
Category: Board
Questions from Membership Meeting
Please see GTA responses to the remaining questions that we did not have the time to address at the membership meeting.
Question:
Is it possible to convince mgmt. of the necessity to post the numbers of our buildings on or closer to South End Ave? Taxis, deliveries, visitors spend untold hours going up and down looking for us.
GTA Response:
We will bring this up with management at our next meeting. Thank you for the suggestion.
Question:
My questions were about gateway staff over an elevator leaving us with 2 instead of 4. Can they do work during non-work hours and if you asked them, what did they say?
GTA Response:
We have discussed this with. Management. They do attempt to do this but are not always successful. They told us that they now throw recycling down the shoot, and it is divided at the bottom. Also, they are not picking up as often as before. We will raise it again with management at our next meeting.
Question:
Can someone please address why mgmt. will not be more proactive with managing the elevator disruptions? Namely publish the schedule for when an elevator is out of service for recycling pickups, moving in or out. Many tenants can be flexible when they dog walk or do laundry and would do so if they knew an additional elevator was out of service. Can recycle pick-ups be limited to no more than 30 min per session.
GTA Response:
We have discussed this with management and have asked that notification be sent to affected residents. They were not agreeable to this suggestion but will raise it again.
Question:
I am not sure if this has been brought up before. Does anyone have any information about the lovely dumpster that has been sitting in the ring road for the last 5 years at least? I have reached out to mgmt., and they only advise that I should email Tuminia. He does not respond. It’s unsightly and smells during the summer.
GTA Response:
We will discuss it with management at our next meeting and report back.
Question:
What is the plan for elevator upgrades in buildings with only one elevator?
GTA Response:
We asked last time but they were not sure yet. According to Greg email on Feb 22nd, below was his report
Low Rise Elevators – The low-rise elevators modernization project is scheduled for the spring of 2025. We are finalizing details with the elevator contractor to confirm how long the 345, 265 & 385 elevators will be out of service. With each of these buildings having only one elevator we want to be completely transparent with all residents as to the time frame these buildings will be without an elevator. There may be an option to reduce the work schedule from 15 weeks to 8 weeks. Once we receive the final scope of work, we will begin to contact every resident in 345, 365 & 385 to accommodate their needs accordingly.
Question:
During your next session with mgmt. Discussing security, please inquire about getting cameras in the stairwells.
GTA Response:
We have requested cameras in stairwells, but they were not agreeable to this suggestion.
Question:
Can someone address the cost of utilities?
GTA Response:
The electric bills at Gateway are so high primarily because tenants pay for their own heat (electric) in the winter and air conditioning in the summer; in many residential buildings, heat is supplied by the landlord and included in the rent. Gateway buys electricity and then submeters it to the tenants. Your electric bill will include the number of kilowatt-hours consumed and the per-kilowatt-hour price being charged. Under an agreement that Gateway has with the Battery Park City Authority, Gateway is not permitted to make a profit on submetering electricity to tenants, and the BPCA performs audits annually to make sure Gateway adheres to that agreement.
ConEd provides a portal on its website where you can compare your actual Gateway electrical bill with what the same amount of electricity would have cost you if you bought it directly from ConEd. That web portal is:
Although the GTA Board has not done a scientific sampling of tenants’ electric bills versus the ConEd portal, we have done spot-checks, and those spot-checks have shown that the Gateway bills were less than what it would have cost to have bought the electricity directly from ConEd.
Question:
I was told I cannot opt out of the health club. How can I?
GTA Response:
If you are a market tenant, you can’t. We have mentioned this in many of our meetings and they are not willing to waive the fee for market rate tenants. They charge this fee as part of the Amenities rider and it is for use of health club, 4th floor roof deck, Business center and north lawn. If you are QRS, you only pay if you choose to use the health club. When the Amenities Rider first appeared, GTA raised objections to this Amenities rider with Greg Tumminia (Gateway General Manager). Although he defended the Amenities rider as consistent with market for the market rate tenants, GTA continues to believe that this Amenities rider is inappropriate for all tenants, including market rate tenants, and is advocating for removal of this rider for all residents.
Building Community
Our mission
To work together to build and maintain a high quality of life in our community in every possible way for the tenants of Gateway Plaza.
Our history
The Gateway Plaza Tenants Association was created in 1982 to respond to tenant-related issues at Gateway Plaza, the largest residential complex in Battery Park City. Over the last three decades, GPTA has accomplished a variety of goals, including negotiating long-term rent-stabilization agreements with the landlord, thereby preserving Gateway as a family-friendly residential community for people with diverse incomes.
GPTA Annual Meeting
Join us at the Gateway Plaza Tenants Association Annual Meeting
Thursday, November 17th, 2022 7:00 PM
The meeting will be held virtually via Zoom – see meeting link below
The meeting is open to all Gateway Residents
Agenda:
- Updates by the GPTA Board
- Introduction of our Elected Representatives
- Community Discussion Q and A.
Send question submissions to gatewayplazata@gmail.com - Nominations and Elections of Board Members.
If you are interested in running for the GPTA Board, please submit your name and bio to gatewayplazata@gmail.com. Nominations will also be accepted at the meeting.
VOTING
Only tenants who are paid GPTA members may vote. Dues are payable on a calendar basis. If you have not paid 2022 dues, please pay now.
TO JOIN or RENEW
Membership in GPTA is $25 per household. Go to http://www.gpta.org/join
ZOOM LINK
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85893020140?pwd=cjhFYzBEOEZBRXhHWUppdmYzT29Kdz09
Meeting ID: 858 9302 0140
Passcode: 253547
One tap mobile
+16469313860,,85893020140#,,,,*253547# US
+19294362866,,85893020140#,,,,*253547# US (New York)
We hope to see you there!
Rosalie Joseph, Robin Forst, Bruce Katz, Jeff Galloway, Karlene Wiese, Audrey Comisky, Denise Harris-Ector, Honey Berk, Howard Grossman, Larry Emert, Pat Gray, Sarah Cassell, Steve Kessler
Gateway Plaza Tenants Association Annual Membership Meeting
Mark Your Calendars
Thursday, March 18th, 2021, 7 PM
Via Zoom. Details will follow.
The meeting will be open to all Gateway Residents
- Updates by the GPTA Board
- Introduction of our Elected Representatives
- Community Discussion Q and A.
- Nominations and Elections of Board Members.
If you are interested in placing your name on the ballot to run for the GPTA Board, send an email to
gatewayplazata@gmail.com. In the email include a statement about why you are interested in serving on the Board (Maximum 100 words).
VOTING – Only tenants who are current paid GPTA members may vote. Please note that dues are payable on the calendar basis so the 2021 dues are payable now.
TO JOIN or RENEW- Membership in GPTA is $25 per household. Go to http://www.gpta.org/join
We hope to see you there!
Rosalie Joseph, Robin Forst, Bruce Katz, Jeff Galloway, Karlene Wiese
Audrey Comisky, Denise Harris-Ector, Honey Berk, Howard Grossman, Larry Emert, Pat Gray, Sarah Cassell, Steve Kessler
GPTA February 2021 Newsletter
Feb 2, 2021
Topics:
- Class Action Update
- GPTA Annual Meeting
- Food Drive beginning Monday
- Clarification for QRS residents switching apartments
- Voter registration for NYC elections
CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT UPDATE
Many of you have asked about the credits from the Class Action that were supposed to be applied by Feb. 2. Because of a glitch in calculation of the credits, however, the credits have been delayed by a week or so but are expected to appear on your rental accounts by Feb. 15. The glitch was not a Gateway error, but an error by the claims administrator. This error now appears to have been resolved.
GPTA will be following up if the credits do not appear by that time.
In our conversation with management, we advocated for late fees to be waived and management agreed to waive fees for Feb.
Also, Gateway will not provide information to residents in reference to the Class Action settlement amounts and calculations. Such information should be provided by the resident attorneys.
GPTA ANNUAL MEETING
The Gateway Plaza Tenants Association will hold its annual meeting, by ZOOM, in March 2021 (date to be announced).
The meeting will feature updates from City and State elected officials, as well as the election of GPTA Board Members for the next term.
GPTA membership is open to all Gateway residents.
We will be providing information on the website in the weeks to come so you know how to join, participate in the meeting and vote for Board representatives.
(Perhaps you’d like to run for the Board? If so, write to us at gatewayplazata@gmail.com. Think about it!)
GPTA/ FOOD BANK OF NY FOOD DRIVE
Help fight hunger in New York City by donating food to the Food Bank Of New York City.
HOW YOU CAN PARTICIPATE
Deposit food items listed below in the boxes provided by FBNY from Monday evening, Feb. 1 to morning of Feb. 10. Boxes are locate in the lobby of the 400/375 building.
Vegetables | · Canned Vegetables (low sodium preferred) · Tomato Sauce · Vegetable Soups (low sodium preferred) · Broth (low sodium preferred) |
Fruits | · Canned Fruits (in juice or light syrup) · Dried Fruits · 100% Fruit Juices |
Proteins | · Beans – canned or dry · Peanut Butter · Canned Meat (chicken, beef, ham) · Canned Fish (tuna, salmon, sardines) · Canned Stews (chicken or beef) |
Grains | · Rice (white or brown, flavored) · Pasta/Noodles · Cold Cereal · Hot Cereal (grits, oatmeal, farina) · Flour/Cornmeal/Baking Mixes · Whole Grain Crackers · Couscous |
Dairy | · Dry Milk Packets · Shelf Stable Milk · Soy/Almond/Rice Milk |
Specialty Items | · Cereals · Nutrition Beverages (Boost, Ensure, Carnation Instant Breakfast) · Granola Bars |
Other Items | · Diapers · Feminine Products · Personal Care Items/Hygiene Items |
RENT STABILIZED RESIDENTS WHO WANT TO SWITCH APARTMENTS
GPTA has received inquiries about QRS residents switching apartments and whether the agreement covers the apartment or the tenant. The answer from management was as follows: “QRS Rights move with the resident if they transfer to another Gateway apartment at the end of a current lease term.”
NYC PRIMARY ELECTIONS COMING UP. ARE YOU REGISTERED?
Primary Elections for Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough President and Council Members is Jun. 22. If you are not registered, or want to declare or change party affiliation, here are dates to be aware of:
- February 14 is the last day to declare or change your party affiliation for the June primaries.
- May 28 is the last day to register to vote for the Jun. primary – register here. You can also check your registration status here.
We send our sincere hopes that you and your loved ones are staying safe and healthy.
GPTA
Rosalie, Robin, Jeff, Bruce, Karlene (Executive Board)
Audrey, Sarah, Howard, Honey, Pat, Steve, Larry, Denise
GPTA Board Delivers Donated Clothing

In the spirit of giving that characterizes the Gateway community, some of our GPTA Board Members gathered a couple of days after Christmas to deliver donated winter clothing to the Bowery Mission. The clothing had been collected for a few weeks in boxes in the 600 building lobby — so if you were one of the generous residents who donated, take comfort and knowing your items found a new home.
GPTA Election Results
Thanks to all of you who attended our annual meeting last week and voted in the Board election! We will be posting a meeting update this week, but meanwhile we wanted to let you know that the following have been elected to the new Board — which takes over in November:
Honey Berk, Sarah Cassell, Audrey Comisky, Larry Emert, Robin Forst, Jeff Galloway, Pat Gray, Howard Grossman, Rosalie Joseph, Bruce Katz, Steve Kessler, David Levine, Shannon McCue, Ninfa Segarra, and Karlene Wiese.
New GPTA Board Members
On October 2, 2017, the Gateway Plaza Tenants Association had its Annual Meeting and Election. The event drew 250 residents, a standing room only assembly, a great sign of strong tenant interest in issues related to life at Gateway. Our speakers included former Senator Daniel Squadron, Public Advocate Leticia James, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, City Council Member Margaret Chin, among others.
We were grateful to have had an unprecedented pool of highly qualified volunteers who would like to serve on the Gateway Plaza Tenants Association Board. After the ballots were tabulated, the results were as follows (the number of votes registered for each nominee is recorded to the right of their name):
Glenn Plaskin: 101
Karlene Wiese: 90
Rosalie Joseph: 85
Audrey Comisky: 84
Marc Gorman: 80
Shannon Mccue: 80
Steve Kessler: 72
Gail Vinisky: 67
Michael Boydston-White: 57
Lawrence Emert: 57
Honey Berk: 53
Mark Grossman: 52
Robin Forst: 47
Roseann Caputo: 45
Pat Gray: 43
Sarah Cassell: 40
Bruce Katz: 35
Jonathan Jossen: 30
Mia Cusumano: 28
Anthony Sepe: 28
Zach Humphries: 25
Ava Garrett: 23
As Glenn Plaskin decided to step down from the Board after many years of service, and one of the newly-elected members moved out of Gateway:
The GPTA president is now Karlene Wiese, who is backed up by first vice president Rosalie Joseph and second vice president Honey Berk. The board’s secretary is Robin Forst, and the treasurer is Shannon McCue. The Association’s board now also includes Sarah Cassell, Audrey Comisky, Larry Emert, Marc Gorman, Pat Gray, Howard Grossman, Bruce Katz, Steven Kessler, and Gail Vinisky.
We look forward to working with you!