We all know that some things in life are taken for granted.
For example, one may not think too often about the fact that everyday residents of your building walk in and out of it and inevitably regard its appearance. Most of Riverdale’s buildings have beautiful (or potentially beautiful) land areas that have long been one of the neighborhood’s most alluring features. For some buildings the elegance and the beauty of their outside property is of prime importance. Unfortunately for others the outside features of the property too often suffer from neglect.
While it is the Board’s responsibility to make decisions regarding budget and the maintenance and appearance of the building’s grounds, it often falls to management each year to provide the board of directors with a plan to maintain and improve the property’s curb appeal. Ideally, the board and management work together to proactively create an affordable plan for their building that specifically embraces ongoing care of its land area, and does not permit that obligation to be treated casually as in, “Maybe if we have enough left over in the budget”.
In this discussion, it should always be recalled that before potential buyers can be sold an apartment, they have to get inside the building. This is where the idea of curb appeal (Italians use the term bella figura) comes in. We know that when we shop for almost anything, regardless of the quality of the end-product, we tend to evaluate the packaging when making decisions. Simply stated, the nicer a property looks from the outside the more optimistic the shopper will be once they’ve entered the building (which will ultimately in turn benefit the residents and their individual investments).
Maybe we are not all experts at landscaping economically to preserve our assets.
The April 2018 issue of The Cooperator offered two excellent articles that can be of benefit to all board members and building managers who are duly concerned about their building’s landscaping. Read about Choosing the Right Plants for Landscaping for your building; and Working With Your Landscape Architect