Happy Holidays - and Join our board!

Season's Greetings from your tenant association!

With permission from Picryl.com/GetArchive.net

Here's what we've done this year, who's done it, and who can do it going forward (run for election to our board!).  

FUN!

• We had a terrific Pot Luck Party in the Community Room last May (thanks, Debbie Gonzalez, Lydia Pitsirilos & family, Maxine Soares, and many, many others)!
• We resumed free ShapeUp NY classes in our community room on Tuesdays at 6 PM (thanks, Jodi Brockington!)
• We organized a weekly games-and-chat session on Thursdays at 2 in the Community Room (thanks, Caroline Moorhead and Kathie Murray!) 
• We had our annual Halloween and Valentine's Day tables (thanks to Debbie Gonzalez, Rosa Delgado, and several others!)
• We had a flea market (thanks Krystina Orellano!)
• We've had some gardening events (thanks, Barbara Geller!)

WINS! 

• We found free or affordable legal help to keep some tenants in their homes. 
• We got Stellar to correct its records and stop threatening tenants who had (in fact) renewed their leases.
• We've educated tenants about new and existing rights:
• Rent-stabilized tenants have a LOT of rights.
• Market-rate tenants have a new(ish) right to a lease renewal at no more than a specified increase unless the landlord can show "good cause" why not.  
• Some market-rate tenants may be able to get their apartments back into rent stabilization.  Ask us about it!
• We all have the right to a habitable, warm, vermin-free apartment  [no poisons that could harm pets, please!].
• We helped some tenants get "succession" (get the rent-stabilized lease in their own name after a parent or other family member was no longer with us).
• We found support and resources for tenants dealing with clutter or where to find rent money.   

We have some things we're still working on (getting Stellar to keep the heat adequate for the whole building, for example).  

WHO'S DOING THE WORK:

All of this is possible because of the work of those who keep this tenant association running, and available to help you and your neighbors:

Floor captains  

2 East - Gabrielle Everett                      2 West - Rosa Delgado

3 East - Glenn Richter                           3 West - Brenda Marshall

4 East - (Steve Koulish, from 12)           4 West - Patricia Jordan

5 East - Luz Rivera                                5 West - Michelle Jimenez

6 East - Kitty RIvera                              6 West - Lora and Ed Kahn

7 East - Kathie Murray & Rachel Hydell    7 West - Denis Hayward

8 East - Barbara Garson                         8 West - Letty Orellano

9 East - Marlene Williamson                    9 West - Loretta Beasmoney

10 East - Alec Merber                            10 West - Melanie Eversley

11 East - Bones Rodriguez                     11 West - Barbara Geller

12 East Joan Browne                             12 West - Sushama Prasad

14 East - Jerry Pirog & Florence Jackson 14 West - Millie Matos

15 East - Debbie Gonzalez                     15 West - Maxine Soares        

Board members (Executive committee members are starred) Jodi Brockington*, Rosa Delgado, Ayana Dixon, Barbara Geller*, Debbie Gonzalez, Denis Hayward*, Patricia Jordan*, Steve Koulish*, Alex Martin*, Alec Merber*, Letty Orellano, Bones Rodriguez, Maxine Soares, Sue Susman*. 

ELECTION COMING UP:  JOIN US!  The Board's 2-year terms are up at the end of January, so we're holding an election at our Jan. 22nd meeting. Would you like to run? Send me a photo and a paragraph about yourself - in relation to the tenant association and the building - and I'll add you to the ballot.  Here's what we have so far. 

WE'RE STRONGER TOGETHER! You can make us stronger by joining us, or renewing your membership. It's only $10 per apartment per year!  Give a check (or cash in person) to our treasurer, Barbra Geller in Apt. 11T.