Something that’s been raised via e-mail and in the comments is how our electric bills are calculated. Those who were here last year might remember receiving a $10,000+ bill from ConEdison in the mail noting that if electricity wasn’t paid, it would be switched off. (alarm bells) This was curious as QLC is officially the utility supplier for the building, and as we all know, our charge is added on to our monthly rent. But this opens up the question about how exactly it’s being metered:
The lease specifically states that we are to get our own conEd account. Our submetered electric bill ranged from $80 to $270 throughout the year. We very rarely ran the AC in the summer and never ran the heat in the winter. As a comparison, our last apartment that had all electric appliances ran $30-$50/month. I complained to Simon and eventually got him to send a technician from QLC to inspect. They never came back with the results. We researched this a bit, and it’s actually illegal for them to submeter without telling us, and having to pay QLC’s service charge.
Thoughts? Let us know in the comments.
Update: another such bill from ConEd was distributed among residents a few days ago, noting that the landlord would be instructed to cut off electricity if it was not paid. This implies that the management company, 110 Green Street Apartments LLC, is in debt to ConEd. We did not follow up on the issue, but if anyone did, please feel free to let us know what you may have found out.
Viridian Gripes 
I recently moved here and was surprised to see a non-ConEd bill for electricity. I was even more surprised to see that the bill was around $100/month, especially since I am hardly home during the day (and I don’t leave my lights on). This makes me wonder if my electric bill comes from a a reading of a fictitious meter.
If there really are submeters for each of the apartments, then we should be able to find them (they surely cannot hide forever) and can check the readings ourselves. Has anyone spotted one of these rare submeters recently? If so, please let me know where to look for one.
i have lived in several other developments in the last few years and i can tell that the VIRIDIAN is still the best choice
I was going to withhold commenting, but this entire website has no direct purpose other then letting people bitch about nothing.
I’m not saying the Viridian is perfect by any means, but in my 2+ years being here I must say it is by far one of the better rental buildings for the price in Brooklyn and the NYC area.
1.) Yes, landlords are going to occasionally raise rates, and as business owners they have the right to do this. Yes, paying more money sucks but is part of life.However, I am pretty sure if you are a good tenant said management company would be willing to negotiate or work with you on total monthly rent cost. However if you are the type of tenant who complains about everything, creates a website/blog to complain about everything, etc I can see why they wouldn’t want to give you a break in rent costs. I can only assume the people legitimately complaining about this are new to the city and haven’t lived in any other apartments in the five boroughs. Idle threats of “we all will leave in droves” is nothing short of childish.
2.) Electricity costs money, and those costs vary. I am pretty sure there is a monthly minimum attached to all electricity bills by the city anyways. Again spending money sucks, but to try claim the building is ripping us off is ridiculous. If people really aren’t “turning on the A/C ever” then why even live in a building with A/C? There are plenty of buildings where you don’t even have A/C.
3.) Yes, when the laundry breaks it is frustrating, but thinking we all have some sort or “right” to a premium washer/dryer in each rental apartment is a bit of a reach. I am actually surprised/impressed the building offered to pay 1/3rd of your laundry costs, the majority of landlords would never do that.Our washing machine recently broke down, now because of all the complaining/whining on this site I actually don’t even want to reach out to get it fixed, lest I even be associated with this silly lynch mob.
4.) This isn’t a “luxury” building. When the rent for a 1 bedroom is typically below $3000 that isn’t a “luxury NYC apartment” if you really want to live in Luxurious Luxury I suggest finding one of the many $6000+ a month apartments the city has to offer. With that said, management has seemed to be pretty good about fixing any outstanding issues: ex: Increased door man security, new doormen, new pool hours, more cleanliness on the roof(s), elevators being fixed in a somewhat quick time frame.
Also the building as a whole remains pretty clean and I haven’t even seen the hint of a bug, rodent or elsewise.
5.) Simon has been nothing short of great in my time here. Any fix/issue is typically resolved within a day. So the complaints against him seem disingenuous to say the very least. Michelle can be a bit difficult at first, but at the end of the day if you are nice to her/a good tenant she will reciprocate.
I honestly think the biggest inconvenience I had living here was I didn’t have hot water for about 12 hours. Also, I wish we had the indoor golf course the website mentions. Oh well.
Now I understand that putting together this site is your right, and everyone certainly has a right to complain. All I can ask is to just stop soliciting this site by putting these slips of paper under our doors.
We live in a pretty nice building, with albeit not perfect but pretty good management (esp by NYC standards). Building a site like this solves nothing.
You are right on some points and a moron in others. Yes, this was built to be a luxury condo that went rental. When that happened, they downgraded the appliances to off-brand ones, Summit refrigerator and washer/dryer.
I don’t use my dryer as I don’t mind air-drying my clothes. Hot air is bad for most fabrics anyway so I don’t complain but it would be nice to have a dryer that works properly.
When apts are advertised as luxury and the appliances don’t function properly, then that’s deceptive marketing. Any rental Landlord is obligated to fix or replace that malfunctioning appliance in a timely manner.
This site is only good to see how many others have had problems. Complaining to the Management company hasn’t worked so the best option is to complain to the news media e.g., Help Me Howard on Channel 11 (helpme@pix11.com) or Arnold Diaz of Shame on You/Channel 5. I don’t think this place is extreme enough that they would have any interest. If we lived without heat/hot water for months, then might want to come investigate.
Yes, this place is better than some walk-up railcar apt but it’s not better than other real luxury buildings. I lived in one of the Archstone building and their services/personnel blows this place away.
I want to keep this brief as I’m sure don’t agree and you come off as a idiot anyway…..
Then move back to the Archstone…
That might have been your experience with Simon but the majority of the time, things fall by the wayside.
I am glad to hear that you have had such a positive experience with the building and the management. I think it is important for there to be a record of experiences such as yours in addition to the negatives. I do not believe this site was put together solely for the purpose of bitching. I think it is helpful to exchange information and see that other residents have similar concerns. This site and its goals are still evolving. However I believe we will be taking (still to be determined) actions on major issues that numerous residents have voiced concern about.
I personally apologize if the card under your door offended you, it was not our intent. If you would like to email your apartment number to viridiangripes@gmail.com I will be sure to not include your apartment if we distribute anything else.
I could but I bet YOU couldn’t afford it….heh heh heh….
Good one. Derp.
Simon has been utterly horrible in my experience, and there have been many of them. Horrible. I’ve had to follow up on issues for 2 months literally, calling him weekly.
Has anyone else experienced issues with their electrical bill?
Those who moved in when the building was new were only paying $50/month so they had it good. Even with the new setup, I can’t complain. I’m in 2 bedroom, work from home and pay around $110-115 in the summer and $85-90 in the winter (I conserve by setting the temp to 77-78 degrees in the summer and 72-73 degrees in the winter).
I prefer these heat/ac units that are part of the wall vs. in my other apts that had combo heat/ac units in front of the window. My last apt (large 2 bed/2 bath 1070 square feet), the unit used natural gas and the bills were outrageous; $200+ for the gas and $175 for electricity during the winter and I was conserving like crazy, too and walking around with a hooded sweatshirt and pants and only used the units in the rooms I was in. Other tenants were paying around $250-$300 for their National Grid gas bills and higher for their electric bill. My summer electricity bills were around $120/month.
When I lived in Manhattan from 1997-2006, my electric bills in the summer were around $125-140/month and around $75-90/month in the winter.
So, for me, my Viridian electric bills have been reasonable if I consider all my past bills.
Keep in mind that for your AC/Heat unit to function properly, they have to be clean so vacuum the filters weekly and change them every 6-8 weeks. People forget about them and let the dust and dirt pile up.
We received an extraordinarily high bill this month. I’m interested to know if others experienced the same.
Mine was $102.xx when the past few months during the winter, it’s been $85-90. Keep in mind that summer electricity rates are higher so prepare for that (same thing with gas prices; summer grade is different from winter grade so they charge more for it).
Possible reasons why electric bills are high:
http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/expert-electric-bill-high-article-1.1051578
Has anyone had QLogic come to inspect their meter? What was the result? Management Office told me that if they come and they don’t find anything wrong, there’s a $230 charge for the visit including a travel time charge. I wouldn’t put it pass Viridian Management to try to stick tenants with a bill.
Does anyone read or write on this anymore?
Did anyone’s bill go up a lot last month? Mine went up almost 30%!! I wouldn’t be surprised if the Landlord was padding the bills to fill his pocket to make up for the reduced rent he’s been forced to swallow.
I am having a terrible time with the electric bills. They are OUTRAGEOUS! my last bill was $362. Prior to that they have been 210-270 for two people in a 2 bedroom. I very rarely use anything during the day. I asked what was happening with the management and was told they would look into-2 weeks later i called back and they new lady, Shilah (sp?) acted like we had never spoken. I called Simon and he said everyone was aware of the situation. I called back again after never hearing anything, and again Shilah acted like we had never spoken. She told me, “If I received a bill like that I would call the electric company.” Problem is prior to that I was told the electric company would not deal with me directly.
I called QuadLogic and the young lady said “all the charges seem accurate and you used more energy when it was warm.” We were out of town during the increased consumption. I was told it would cost $250 for them to come out and inspect the meter-if it was found that the charges were accurate. I decided to run a test I unplugged EVERYTHING in the apartment fridge, appliances, computers, etc. and was told they could read the meter remotely on an hourly bases after midnite day of use. I have not been able to get in touch with them since to hear the results and ask for a print out from that day.
I am beyond frustrated. I feel like i am being robbed for electric bill money. I checked the lease and it states we are supposed to use con-ED and the management has nothing to do with individual apartments electricity. They are in violation of their own lease, because of the sub metering. I am filing a complaint, and will continue to call and let everyone know the outcome.
I’m positive that the Landlord is having cash flow problems.
1) Maintenance guy told me that the people who used to wax the floors doesn’t want to work at the Viridian anymore. The only possible reasons is that they were not paid on time or too little.
2) A former tenant who moved out in late May tells me that Landlord is still holding onto his security deposit despite another a new tenant having moved in. Initially, he was told that they can hold it for up to 60 days and subsequently was told it could be up to 90 days! He checked with the Rent Board and they told him that the Landlord can hold it for a “reasonable period” and 90 days is not unreasonable. C’mon, there’s a new tenant so Management would have checked for any possible damages and charged for it.
Management are scheisters!
Well, I ran into the A/C maintenance guys who came to the building yesterday and asked them why they were coming in the middle of the summer when usually preventive work is done in the Spring and they told me that’s they kept telling Management. I bet money or lack of it that was the reason.
Re: Electric bill. My bill has been going up for no apparent reason and when I had an email correspondence with Sue Oppenheim, I asked her if other tenants had the same issue and she refused to discuss it (“I’m not talking about other tenants with you” and would not look into a history of electric bill problems. One would think that if there were so many tenants complaining about high bills that Management would think there was a possibility that meters were broken and try to have them looked at. They don’t care….all they care about is getting money in quickly and slowly dispensing money out to former tenants and vendors.
Re: Security Deposit. My Real Estate Broker friend told me that 30 days is normal, 60 days max to get it back. To avoid getting screwed by the Landlord, I suggest using the security deposit to pay your last month’s rent but the Landlord can mess with you by charging for things that supposedly need fixing. If you go that route, make sure you take pictures and/or a video of your empty apartment and floors with that day’s newspaper as proof.
News-the day I unplugged and ran my own test there was 1-2kwh of use per hour which totals about 700kwh usage in one month-which is about half of what they say we use. Unbelievable. Quadlogic didn’t seem to think this was a big deal and neither did management. I had to bitch and scream to get some action taken. I really would rather do anything else with my time.
I have been complaining since June about our bill our most recent was $499 and I called to tell them I am not paying that one either- we turned on our a/c exactly 3 times between the last 2 months. I made a complaint with the Public service commission-the response by the management is supposed to be in writing within 15 days and if I’m unsatisfied then I can make a formal complaint, which I’m on the verge of. They made an appointment for July 24th to come and test the meter. I was called last week and told by SHeila in management that I now will have to wait until August 31st for the test. I told her this is unacceptable. So we’ll see if they can come sooner-apparently QuadLogic is understaffed on the original date of July 24th-nearly 2 months after my first complaint
I spoke to an electrician friend of mine and he said that it sounds like our apartment is hooked up to the “house” meaning anywhere else in the building management doesn’t want to pay for. He asked me to take a picture of the metering system and e-mail him the photo. He also said to make sure the meter they test is the one they bill for-it should be numbered.
I’m so frustrated as this place is pricey and obviously shit is falling apart-here-like whoever finished the job of building it here did not care about the details. I love some of the amenities but i’m not willing to pay almost 20% of my rent in electricity for said amenities which are slowly being taken away like we live in a dorm.
I’ll keep you all posted. be well
Sue Oppenheim wanted to set up an app’t for QuadLogic to come an inspect my apt’s meter but I don’t believe there’s any meter in my apt for them to have to set up a time for me to be home. I asked the Handyman, Rubin, who thinks the meters are behind the Front Desk but he’s not sure.
If anyone knows where the meters are located, please speak up.
I was told the meters for 4th floor A building are behind my apartment in the utility closet on the floor, by Simon.
I have a recent Wall Street Article providing electricity rates for New Yorkers using 750KWH (what an average household uses per month) for July 2011 and July 1010. My last bill was 622KWH for $186.
Con Ed was the highest at $199 in July 2011; a 3% increase from 2010.
If anyone wants to see this article, I can scan it and email it to you.
Just an fyi: the Landlord appears to be charging new tenants a separate gas charge along with their electricity usage – looks to be another way of increasing revenue for them since they are not getting the high rents they thought they would get……
A building owner must first submit a petition to the Public Service Commission requesting permission to install submeters. A lot of these petitions are online , you can find them by doing a google search. If you google “Viridian submeter petition” you will find several documents in pdf format. Viridians owner claims that the tenants were notified by mail about submetering. You can file submeter complaints with both the owner and the Public Service Commission of NY State (their website has details) . People should feel free to gripe, just ignore some of the bitchy comments posted by Viridian cheerleaders.
This issue has always bothered me, especially since I was an earlier tenant who was told the electricity would always be $50/month (unfortunately this was never in writing). I took a look at the submeter petition as informed by the above poster, and one thing I noted is that we are supposed to be getting charged no more than the ConEd rate for SC1. From ConEd’s site it looks like their rate is 10.224 cents per kWhr – which looks to be less than half of what the cost per kWhr I am being charged is. I am going to contact ConEd this week to verify their rates, and will post back if I find anything new.
What did you find out about the KWH charge? My bill for July 2013 (billed in Sept 2013 rent) was outrageous – almost $200. More than twice my usual amount. I did not use the AC once. I’m rarely at home and never leave on the lights when I’m not there. There is something very fishy going on.
Sorry – meant to update with my findings and never did. After making a few calls, it appears that what I was being charged was actually consistent with ConEd’s rates. They are broken out differently on the bills – ConEd charges separately for supply and delivery, whereas it gets lumped together in the QLC bill – but they are actually the same amounts.
However, what still may be an issue is whether or not our submetering is actually accurate. I compared our KWH usage to some averages online and it seemed on par for the month I checked. But I am curious if everyone’s bills go up in the same months. Perhaps some of the building’s common areas are also being split into out bills. If we were to compare a handful of bills and see if the monthly changes are somewhat consistent, that may give us an idea.
In order to get my bills corrected I had to report the Viridian to New York State public service commission. It took months and I didn’t pay electric portion of my rent. I was in constant contact with Sheila, QuadLogic, and the public service commission. Suddenly, when the complaint reached the head of that department, I recieved a call from Sheila asking me to withdraw complaint and she “personally” adjusts my bills. There is something going on, not sure what but start filing complaints if you want resolution. My bills have been what one would expect from a 2 bedroom apartment since.
I’ve move out and heard that the new Management company had an electricity audit recently so could someone please tell me what, if anything, was uncovered or announced?
Thanks.
For past and present tenants who are experiencing or have experienced problems with the building, Management Office…etc, contact the Landlord, Jeffrey Kaplan/Meadow Partners, LLC. If enough people contact him and complain, maybe their will be changes. They hired a PR firm but the problems persist. Mr. Kaplan might not want bad publicity about his building’s problems, Management ineptness, electricity gouging, uncollectible security deposits…etc as it may deter possible tenants.
http://meadowpartners.com/our-team/principles/
55 E 59th Street # 1700
New York, NY 10022
Phone: (212) 317-5944
If that doesn’t get you anywhere, contact one of the local news programs who have consumer advocacy reporters who will act on your behalf.
CBS/Channel 2 News – Asa Aarons
NBC/Channel 4 News – Roseanne Colletti
Fox 5/Channel 5 News – Arnold Diaz
ABC/Channel 7 News – Nina Pineda
PIX 11/Channel 11 News – Howard Thompson
Hola chicos, creo que es un buen articulo, me ha aportado buena informacion y mas para un apasionado del marketing de continidos como yo, Por cierto, teneis un sitio web fenomenal, saludos.