The following Good Neighbors and FAQ topics expand upon and complement the provisions of our bylaws, proprietary lease, building policies and house rules.
Public hallways and stairs should be clear of all items to allow unimpeded access for residents, visitors, and emergency responders. Please do not store anything, even temporarily, in halls or on stairs. Small plants may be placed on hallway window sills. Close hallway windows when it’s buggy, muggy, extremely cold or windy and when raining.
Residents may post notices on bulletin boards in the laundry rooms in 200 and 220 Congress and on the notice boards in each lobby. Important notices from the Board of Directors are placed in the locked cases just inside the front door of each entrance and are emailed to the building-wide Google Group.
Our patio is located behind the 200 building and is accessible from the basement. It is open from early spring through Veteran's Day, between sunrise and sunset. Please consider residents with windows facing the patio and keep noise to a minimum. Never prop open the door. You can re-enter the building with your front door key or by using the Butterly MX app.
According to the Bylaws of Congress Owners LTD, an annual meeting shall be held in May.
Residents are encouraged to join our Congress Owners Google Group by contacting the board. This email list is a forum for neighbors to share information, such as contractor recommendations, items for sale and neighborhood events. The list is also the primary way for the Board to broadcast information to our community. Note: posts are moderated and only courteous and respectful messages will be posted.
Check in with elderly or infirm neighbors if you’re heading out to shop or run errands when the weather is beastly, and bring packages to their doors.
The most common complaint the board receives is about noise, mainly because there is no insulation between our floors and ceilings. All residents have the right to the quiet enjoyment of their apartments. This means everyone should take care not to make excessive noise or create disturbances that interfere with the comfort of others.
How to Minimize It. In addition to obeying house rules requiring floor coverings and quiet hours, consider removing your shoes, walk softly and close doors quietly, including to hallways, closets, cupboards, and rooms. Slammed doors can be felt and heard several floors away. Assume your neighbors can hear you. Keep TV, radio, and stereo volumes down. Place speakers off the floor and away from common walls, and face them into your apartment, not your neighbor’s. Don’t chat with friends in hallways in “outside” voices.
How to Deal with It. If you are disturbed by a neighbor’s noise, speak with your neighbor or write a polite note explaining the problem and requesting consideration. Assume positive intent: Don’t assume that your neighbor knows that their noise bothers anyone. If a problem persists and has not been resolved between neighbors, notify the board, explaining the nature and chronology of the problem and the efforts that have been made to resolve it. Board members will attempt to help you resolve the dispute.
Quiet Hours are between 11:00pm and 10:00am.
The board hosts at least one sidewalk sale every year, ususally in June and sometimes again in the fall if there is interest.
Feel free to submit suggestions by emailing the board at CongressOwners-Coop-Board@GoogleGroups.com. Shareholders are asked to identify themselves by name, building and apartment number.
There are many ways to participate at Congress Gardens. Shareholders are encouraged to volunteer to serve on the Board of Directors, to accept special assignments as part of a board committee, or to volunteer for tasks that can improve our cooperative. Shareholders are encouraged to contact the board if they have an interest in volunteering.
Arrange for deliveries of large items to be made through the basement via the doors near the garage entrance, where there are no stairs, and make sure the basement doors are closed after every entry or exit. Deliveries by FedEx, UPS, etc., may be made through the front doors.
The separation of food waste and food-soiled paper from trash is now mandatory in Brooklyn. Starting spring 2025, ALL NYC residents will be subject to fines for non-compliance. Our brown composting bins are located in the basements of 200 and 220 Congress. To minimize pests securely close and lock the bin lids.
Congress Gardens is enrolled in the free electronic waste and recycling service operated by DSNY and designed to keep hazardous e-waste out of landfills. Donate household and office electronics (computers, keyboards, printers), smaller entertainment equipment (video game consoles, cell phones, MP3 players), TVs, DVRs, and related. Our bin is located in the basement hallway between the 200 and 210 buildings.
Regular Garbage. Put all garbage into sturdy securely tied bags before sending it down chutes. Never put open bags or loose garbage into chutes. Spilled garbage can cling to the chute walls and will attract mice and cockroaches, as well as cause offensive odors. Do not overstuff chutes and make sure garbage goes all the way down.
Not for the Chute. Diapers, pet waste (especially kitty litter) and glass do not belong in the chute. Glass and kitty litter will damage the compactor machines at the basement level, possibly requiring costly repairs. Discard diapers and pet waste (including kitty litter) and anything too large to go down the chutes, in the containers lined with black trash bags that are located in the basements. Do not send recyclables down the chute.
Ssshhhh! Please close the metal chute doors without slamming; drop your bag of garbage down the chute and close the door quietly in consideration of your neighbors. Do not use chutes after 11:00PM or before 8:00AM.
Bring recyclables (paper, cardboard, clean glass, clean plastic) to the designated containers and locations in the basements. Sort your recyclables and break down all cardboard boxes! When residents do not sort recyclables correctly our staff has to use work hours to resort everything. If you are physically unable to bring items to the basement, clean items may be left in the garbage chute closet on your floor.
Congress Gardens is enrolled in the free DSNY textile donation and recycling service designed to divert this material away from landfills. Donate clean clothing, accessories, and household textiles (towels, bedding, clean rags and damaged textiles). Donations must be bagged. If the donation bin is full, notify the Board. Never leave donations on the floor or on top of the bin. Our bin is located in the basement hallway between the 200 and 210 buildings.
Carts in the laundry room and garage may be borrowed to transport things to and from your apartment. If you use a cart, return it ASAP to the place where you found it. Do not leave carts in hallways or elevators.
Report broken laundry machines to BPC Property Management. Include the machine ID number. Ask a building staff member to post an “Out of Order” sign on the machine or post one yourself.
Please always be prompt about removing clothes from machines when cycles are complete. Turn off laundry room lights and fans when you leave.
Residents may donate books if they are in good condition and are likely to be of interest to other residents.
No travel guides, computer books, religious books, textbooks, dictionaries or reference books.
Do not leave boxes or stacks of books. Our libraries are not the place to unload books from declutting projects and when moving out. When shelves are full do not leave books stacked in piles on top.
Recycle books (without hard covers) in the mixed paper bins.
Donate books to charitable organizations such as Housing Works, Brooklyn Book Bodega, Out of the Closet, Goodwill, or Little Free Library. The Strand still buys books!
Non-urgent issues. Always report non-urgent maintenance needs to our building management company BPC Property Management. Examples include lights out in hallways or on the outside of the building, lack of heat or hot water, beeping smoke alarm, broken laundry machines, etc. BPC can then notify our super and building manager to take action. Reporting non-urgent issues to our super diminishes their ability to prioritize and work effectively. If you receive no response, are not satisfied with the response or have questions about maintenance issues, contact the board.
Emergencies and urgent issues. When something requires immediate attention or awareness, such as a leak or flood or stuck elevator, contact our super and/or BPC building manager. On weekends and after hours, leave a voicemail at 718-852-1616 for BPC Property Management to respond.
Shareholders are responsible for maintaining the interior of their apartment, and may be held responsible for damage caused to other apartments by leaks or overflow of water or gas from any pipe, basin, tub, or other equipment within their apartment. The corporation will accept no responsibility for the cost of materials and labor for any repair that is a shareholder’s responsibility. Building staff are not expected, as a matter of course, to make such repairs. Notify our super if a leak or overflow occurs so that they are aware of the situation.
Calling on our super and building staff to perform odd jobs. Our super has a huge job overseeing the operation of three buildings. It is not their responsibility, nor do they have time, to do work for individual shareholders such as to install and remove window air-conditioning units, deliver packages, move stuff and perform odd jobs. Please don't put our super or building staff in the difficult position of having to refuse work.
Congress Gardens provides exterminator services at no added cost to shareholders. Residents are encouraged to take advantage of this service. Signup sheets are located on bulletin boards on the first floors of every building.
Congress Gardens provides window repair services at no added cost to shareholders. Contact BPC Property Management to schedule.
Before moving in/out, contact BPC Property Management to 1) provide mandatory deposit and 2) to schedule your move and use of the elevators.
Moves may take place between 8:30am and 5:00pm Monday through Friday and between 10:00am and 5:00pm on Saturdays. No moves are allowed on Sundays or holidays.
See Building Policies & House Rules for the coop’s Move-In/Move-Out policy.
Congress Gardens is a pet friendly coop. Cats, dogs and other pets are permitted in accordance with house rule number 16. Pet owners please ensure that your pet does not interfere with the right of other residents to the quiet enjoyment of their apartments, or pose a threat to the safety of any person.
Pet owners and their walkers are encouraged to use basement doors when taking their pets for walks.
All pets must be on leashes and under the control of their owner and walker while in shared common areas and on building grounds.
Pets are not allowed on the lawn.
Owners and walkers are responsible for cleaning up accidents caused by their pets inside and outside the building and paved areas surrounding our buildings. Bring your pet out to the curb to take care of business, not to the sidewalk tree pits, the driveway, or the sidewalk.
Residents: make sure your pet walkers know and follow the rules!
Building Policies and House Rules
ButterflyMX is the property access system in use at Congress Gardens since early 2023. It includes directories that allow visitors to look up and contact residents by name. These directories are located at the three main building entrances and both basement doors. With the ButterflyMX app, enrolled residents can use their smart phones and devices to gain access to their building and to let visitors in. Video calls allow residents to see visitors, as well as grant managed access for deliveries and service providers such as dog walkers. Devices also control access to and from our garage and patio. New shareholders are generally enrolled as part of the move-in process. Contact the board to enroll.
In the event of an emergency (such as a plumbing leak), building staff may need to reach you quickly. Even if the building has your keys, we prefer to contact you before entering your apartment. Please make sure the board has your up-to-date phone number and email address, by emailing CongressOwners-Coop-Board@googlegroups.com. It’s also helpful if we have phone numbers and email addresses for one or more emergency contacts in case we can’t immediately reach you.
Placing anything on, hanging anything from, or attaching anything to a fire escape is prohibited by law. Nothing may be placed temporarily (such as fans) or permanently (such as air conditioners) in windows that lead to a fire escape. Fire escape window gates must be those approved by the Board of Standards & Appeals and must be correctly installed (no locks or padlocks are allowed). Other than building personnel and contractors, no one is permitted on the fire escapes except in emergencies.
To comply with NYC law and our bylaws, all shareholders and residents are required to provide the building with a complete set of apartment door keys. Keys will be used only to enter an apartment in an emergency and will be stored in a secured lock box under the control of the board. If you have not provided your keys to a Board member, email CongressOwners-Coop-Board@googlegroups.com to arrange a convenient drop-off time.
If you have questions or concerns about security issues, contact the board CongressOwners-Coop-Board@GoogleGroups.com.
When you enter or leave the building, always make sure the door from the vestibule into the building is locked behind you. Push or pull it until it is fully closed and locked.
Do not under any circumstances let strangers enter the building. If a caller identifies themselves as any sort of service person (utility, mail carrier, etc.), ask them to contact the super via the Butterfly MX directory. Always ask who the visitor is. Do not swipe anyone in without asking just because you are expecting a visitor or delivery.
Other than building personnel and contractors, no one is permitted on the roof except in emergencies.
Smoking of tobacco and clove products is prohibited everywhere in our cooperative, including in apartments and in all common spaces inside and outside of the building. This Smoking Policy became effective May 23, 2022.
Subletting your apartment or a room in your apartment for any period is not permitted without the approval of the Board of Directors. The board approves sublets only in extenuating circumstances, such as a job relocation or to care for a sick relative out of state. If approved, sublets are permitted for a minimum one-year period with a possible one-year extension at the board's approval.
Renting out rooms or apartments on Airbnb, Craigslist, or similar listings is strictly prohibited and is in violation of our proprietary lease, as well as many lenders’ coop loan agreements.