pitfalls of managing com- munities during the COVID-19 health crisis, including: • Closing common facilities in commu- nity associations • Enhanced cleaning and sanitizing of common areas • Routine maintenance of common prop- erty and capital improvement projects • Resolution of disputes without the abil- ity to meet in person • Conducting association meetings remotely The release also notes three CMC NJ contributions to the May 2020 issue of Community Trends , a monthly educational publication of the New Jersey Community Associations Institute (CAI). In one arti- cle, community association manager Terry Wagner writes about best practices for tran- sitioning between managers. In another article, Nicole Martone, community direc- tor and a member of the CAI-New Jersey Editorial Committee, discusses methods for successful community management dur- ing the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, Pesce contributed to the issue’s legislative update column, summarizing and offering practical guidance on recent legislative changes to the cyclical inspections performed by the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA). Speaking about these contributions, Pesce says, “Associa Community Management Corporation of New Jersey has always been committed to educating association boards to manage their communities successfully. During the pandemic, it is even more cru- cial that we are offering boards the tools they need to make informed decisions and ask the tough questions. Through each of these opportunities, we were able to continue that mission, providing expert guidance to our clients and others in the industry.” To learn more, visit www.associaonline. com. PULSE continued on page 19