Can a coop do this?

[Cpadave]

My mom lives in a coop located in New York. Recently they send a notice that housekeepers are not allowed to use laundry facility due to covid 19. My mom is disabled and over 85yrs old. She has a home aid that comes weekdays to help with her chores including laundry. Today, someone stopped the home aid from doing the laundry. Could the coop legally do this? I have not been able to speak with management as they have not responded back to my call or email. I might understand housekeepers, but home aide for disabled person is not optional.
My next step might be to send them a certified letter once I know they can not do this.

Thank You for your help.

 

[2017ish]

Look at the governing contract/agreement for the Co-op. The wording of that document governs your question. Granted, anti-discrimination laws (local/state/national) may trump that, but that is the place to start.

 

[Cpadave]

Thanks for the reply. This was not issue in the past. So I am sure the coop allowed housekeeper and home aide to access the laundry in the past. This is a recent change due to COVID 19 they claim. So I am sure it not part of bylaws.

 

[cathy63]

There's probably no NY law requiring that health aides to have access to laundry rooms. There's also not likely to be anything in the coop governing docs preventing the board from taking what they see to be reasonable action in the face of a pandemic.

Have you tried making a phone call to the resident manager or board president and pointing out that this person is not a housekeeper, but a health aide to a disabled person who is not capable of doing her own laundry? I think I would try a conversation like that before sending a certified letter.

It may also be that there was a misunderstanding, and it was some other resident who assumed your mother's aide should not be allowed to do laundry rather than any official person in the building. She's likely to get questioned again, even if you straighten this out with the board, so you should make sure she knows to explain that she's not a housekeeper and she is allowed to do laundry for the disabled person she takes cares of.

 

[Cpadave]

Thank you for the reply. I had tried multiple times to contact the management without success. I will try again tomorrow. Hopefully it is just a misunderstanding and it will be resolved easily and quickly. Unfortunately this is not the first time the building is making difficult for my mom. She has been a good resident and always paid on time.
It is hard to believe that coop can do this to a shareholder who is old and disabled. This will definitely make me think twice when I get get old and move to an apartment building.

 

[Boho]

Aren't laundromats open in NY? Isn't that an option?

 

[rodi]

I wonder if protections for persons with disabilities will play into this. Your mother can't do her own laundry (can't not won't)... her aide has to do it for her.

 

[Cpadave]

Aren't laundromats open in NY? Isn't that an option?

Not near by and it would by more inconvenient.

 

[Cpadave]

I wonder if protections for persons with disabilities will play into this. Your mother can't do her own laundry (can't not won't)... her aide has to do it for her.

I wonder about that. I also wonder is any other HOA has implemented such a ridiculous rules.

 

[JoeWras]

One thing I do know a coop can do is wake you up. The chicken coop next door is my morning alarm.

 

[donheff]

Threaten to sue the SOB's if they continue to harass your mom. But do it nicely. Write the manager requesting that they make an exception and asking that they respond promptly so you can avoid engaging a lawyer to explore her options. In the meantime, do the laundry yourself next time and if challenged explain the situation to whoever inquires.