By Stephen Vrattos An estimated 200-300 residents packed Towers on the Green the evening of Monday, August 1, for the first-ever Town Hall meeting of North Shore Towers. On the docket were two important issues that would have profound affects on the community in the immediate future: the initiative to amend the proprietary lease to exclude all smoking inside North Shore Towers and Local Law 11, a state ordnance to enforce the inspection and subsequent repair (if any) of the facades of all buildings rising more than six stories, which includes the trio of structures that make up NST. Board President Mort Gitter opened the proceeding to enlighten the eager crowd as to the night’s agenda and asked for patience as he and his colleagues conducted this historic debut Town Hall event. Board Member Bob Ricken spoke first, addressing the subject of converting NST into a completely smoke-free environment. Doing so would entail a vote to change the co-op’s proprietary lease. But a mere majority would not be sufficient. At least a two-thirds majority decision in favor of the change would be required, an onerous proposition when one understands that less votes were collected during the recent Board elections in June, a contentious affair that seemed to engage more residents than in recent years past. Ricken voiced dismay that the ballots from the American Arbitration Association (AAA) arrived prior to the Town Hall gathering, before residents had an opportunity to collect all the facts behind the initiative, so as to make an informed decision before casting their votes. He informed everyone that extra ballots were available at the back of the room and that anyone could change there vote after they carefully considered the presentation, as only the most recently Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Debut Town Hall Meeting informs residents on No Smoking initiative dated proxies are counted, which is the case with the Board elections. “This proposal will safeguard the health of all of our people,” Ricken explained. “It’s an odd thing when the entire Board agrees. No political agenda; no fractured Board; all of us were concerned about the health and safety of the people who live here.” Due praise went out to fellow Board Member, Phyllis Goldstein, who enlisted 60 residents to help get out the vote and Amy Hagadon for recommending the “extremely qualified” presenters, including resident and career engineer, Bob Bader; Joel Bhuiyan, the Queens community engagement coordinator for NYC Smoke-Free; and Nancy Copperman, assistant vice-president of public health at Northwell Health and assistant professor at Hofstra Medical School. The audio-visual presentation of Bhuiyan and Copperman illuminated the facts of the issue. Tobacco continues to be the leading cause of death in the U.S. In New York City alone, more than 450,000 deaths a year are attributable to tobacco. The concern of a smokefree environment is more pressing in NYC where there is the greatest concentration of multi-unit housing, which includes co-ops and condos as well as rental units, in the country, and the inevitable fact that air circulates among units. Both speakers stressed the fact that no amount of caulking or attempted sealing of cracks, vents or other apertures in a multi-unit dwelling can prevent neighbors’ air from seeping into another’s home. Tests show as much as 65% of air is shared among apartments with the lag time between a resident lighting up a cigarette and its effect on air-quality in an adjoining unit as being roughly three minutes. Research in the past decade has determined that second-hand smoke “poses a danger that is as significant to the non-smoker, as smoking is to the smoker themselves.” Smoking or exposure to second-hand smoking can damage every part of your body, causing or exacerbating such maladies as stroke, blindness, weakening of bones, which can lead to hip fracture, even gum infection. It Increases the risk of heart and respiratory disease and lung cancer, as well as worsening pre-existing conditions, such as diabetes and asthma. More recent research suggests a link between long term exposure to second-hand smoke and dementia. Many NST residents, who host visiting children and grandchildren, should be aware that second-hand smoke can have as debilitating effect on the youngsters’ health as adults, as well as triggering more severe and frequent attacks in those children who suffer from asthma. In infants, exposure to second-hand smoke is a known cause of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), low-birth weight and lung problems as they mature. Then there is the significant aspect of property damage and death from fire in regards to a smoke-free environment. The number one cause of deaths from fires in NYC traces back to careless smoking. In 2014, there were 806 accidental fires caused by smoking with more than $286 million in smoking-related property damage or loss nationwide. Specific to multi-unit buildings, even when a fire is contained, the water from an activated sprinkler system, not only causes damage to the dwelling where the fire took place, but also travels downward, causing terrible costs in water damage down the line. North Shore Towers attorney, Errol Brett, addressed the crowd about the legal ramifications converting NST to a non-smoking building, citing a recent case of a woman moving into a high-rise cooperative on East 53rd Street in Manhattan. After the move, the new tenant discovered her neighbor was a smoker and moved out over health concerns. A subsequent ruling found the cooperative liable for for more than $150,000. New York State’s Warranty of Habitability Law states all tenants are entitled to an apartment that is habitable. The judge found irrefutable proof of the presence of second-hand smoke and its danger to a person’s health. Plus, the plaintiff was entitled to 100% abatement of construction eviction and breach of contract and awarded additional monies to cover other expenses and legal fees. Most important in regard to anyone who believes the smoke-free initiative to be discriminatory, was the following part of the judge’s ruling, which Brett quoted: “There are no federal, state or local laws that prevent apartment owners and managers from adopting smoke-free policies. Such policies do not discriminate against smokers; they simply require people to smoke outdoors where their second-hand smoke will not drift into neighboring apartments. Smoke-free policies are not difficult to implement and are largely self-enforcing.” The discussion ended with Board Member Phyllis Goldstein reiterating the conditions of amending the proprietary lease, i.e. getting at least a two-thirds vote in favor of doing so. In other words, of the six million outstanding shares, at least four million of those shares would not only have to vote, but also have vote IN FAVOR OF amending the proprietary lease. Still, Goldstein noted that such an undertaking is possible, as evinced most recently with the passing of the amendment for mandatory Country Club Membership for newly incoming residents a few years ago. “We want to make North Shore Towers a healthy environment for everyone,” Goldstein avowed. 4 North Shore Towers Courier n September 2016 Problems viewing this email? Click here SAVE THE DATE University Day University Day AT THE NORTH SHORE TOWERS SAVE THE DATE Join us for a day of exciting lectures: The Perfect (Ideological) Storm: A Supreme Court Appointment in a Time of Political Uncertainty Carl Bonomo, Political Science Lecturer A Discussion on the Electoral College: Is the United States Still a Democracy? Michael Krasner, Associate Professor of Political Science The Great Unravelling of the Middle East: Threads of Hope? Director, Ibrahim Student Leadership & Middle East Program with Queens College Thursday, September 15, 2016 • 9:30 am–2:00 pm North Shore Towers • 27240 Grand Central Pkwy., Floral Park, NY 11005 Admission $40 LUNCH WILL BE SERVED AT THE NORTH SHORE TOWERS Join us for a day of exciting lectures: The Perfect (Ideological) Storm: A Supreme Court Appointment in a Time of Political Uncertainty Carl Bonomo, Political Science Lecturer A Discussion on the Electoral College: Is the United States Still a Democracy? Michael Krasner, Associate Professor of Political Science The Great Unravelling of the Middle East: Threads of Hope? Director, Ibrahim Student Leadership & Middle East Program with Queens College Thursday, September 15, 2016 • 9:30 am–2:00 pm North Shore Towers 27240 Grand Central Pkwy., Floral Park, NY 11005 Admission $40 Register online at qccommunity.qc.cuny.edu/Northshore or call 718-997-2920. Please register by August 31, 2016 for a $5 discount. LUNCH WILL BE SERVED Register online at qccommunity.qc.cuny.edu/Northshore or call 718-997-2920 Please register by August 31, 2016 for a $5 discount.
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