In an effort to post without having to do any work or writing or effort... I'm going to jack some content from curbed. I mean, they cited/characterized my blog without asking first, so I'm taking their content without asking first.
In the linked article, new leasing director Rick Miaw commented with the following:
As the leasing manager of Flatbush Gardens, I feel it is necessary to respond to the article “Established Tenants Fear Tides of Change at Flatbush Gardens.” As was stated at the end of the article, Clipper Equity is very respectful of the residents at Flatbush Gardens and our management, maintenance and security staffs are always working to improve the property and the quality of life within our community. We do not differentiate between “established “ and new tenants.
It is surprising that the article did not mention that over $20 million has been spent on this neighborhood which has a history of neglect from previous owners. As the buildings date back to the 40’s there is a constant need for repairs and updates and Clipper has conscientiously been making these improvements. There is a new elevator in each building, new boiler system and many other improvements.
This is a rent-stabilized community of over 10,000 residents with 2,469 homes spread out in 59 buildings over 30 acres. We have a staff that is dedicated to the maintenance of resident’s units and who work full time to make the repairs needed throughout the property. They are always evaluating urgent repairs and regular maintenance so that situations are properly addressed.
In 2006, Flatbush Gardens opened a completely new state of the art laundry facility. There are 65 industrial washers and 50 industrial dryers with proper plumbing and ventilation. This is adjacent to the new 24/7 mail and parcel post center. A new fitness center is planned for the same building.
Flatbush Gardens’ 1940’s buildings were not constructed to handle washing machines in the units. The landlord only finds out about a washing machine in a unit when a neighbor complains of a leak or water damage in their home. The landlord then takes action as the machine is causing a quality of life issue for the building. Improperly self-installed machines tap into the building waterlines causing numerous water issues throughout the building and there are the additional ventilation and drainage issue that are not correctly addressed which become a problem for the whole building.
The well-being of Flatbush Gardens’ residents is of paramount concern to this landlord and all the steps they have taken and will continue to take are legal and undertaken to strengthen the quality of life for all residents.
Our on-site maintenance office is open Monday – Friday, from 9 to 5 and the telephone number is 718-856-4505.
Rick Miaw
Flatbush Gardens
Leasing Manager
POST-SCRIPT: read the comments here for Megan's reply, ripped from the same comment section on curbed.
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2 comments:
MM's comment from curbed:
Well Rick, how lovely for you to step in a spew the PR statement that's been written for you when situations like this arise.
I live in Flatbush Gardens. How about a little first hand account, shall we? I moved in a year ago, so I'm not one of the long term tenants that are being mentioned in the article.
I moved into a building with all old-timers that have been here for a generation or more. Yes, they do say that the situation has improved from when it was a project, but it still sucks.
Lets start with your "state of the art laundry facility". I went to do laundry this morning and the doors are "locked" with caution tape and a handwritten note is on the door stating "laundry closed until further notice". Forget to pay the electric bill, hmmm? The laundry is not as pretty as they want you to believe. It's dirty and there's anywhere from 25-50% of the machines out of order at all times.
The 24/7 mail and parcel center is nothing more than a room with thousands of little mailboxes and it closes at night. Forget it if you want to get a parcel when you're not at home. The parcel pickup is open 2 days a week for about 3hrs at a time. Hardly 24/7.
So the maintenance office is open M-F, 9-5. How convenient for those of us with a JOB! Yes, there is emergency maintenance at night and weekends but there is only 1 person working.
5K in renovations? Let take an inventory...New appliances? Bottom of the line Hotpoint models. I don't even have a way of telling when the oven is at the right temperature. The kitchen was remodeled with cheap laminate counter tops that are pulling away from the walls already. You don't get the nice granite ones they have in the model apt.
Remodeled bathroom? Oh look, more cheap parts! My shower head fell apart one day and has since to be replaced. The toilet leaked all over the floor for about a week. Don't forget the time my toilet wouldn't flush and it took 3 days to get someone to come over.
New floors? Hardly-they're the same ones from before, just with a fresh coat of laquer. They would be nice if the remodel crew hadn't walked all over them before the polyurethane had dried and left boot marks.
Fresh paint? Oh yeah, so fresh it's still wet when you move in. A fresh coat on top of the 40 other coats below it.
Now let me finish by saying, I'm hardly an angry tenant. I don't have any major maintenance issues like leaking ceilings or collapsing bathrooms like some people, but I've only been able to get things fixed by befriending a maintenance guy and going directly to him whenever I have a problem.
I don't have to deal with pee in the elevator or people loitering in the hall, but that's only because I live in a building with all seniors and they respect their space. Not everyone here is as lucky.
All in all, it could be worse. But it could easily be ALOT better. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't move here. I'd sacrifice the large space for better quality somewhere else.
So if they really want to make this a nice place to live, here's some advice: Answer the phone when it's ringing. Empty the voicemail so people can leave a message after hours. Hire a few extra people to fix stuff after hours. Spend a little more on insurance so maintenance can come into your apt when you're not home. Don't tell me to call the police when I call security because the neighbors have their stereo blasting from the window at 4am. What is security for? If you change all the phone numbers, it would be helpful if you posted a notice or something. Be nice when people call. It's really not that hard. We are the ones who are paying YOU, remember?
Couple of things:
1- Took a walk around the State Of The Art Laundry room the other night by accessing the door in the mail room. I can't say what is wrong exactly outside of the massive leak presumably from all the rain Sunday, but lack of electricity is also quite plausible. Again, if you have a car I recommend going to the laundry station.
2- I figure that Mr. Rick Miaw has little power to change anything. It's great that he can preach the virtues of living here via prepared statement, however as the man in charge of talking people into variable leases, I think he's having a socialists amount of faith in his system to keep things as glossed over as he portrays.
It seems as if there's no winning here. You'll have to replace more than the Minister of leasing agreements if you want to see changes. By adding Mr. Miaw, they're simply putting a new face on an old problem. A better article for Curbed would have been "Rick Miaw, Hero or Scapegoat"
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