Board President Issues Critical Reminders to Shareholders Amid
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Vol. 55 No. 12 Saturday, March 21, 2020 $1.25 Riverbay cancels all meetings in Board president issues critical centers, encourages social distancing reminders to shareholders among shareholders and staff amid COVID-19 crisis COVID-19 begins to hit closer to home BY ROZAAN BOONE President’s Message In response to the rapid and Linda Berk widening spread of the coron- President avirus (COVID-19) pandemic in New York, Riverbay Management this week took additional steps to Dear fellow shareholders, help prevent the virus from spread- We are going through very difficult and concerning ing among residents and the work times with the threat of COVID-19 that has impacted force tasked with providing essen- every one of our lives. As the largest NORC (Naturally tial services to the community. Occurring Retirement Community) in the country, we must do all that we With guidance from health of- can to ensure that we protect our senior population. Management has made ficials at the federal and local lev- thoughtful and strategic plans to modify operations to keep our seniors and els as well as the governor’s and all shareholders safe and protected from the spread of this health threat. mayor’s offices to promote social Riverbay’s Safety Department handed out When I reached out to Management to express my concerns and those of distancing and avoid gatherings more than 560 bottles of hand sanitizer to Board directors, Management had already met, brainstormed and developed staff members this week to help prevent the first of 500 people and more, then spread of COVID-19. In photo above (L-R), a strategic plan that has unfolded as the risk of coronavirus has risen. Initially, further limited to 50 or more, team members Kellie Lewis, Anthony Olivieri they installed touch-free anti-bacterial hand wash in all public meeting rooms, Riverbay cancelled all room and Veronica Rosado assist Safety Director stepped up cleaning and sterilization of public spaces, included gloves and Anthony Barzelatto to fill and label bottles. (Continued on page 3) Photo by Rozaan Boone (Continued on page 2) URGENT – Carrying charge payments JASA Lunch Deliveries Due to concerns about COVID-19, commencing Monday, March 23, the carrying charge box in the Bartow Administration building, and those in Dreiser JASA, Riverbay staff, and Einstein centers, will be opened for payment deposits in order to maintain and members of New- “social distancing.” The Bookkeeping window will be closed to sharehodlers song Church volunteer from Monday, March 23, 2020. to deliver meals to JASA Shareholders will be required to put their checks in the carrying charge box. seniors throughout the Please place your payments in an envelope and clearly identify your name, Co-op City community building and apartment on the outside of the envelope. No receipts will be on Fri., March 20. Due issued. During the month of April, you can call the Bookkeeping department to the Coronavirus pan- demic, JASA has taken to obtain your account balance. the necessary steps to We also encourage you to set up an account at www.goZego.com (Powered limit person-to-person by PayLease) and make your payments online. contact while still pro- There will be no late hours on Monday, March 30. viding meals to seniors We kindly ask for your cooperation during this difficult time. who usually attend —Riverbay Finance Department lunch at the three com- munity centers in Co-op City. As of now, JASA plans on making deliveries every Monday, Wednesday & Friday, between the hours of 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Residents will receive cold, pre-packaged meals with instructions on how to heat them appropriately for consumption. Co-op City senior residents not yet registered for the lunch program may do so by calling JASA main office at (718) 320-2066. Anyone interested in volunteering to assist with this program can also contact JASA at the number above. Photo by Toriea McCausland See page 18 for more information. Census 2020 Co-op City homeowners should have received their Census 2020 invitation letters by now along with their Census ID’s to complete the questionnaire online at my2020Census.gov. Be sure to log on and complete the Census. If an online response if not received from you, a paper questionnaire will be mailed to your residence in April. Failure to respond will result in the Census Bureau having to send an interviewer to your home to collect the answers to the Census from you. A reminder: Housing cooperatives such as Co-op City are a type of home- ownership where residents purchase shares which gives them rights to oc- cupancy of their apartment. They share expenses including mortgage payments made by the housing corporation. If you need help completing your 2020 Census form, you may call 1-844- 330-2020, toll free. 2 Co-op City Times / March 21, 2020 President’s Report (Continued from page 1) Happy 12th Birthday, masks for employees, changed the procedures for history, we can complete the Census online, by tele- Aaliyah! home repairs and visits, and eventually closed the phone or via the traditional paper format that will rental rooms and limited public meetings in the com- come sometime in mid-April after three reminders We have enjoyed 12 years with you. We know that munity centers. Management has stayed attuned to to self-respond. you will remember each of the Governor’s and Mayor’s warnings and advice. It is important that we, as a community, are these years as you continue The Co-op City Times will continue to keep the com- counted. The Census only happens every ten years to grow. Your faith and hard munity informed of the latest guidelines and med- and we will live with the results of this census until work in school will ensure ical advice disseminated from trusted sources. We 2030! The census numbers determine distribution that the best years are yet will limit all messages to official medical advice of congressional representation, distribution of hun- to come. from the official offices of the City, State and Fed- dreds of billions of federal dollars in addition to We love you and are eral medical officials. While we realize there are local issues such as voting districts and school dis- always here for you. many opinions on how to handle the health emer- tricts. Federal programs like school meals, senior —GrandpaTed, Grand- gency we are experiencing, we will not print indi- programs, SNAP, libraries, hospitals, fire depart- ma Dot, Mom, Dad, Jer- vidual medical opinions in the paper – it is the respon- ments, transportation and even Pell grants and stu- maine, Amanda and Alyssa sible thing to do. dent loans for higher education are dependent on I ask that you continue to practice safe, hygienic this census count. behavior. Be responsible and responsive to the offi- The Census is easy, available in 12 non-English cial advice we receive. These are very different times, languages online and on the telephone. There are 59 unlike anything any of us has experienced before. languages in all, available in print and video guides. While we should be careful, we must remain calm. Most importantly, the Census is safe. Census Co-op City Department Let’s look out for each other and check in on our employees are sworn for life to protect the data col- senior neighbors. Times like this is when coopera- lected and only aggregate data (statistics) are ever of Public Safety tive living can make all the difference for all share- released to anyone, including the President of the holders. I love my community; I love my neighbors United States. Census data cannot be shared with (718) 671-3050 • and I am glad that I live in this community that is any other agency, court or law enforcement agency. www.ccpd.us. not only self-contained, but responsible. I applaud This confidentiality is protected by Title 13 and has the Board, Management, community organizations, been tested by several requests. In every instance, If you SEE something, faith-based organizations and individual sharehold- Census data has been protected and upheld by fed- ers for the prudent measures taken to protect us all! eral courts. SAY something! Census So much hinges on the 2020 Census count, so While on the message of responsible community please make sure you and everyone living with you action, I want to encourage all shareholders to is counted! respond to their Census questionnaire when you WE COUNT! receive it. If you have not received an invitation in Thank you for the opportunity to serve and rep- the mail, you can go to my2020census.gov and com- resent this community. I am a proud cooperator of plete your Census form online. For the first time in Co-op City. Co-op City Times / March 21, 2020 3 CCoo--oopp CCiittyy TTiimmeess 22nndd FFrroonntt PPaaggee COVID-19 (Continued from page 1) rentals for meetings and events in the community centers effective Co-op City residents are also asked to do their part by taking COMBING Monday, March 16, 2020. The suspension remains in place until responsibility for their personal space including their apartment April 6, when the decision will be revisited. door knobs. Residents can assist janitorial staff with the upkeep Building associations and certified community clubs and or- of their building by not littering, cleaning up spills they are re- ganizations are also asked to suspend their daily and, in some sponsible for and keeping the laundry rooms clean. cases, weekly, meetings and programs until further notice. “We are going to ask neighbors to check in on the elderly and These steps were taken in response to the viral spread of disabled on their floors to the extent possible, and to offer your COVID-19 among New Yorkers.