The original facade of the east wing of the Parkside Association co-op (left) and the new parapet wall of the west wing (right) under construction.
Over the years, various boards of directors at Parkside Assocation, located at 549 41st Street in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, resolved to replace the leaky roof of the 89-year-old building. But best intentions aside, they managed only temporary fixes and patchwork repairs. That is, until Sarah Moffitt, an eight-year resident, became board president and made it a point to fix the problem. It was personal for Moffitt—she lived on the top floor of the four-story, 40-unit co-op and had leaks in her apartment. She was determined to remain on the board until the project was well underway.
The board hired RAND to conduct a limited leakage evaluation. Based on our findings, we designed and administered a roof and parapet replacement program,and modified eight dumbwaiter shafts to enable the co-op to convert these spaces into usable closet space in the future. The board selected Proto Construction to perform the construction work.
The property is located in the Sunset Park Historic District, which is listed in the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places. Our challenge has been to carefully restore the building without changing the beautifully detailed facades and its historic features. (Any aesthetic changes must be reported to the national register.) Based on the total cost of the job and the accuracy of the restoration, the co-op’s shareholders may be eligible for a tax credit.
The scope of work for this project includes rebuilding new code-compliant parapet walls and installing new railings; replacing the roof; demolishing the roof level dumbwaiter shaft enclosures and sealing the shaftway at each floor level; and a full cleaning of the street-facing facades. RAND obtained all the necessary permits from the Department of Buildings and also provided Special Inspections services. The project is scheduled to be completed in November.
For more on this project, see the article in Habitat magazine.
Valerie Landriscina is a Project Associate on RAND’s Facade & Roofing Team.
