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Westbeth Update

Thursday AM November 15, 2012

I hope these updates will be winding down soon.

-There is a building meeting with management today at 3 PM in the Community Room.

-We are organizing an art rescue facility for works that were in the basement and damaged by the storm. It is Surround Art in Brooklyn and a truck will be coming tomorrow at 3 to take items out there.This is a temporary solution and all artists need to figure out what they will do with their work in the near future. However, this is a respite for you until you can figure it out. More details at the 3 PM meeting. If you want to be a part of that rescue program tomorrow, let me know ASAP. I can be reached at WARCPresident@gmail.com

-Verizon working in the building but still saying they expect to have service restored by Nov 28th. If you have a cell phone, you can call them and ask them to forward your calls to your cell. Have you Verizon bill in front of you when you call.

-Some individual apartments still have issues with Time Warner service but most people have had service restored. If you still have a problem you need to call Time Warner directly.

-Thanksgiving dinner fliers distributed yesterday. If you can’t find it, additional fliers at the guards’ desk.

George Cominskie

Friday AM November 16, 2012

This will be the last daily update. Things are getting back to the new normal at Westbeth. I will only do another post if there is an important update to let you know about. Some points in this update will be repeats from past posts but I keep getting questions about some of these items. Here goes………….

ELEVATOR

-We now have one elevator working in the H section (by the guard’s desk) and the freight elevator is working in the A section. As more people return, the waiting time for the elevator is getting longer. Again, be kind to each other. The two other elevators in the H section are still about a week away from being brought back into service. There will be no elevator service to the basement until it is cleaned, dried and decontaminated. The two elevators in the A section lobby will take even longer, so they are weeks away from being restored.

LAUNDRY ROOM

-Management has put a priority on restoring some laundry service in the basement but that is at best, weeks away.

I BUILDING

-Work on restoring heat and electric in the I building will begin on Monday. No definitive estimate on when that will be completed.

BASEMENT WORK

-At best, the work in the basement will be completed by the end of the year, however, don’t be surprised if it extends into January.

FEMA

-If you haven’t already registered with FEMA, you can do so at 1 800 621-3362 or www.disasterassistance.gov

TEMPORARY STORAGE

-Artists who need to find temporary storage for their work can get a small unit at Manhattan Mini Storage for two months for free. Call Elias Jaffe at 646.276.1617 to make those arrangements. You can also e-mail him at EliasJ@manhattanministorage.com

PHONE SERVICE

-Phone service is still spotty. All Verizon lines in the building are still out. Verizon is still giving us Nov 28th as the estimated date for resumption of service. When service is restored, you will have to call them to receive credit for the time you were without service. They will not automatically credit you. Time Warner service works in some apartments and not in others. If you have a problem with TW, you must report that directly to Time Warner.

THANKSGIVING DINNER

-Additional fliers for the Thanksgiving dinner are at the front desk. Hope you can attend or contribute. We all have a lot to be grateful for this season. The number of people who stepped up and stepped forward during this difficult time is amazing. From staff, to neighbors, to friends to perfect strangers, I say “Thank You!” from the residents of Westbeth.

George Cominskie

Westbeth Update

Tuesday AM November 13, 2012
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BREAKING NEWS

As of 9:15am this moring, one elevator has returned to service to H section. Barring unforseen mechanical problem, there may be steady but still slow progress to return of service on other elevators

ELECTRIC POWER

-Approximately 65 apartments in the A and C sections will be temporarily without power today between the hours of 10 AM and 2 PM. The effected apartments received a notice from management last evening about this service interruption. It is hoped that this is the final phase of the electrical repair.

FEMA

-Today at 1 PM, staff from Speaker Quinn and Congressman Nadler’s offices will be in the Community Room to help you with your FEMA registration. You can also do it on line and by phone and those instructions on how you can do it at home will be in the CR as well. All are welcome but this service is especially for those without computer or phone access.

PHONE AND INTERNET

-I am reposting all of Val Ghent’s info on Verizon. Be sure to call to get the credit to your bill because of lack of service. FYI, the latest from Verizon is that they may get it done by Nov 25th.
“7 Nov 2012 Verizon update: our phone is completely out so called Verizon. They said some Westbeth phone lines are on a cable which needs complete replacing – Verizon said may not be until Dec 2nd. of course they are ‘working on it now’ and ‘hope to have it fixed sooner’. If your phone is out call Verizon at 1 800 837 4966 press #3 for billing office to discuss. I got them to issue credit from 10/30-now.”

BASEMENT

We cannot overemphasize the importance that all damaged work from the basement needs to go into the protected areas of the courtyard or to another location so that they can be cleaned and dried. NO item should go from the basement directly to your apartment. You are not only jeopardizing your health but also the health of your neighbors.

Containers

We are still seeking to rent large pods or a 20 foot container for the storage of damaged art on site here at Westbeth. Any leads would be appreciated.

We are proceeding with the Westbeth Thanksgiving Dinner next week. Details will be distributed throughout the building later today.

Monday AM November 12, 2012

-All basic services (heat, hot water, electric) have been restored to all apartments. If you don’t have any of these services, report it to management at once so they can rectify the situation.

-Two elevators (one in A section, one in H) should come online “within a few days.” Best case is probably Tuesday or Wednesday, worst case, Thursday or Friday.

-Drying area fo…,

r damaged work has been established in the inner courtyard and outside the community room. Only artists with damaged art are permitted in these areas.

-Two outside security guards have been hired to patrol the building during this difficult period.

-Two generators have been placed in the courtyard. They will supply power to the many fans and dehumidifiers in the basement. They will be running 24/7 until the situation is rectified.

Trash/garbage

should be taken down to the dumpster in the inner courtyard parking area. Within a few days, plastic bags will be placed in the compacter areas for you to place your plastic and bottle recycling. You are asked to hold on to your paper recycling a bit longer until a solution is found.

Land line phone service is still spotty

. No matter who your carrier is (Verizon, Time Warner, Fios), if you do not have phone service, you need to call your carrier and report that your land line is out of service. If you don’t have a cell phone, borrow one from a neighbor to make that call. As Val Ghent reported in her updates, you should report your lack of service to your carrier and you should request a credit for all the days you had no phone service.

BASEMENT

-For those of you with spaces in the basement, Wednesday night is the deadline to get your items out of the basement. Come Thursday morning, Service Pro will begin to indiscriminately remove and trash items in the basement.

-Precautions should be taken to protect yourself from health issues related to mold. An informational piece from the EPA concerning mold is being distributed to every apartment.

-There are still some outages in some hallways and stairwells. It is hoped they will be corrected in the next few days. If you are traveling in or near A section hallways or stairwells, you may still need a flashlight.

-The process of beginning to restore service in the I building will begin on Tuesday.

FEMA REGISTRATION

Speaker Quinn and Congressman Nadler will again have staff on site tomorrow (Tuesday, Nov 13) at 1 PM in the community room to assist people with their FEMA registrations.

-As of token of our appreciation to the staff for their efforts during this difficult time, WARC will sponsor a Thanksgiving luncheon for the staff next week.

-There is no building meeting for a few days. The next scheduled meeting is Thursday at 3 PM.

George Cominskie

Westbeth Update

Sunday AM November 11, 2012

Basic services – electric, hot water and heat – should be returned to all apartments now

-If you don’t have electric, notify the front desk at once. I have not heard of anyone who is without electric in their apartment. If you don’t have hot water, run the water for a few minutes. If you don’t have heat, it probably means your radiator needs to be bled. Do a work order for maintenance to bleed your radiator.

-As of last evening, some hallways in A, B & C (close to A) still don’t have hallway lighting. You should still carry a flashlight for walking those areas or for any stairwell in the A section.

-From the Westbeth Corp FB page concerning the above services
“Some of the systems have temporary solutions; there are some parts we’re praying hold out until we get permanent replacements and some solutions to the immediate problem will be changed to permanent solution in the coming days. However, as things stand now, every resident should be warm and every resident should have electricity. There may be a few power outages in individual apartments, but the operative word is temporary as lines dry out and fuses are replaced. Radiators should be giving off more than adequate heat for current conditions.”

-There is currently no elevator service but they hope to have one car in the A section and one in the H section running within a few days, maybe sooner if they are lucky.

-Phone service is spotty. No one with Verizon appears to have service. Some Fios and Time Warner customers are reporting service, while others with those same companies are reporting no service. You will have to call your individual carrier to report your service is out.

-We will be without a laundry room for at least 2 months, so you will have to make other arrangements concerning laundry service. A list of laundromats in the neighborhood will be available at today’s meeting and posted on the mail room bulletin boards.

Concerning cleanup in the basement, this from the Westbeth Corp FB page

“The potential health hazard is growing daily as the warm weather, which we otherwise are happy to have, encourages the growth of mold and bacteria throughout the basement. It has become more and more imperative that all materials come out of the basement as quickly as humanly possible. As of today, we are allowing all tenants to go into the basement without a staff member accompanying them. Items no longer wanted can be left out for Servpro, the cleanup company, to remove. By early next week, the Phase 1 area, roughly the southeast quadrant of the basement, will be barricaded off and the dehumidifiers, fans and heaters will start to do their work. The moment Westbeth and Servpro will have to take over the cleanup for those spaces is fast approaching, and we are encouraging those tenants especially to rescue what they can immediately.”

-There will be a building meeting at 3 PM today.

George Cominskie

Westbeth Update

Saturday AM November 10, 2012

Wonderful developments overnight

–Heat and hot water are available throughout the building although apartments throughout different sections are reporting no heat. If you do not have heat by noon today, do a work order for your apartment. It probably means the issue is related to your radiators and not to the building wide distribution system.
–Electric expanded to about half of those who were still without power. It is hoped that the last units without power will come on line today.

-The report on elevators is from the Westbeth Corp FB page
“Progress is being made on the elevators. We have expanded our goal and hope to have a car in the Bethune Street lobby running at about the same time the freight elevator on the West Street side is done. We hope this will be within several days, and given that there are two full repair crews working we think that is more likely than not.”

FEMA REGISTRATION

-Yesterday, Congressman Nadler and Speaker Quinn had staff in the community room with computers, helping residents register with FEMA for assistance. They will be returning on Tuesday at 1 PM to register more people. A few points on this:
-You can do it yourself on line or by phone. Specific instructions of what you need are on the front desk and will be available at today’s 3 PM community room meeting.
-Many artists will be declared ineligible for assistance and will then be referred to the Small Business Administration (SBA). However, you must first register with FEMA and get a registration number from them before you can go to SBA.
-This service is especially geared for those without computer, internet or phone access. All are welcome but we hope that you will give preference to those who have no other option but this service.

STORAGE POSSIBILITY

-Speaker Quinn has negotiated an arrangement with Manhattan Mini Storage. Artists who need to find temporary storage for their work can get a small unit at Manhattan Mini Storage for two months for free. Call Elias Jaffe at 646.276.1617 to make those arrangements. You can also e-mail him at EliasJ@manhattanministorage.com This is for the temporary storage of art, not household goods.

the best of times, the worst of times

This storm has brought out the best in so many people. It has also brought out the worst in a few people. Yesterday, an Ipod that was being recharged in the 7th floor A section was stolen.
Last night, a large duffle bag of winter coats that were headed to recovery efforts in the Far Rockaways today, was stolen from the community room. I hope they were taken by mistake. Please return them to the front desk and just say you found them in the hallway.

Another building meeting today at 3 PM in the community room.

George Cominskie