Please add email westview red herring group

[Janine Schaefer]

Hello Sherie,

Can you please add this email to the westview red herring group

and forward her letter to management below to the group.

          bzez...@gmail.com

This is our neighbor who is in distress about the new structure that is 'right outside her window'.

I am also upset about this structure plopped on our grassy hill and I know many other tenants are as well.

She and I are trying to figure out the best way to deal with this issue.

Thank you,

Janine

Below is Letter that was sent to Management >

Subject: Fwd: Outdoor Seating Area

Dear Ms. Pais,

I hope this message finds you well.

As per our brief conversation over the phone yesterday, I am writing to express my concerns and that of my neighbors about the construction of the sitting area (a "gazebo") in Westview courtyard.

1. Leaving Westview residents out of the loop: 

Our building currently does not have any form of organized tenant representation, but we hope to soon form a co-op board as is legally required. But even in the absence of any such tenant body, why were we not given any advance notice about the project? I remember seeing the person who I now know is the architect, Andrew Secunas, taking measurements in the courtyard months ago; the project must have therefore been agreed upon back then, so why keep Westview tenants in the dark until the day before the construction started, when you sent us the below email and letter? The project is described as "community service-based architecture," but who from the community knew about it, let alone had any say in it? 

2. Public safety and order: We assume it is known to you and the Greenthal Management leadership that the courtyard is one of the favorite late night spots for gatherings and activities that range from disruptive to illegal and include playing loud music, drinking alcohol, smoking marijana, dealing drugs, watching porn and masturbating (yes, there is someone who quite regularly uses the space for that.) Therefore, the last thing we need is to entice more people to congregate in the courtyard, at least until the issue of late night access and security of the area is established. (Of course we the tenants under whose windows all this is happening call Public Safety, but I doubt I'll be the first person to tell you how little help PSD is with those and many other safety issues.) If any of this is news, then that is all the more reason to consult tenants before starting a project that might aggravate the already existing serious problems.

3. Appearance, use of space, effect on the environment: 

• We in Westview LOVE our little courtyard being just trees and grass. We LOVE being able to sit on that little hill with a cup of coffee, read and take in the sun on a pleasant day. We LOVE being able to sit right on the grass, or bring a blanket or garden chair, but put it where we like, not having to sit in a designated space. Why cover and damage the grass? Why do we always have to add things and objects? Why do we have to build and “develop” when we already have so little nature in this city? 
• At this time, the gazebo sits very awkwardly on top of that little hill. The construction is still not complete, but the way it is balanced right now on the uneven surface, with bricks under the benches, looks both unstable and ugly. 
• Some tenants have asked about materials used: will the aluminum get hot and will it reflect light in ways that can be disruptive to tenants whose windows overlook the gazebo?

I will end by repeating that many of us in Westview are shocked by the "clandestine" nature of bringing on this project and by the lack of any interest in and regard for our opinion, concerns, needs and wishes. 

Thank you for the opportunity to share these thoughts. I look forward to hearing back from you.