Tag Archives: Election

The Candidates on Air Rights

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Several people have asked recently about the candidates’ positions on air rights.

The first question asked at Meet the Candidates was “How do you recommend shareholders vote on the forthcoming air rights deal, and how will you vote personally?”

Paraphrasing the candidates’ answers, as we don’t have access to a transcript:

  • Stanley –  I just want to know, if we do raise the money, what we’re going to do with it.  How are we going to spend it?  What are we going to do with it to help Seward Park?
  • Norma (incumbent) – I feel every shareholder should be allowed to vote. If that happens, I’ll back the majority. [editor’s note: under our bylaws all shareholders most certainly are allowed to vote and we need 2/3 of those voting–not a majority–for it to pass.]
  • Dave – I need more information to know whether or not I’m in favor of it. If elected I’m going to work hard to make sure we’re getting a good deal and to provide as complete and detailed information to shareholders as possible.
  • Karen (incumbent) – I don’t think anybody can recommend and it’s up to individual shareholders to decide for themselves. Currently our attorneys are still negotiating as best they can and once we have better information we’ll put it up for a vote. Right now we don’t have enough information. When we do, it’ll be brought to the shareholders and it will be up to the shareholders.
  • Carol – It’s up to all of us to decide based on our personal priorities, but right now we don’t have enough facts because they are still under negotiation. Something is going to be built so I’m somewhat inclined to say yes to make sure we have a seat at the table and have some control over what they build, but I really don’t know enough yet and each shareholder’s vote is his own.
  • Darcey (incumbent) – I echo what Karen and Carol said. My view is that the board should be agnostic and I’ll make my decision as a shareholder based on what is best for my family, weighing the pros and cons once we know what they all are.
  • Arnie – “They’re going to build anyway.”  You’re told that.  It’s an insidious message that you should vote for it. Would they have offered us $46 million if they were going to build anyway? Donald Trump said in the Art of the Deal that you shouldn’t be desperate when you negotiate.  We need to hold our position and wait until we get the best offer.  We sell votes for ice cream parties.  We do all kinds of things that are not in the best interest of the co-op.  Eleven people are not experts.  None of them have been trained.  I’m a retired army colonel and women’s shelter manager but don’t pretend to know what I don’t know.  My whole platform is we need to have more views involved. [The current board says] they need to reach out, engage and educate.  That’s why we don’t have the vote now.  I don’t think that’s the truth. I think they saw that people are saying no, and they wanted more time to get the yes votes.

My personal view is that because a shareholder vote is required for any air rights deal, it is less important whether a candidate is “for” or “against” than whether a candidate appears to understand the negotiation and approval process, and is committed to presenting the deal to shareholders in as accurate and balanced a way as possible (recognizing, of course, that we all have biases).  Shareholders should keep in mind that it is up to the board to work thoughtfully and efficiently with the professionals they’ve hired to first finish negotiating the deal, and then to present it to all of us in a way that distills a whole host of complex issues into an accurate and comprehensible package on which we can vote.

2017 Seward Spark Board Endorsements

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This year’s Seward Spark endorsements come from Micah Arbisser, who publishes the Seward Spark, and Kate Nammacher, who recently served on the Board as a director, president, and treasurer.

After reviewing the candidates’ biographies, hearing their presentations at Meet the Candidates, and reviewing the records of those who have already served, we believe the following four candidates stand out for their high levels of engagement, knowledge, optimism, and professionalism.

#2 Darcey Gerstein – A prolific and transparent Boardroom communicator, Darcey has worked hard to keep us informed, while putting in countless hours behind the scenes on almost every major issue the Board has tackled in the last three years.  Her candidate statements convey a long list of impressive achievements.  We will all benefit if she is given a chance to double that list’s length with a second term.

#3 Carol Anastasio – With more than two decades managing NYC parks, Carol’s stated priority if elected is to cost-effectively improve our grounds.  In her previous term on the Board she proved her enthusiasm and capability with respect to all kinds of issues, and she has a list of achievements on par with Darcey’s.  And she has volunteered to help with almost every community event since the day she moved here.

#4 Karen Suss Wolfson – A lifelong resident and a Board member whose service is measured not in years but in decades, Karen is our institutional memory.  We have tremendous respect for her business acumen, her ability to sense the desires of a broad spectrum of our community, and her dedication to her work as a Board member. Karen is screening committee chair and a past president.  

#5 David Pearson – A first-time candidate, Dave has the most relevant professional experience of any candidate in recent memory.  A Senior Vice President of Affordable Development at the Related Companies, he has years of experience analyzing and negotiating operating budgets, contracts, and financing, all with the goal of preserving affordability while upgrading quality-of-life. And he wants to do the same for us.

Whether or not you agree that these candidates are the best, please exercise your shareholder right to vote!

Your neighbors,

Micah Arbisser
Seward Spark Publisher

Kate Nammacher
Former SPC Director, President and Treasurer

2017 Board Candidates

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This year seven candidates are vying for four open seats on the Seward Park Cooperative Board of Directors. The candidates are:

#1 – Arnold Sandler
#2 – Darcey Gerstein
#3 – Carol Anastasio
#4 – Karen Suss Wolfson
#5 – David Pearson
#6 – Norma Ramirez
#7 – Stanley Friedland

Darcey, Karen, and Norma are all incumbents seeking reelection.  The fourth seat is being vacated by Harold Aranoff, who served for six years.   Of the other candidates, both Carol and Stanley previously served on the Board.  Arnold ran last year, and David is brand new to Seward Park elections.

The election will be held on June 14, 2017.

And the winners are…

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Congratulations to Wei-Li, James and Besty!

The final, certified vote tallies were:
#3 Wei-Li Tjong 461
#5 James Mastroianni 441
#8 Betsy Jacobson 424
#6 Leah Strock 397
#1 Arnold Sandler 360
#7 Tina Reiter 344
#2 Marc Albaum 151
ABSTAIN 3

Based on these numbers, at least 861 shareholders cast votes.

Thanks also go out to Marc Albaum, Dave Pass and Dia Shepardson for their service over the past three years.

Corporate AND Cooperative

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Following is the text of a flier that was circulated by former director Jodi Zagoory, who is also an occasional contributor to the Seward Spark.

When I served on the Board of Directors, we rebranded the co-op as “Seward Park Cooperative” instead of “Seward Park Housing Corporation.”  We believed fully in the cooperative character of our community, and wanted it to be the first impression we gave to the outside world.  But as directors, we also never lost sight of the fact that our cooperative is in fact a business corporation.

As shareholders, we elect directors to the Board to be the stewards of a corporation that today has a $25 million annual budget and over $1 billion in assets.  They are charged with making decisions for our benefit, and it is crucial that they have the qualifications, work ethic and temperament to tackle this difficult assignment in an informed, collaborative fashion.  

We absolutely need directors who will remember every day that they are overseeing a cooperative consisting of neighbors who call the cooperative home, not faceless shareholders who can simply dump their stock if they don’t like the corporation’s direction.  And I can happily say that I believe that all of the candidates running for the Board this year fit that bill.

But we also need directors who are willing and able to do the work of a director.  They need to engage with and develop a deep understanding of the important and complex issues we face, like restructuring our debts, handling offers to buy air rights, responding to lawsuits, and more. It is not enough to want peace.  Past Boards led by directors who chose to stick their heads in the sand led us to big budget holes (and big maintenance increases), bungled contracts and long-deferred necessary capital projects.

At Meet the Candidates Night, there were three candidates who had clearly done their homework.  They were familiar with the issues, had studied the co-op’s financial statements, and gave thoughtful and informed answers to questions.  These three candidates stood out for their mindfulness of the needs of all cooperators, and also for their positivity and their knowledge and eagerness to serve.

On June 15th, please join me in voting for #3 Wei-Li Tjong, #5 James Mastroianni and #6 Leah Strock, for a board that is truly cooperative, and also effective.

Jodi Zagoory
Former Member
Seward Park Cooperative Board of Directors

Seward Park Board Election is This Week

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Seward Park Cooperative shareholders return to the polls on Wednesday, June 15.  Please remember to vote!  If you are unable to vote in person on Wednesday, you can vote online using the codes you should have received in the mail from Election America.  If you have misplaced your codes, please contact us and we will send you a proxy form that will allow another shareholder to cast a vote on your behalf.

This year’s Seward Spark endorsements come from Kate Nammacher, who recently served on the Board as a director, president, and treasurer.

After reviewing the candidates’ biographies and hearing their presentations at Meet the Candidates,  I believe that the following three candidates stand out for their high levels of engagement, knowledge and professionalism, and their complementary skills.

#3 Wei-Li Tjong – Wei-Li previously served three terms on the Board and distinguished himself as a leader in making improvements and finding cost savings for the co-op.  As a practicing corporate attorney his professional focus is spotting potential problems and figuring out cost-effective ways to avoid them. At Meet the Candidates he said his proudest achievements from his prior Board tenure include settling major lawsuits that could have cost us millions and slashing our legal bills by changing the way we engage with our lawyers.  He is responsible for replacing our prior management company with Greenthal/ Frank Durant, resulting in enormous quality of life improvements for all shareholders.  Wei-Li grew up in the co-op and chose to return here as an adult, representing concerns of both lifelong residents and new arrivals.

#5 James Mastroianni – Jim is a relative newcomer to SPC compared to many of the other candidates, but has jumped right in to volunteer as an active member of various co-op community groups and celebrations.  Jim is a corporate tax attorney and a partner at the accounting megafirm PWC, bringing skills that are crucial in the Boardroom.  His knowledge about co-op issues was on full display at Meet the Candidates, where Jim cited financial figures from memory and explained bylaw provisions that seemed completely unfamiliar to other candidates. With skyrocketing real estate taxes, we strongly need Jim’s level of expertise.

#6 Leah Strock – Leah has lived in the co-op since 1989.   She is a nurse practitioner with extraordinary listening and problem solving skills.  A frequent and always positive participant on various online community forums, an enthusiastic volunteer for GASP (Gays at Seward Park), children’s programs, Hurricane Sandy response and more, she is a model of neighborliness and cooperation.  At Meet the Candidates she had smart and informed answers to every question that was sent her way.  She will be a force for moderation, consensus and progress in the Boardroom.

Whether or not you agree that these candidates are the best, please exercise your shareholder right to vote! We need strong representation and good voter turnout.

Your neighbor and former director, president and treasurer,
Kate Nammacher

2016 Candidates

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This year eight candidates are vying for three open seats. The candidates are:

#1 – Arnold Sandler
#2 – Marc Albaum
#3 – Wei-Li Tjong
#4 – Eric Mandelbaum (sources tell us that Mr. Mandelbaum withdraw his candidacy on May 20)
#5 – James Mastroianni
#6 – Leah Strock
#7 – Tina Reiter
#8 – Betsy Jacobson

Marc is the sole incumbent.  The other two seats are being vacated by Dave Pass and Dia Shepardson.  Wei-Li and Eric both served on the board previously, but did not run for reelection when their most recent terms ended.

The election will be held on June 15.

And the winners are…

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Congratulations to Doron, Aaron, Erica and Mendy.

The final vote tallies were:
#2 Erica Cullmann 399
#3 Sandy Kershon 145
#4 Mendy Erez 388
#5 Aaron Lee Fineman 487
#7 Debbie Finston 373
#8 Hariette Skidelsky 296
#9 Doron Stember 490
#10 Laurel Hirsch 332
#11 Carlos Rosado 381
ABSTAIN 3

That means at least 826 shareholders cast votes.

Thanks also go out to Gus Medina, Kate Nammacher and Paul Sobel for their service over the past three years, and Carlos Rosado for his service going back well over a decade.