Conversation with the ECA Board 9/19/2015

Date of the Informal Meeting: September 19, 2015

Board Present: Sharon Bobb, Cliff Cohen, Jim Jones

Hot Topics: Pinhole leaks, elevator inspections, office security, management company proposals

Level of interest: Standing room only in the party room

Here are some highlights from the hour-long meeting:

Pinhole leaks was the first topic of discussion with this question from Rosemary Bowen: If your unit is on an upper floor, is there less chance for a pinhole leak affecting your unit?

The question generated lots of response but not an exact answer to the question. Alfred Muller said pinhole leaks were not an issue because a study had been done some years ago. Sharon Bobb said the Board had recently contracted for an infrastructure study. Pat Peyser said her apartment had been damaged by a pinhole leak problem above her unit.  Bobb said it was time for the new study because more leaks were occurring and some of them were pinhole leaks.

On October 6 at 7 pm in the West Lobby, there will be a town hall meeting to address Pinhole Leaks.


Elevator inspections are being neglected said Marian Drazin. The inspection certificates are often out of date and the management office does not have a current one. She wants Board action taken immediately because the safety of the residents are at stake.


Office security is not being attended to said Marian Drazin. At stake is office equipment and sensitive information in paper format. The simple solution is for the engineering staff to close and lock their office doors when they leave.


Management company proposals are under review. Some people in the Association are circulating petitions to keep Legum & Norman without allowing the Request for Proposal process to work. One attendee said she was harassed when she told one of the circulators of the petition that she would not sign it. Cliff Cohen said the Board was doing due diligence by asking management companies to give the Association their proposals. He also said people do not like change but just because we like the staff hired by our current management company, that does not mean we are getting the best value for the money we pay a management company to run the business of the Association. Some people are concerned that the members of the RFP committee are prejudiced against Legum & Norman. Karren Alenier said that all proposals including one from L&N are being evaluated the same way and that the final decisions, including interviews and contacting references, would be done by the Board. Cohen said the ECA has a very competent committee for this job and people need to be realistic about who they think could do this better. Alenier, a member of the RFP committee,  reminded the participants that everyone on the committee, and the Board for that matter, are volunteers and Association members need to treat everyone with respect.

Other Topics included  suggestions for social events. Jeffrey Axelrad suggested an omelette party.  Another attendee suggested that every social event should have a minimal charge to defray costs and to make the head count more accurate. Of special concern is the holiday party in December when thousands of dollars are spent.