Condo Media - January 2010 - 34

VENDOR SPOTLIGHT Kelly’s Property Services Community Revitalization Delivers Long-term Benefits for Attleboro Condo by Peter Golden T ake the turnoff to Woods Edge Condominium from South Main Street in Attleboro, Mass., and you’ll find a comfortable, multibuilding community situated in a parklike setting. A picnic area and swimming pool set on a park-sized lawn lend a sense of privacy and quiet comfort to this older, brick-built community situated next to conservation lands. Not so many years ago, Woods Edge’s eight multi-unit buildings and 96 condominium residences were given over to rental housing. But a booming real estate market and the relatively low cost of condo conversion were too much for a new owner-developer to resist. Yet Woods Edge’s numerous amenities and relatively low unit purchase price could not make up for years of limited maintenance and poor construction practices. A site study initiated by association trustees and their manager, the Dartmouth Group, confirmed unit owner reports and the findings of engineering consultant Noblin & Associates: When it rained at Woods Edge, it poured. Action Was Required Both roofs and windows on the property’s eight brick buildings suffered from age or poor installation practices, and decks were degraded by poor construction and lack of maintenance. Weather-damaged roof shingling, improper flashing and incorrectly installed windows were admitting winddriven rain and snow into unit interiors. Immediate action was required. Timothy Mailloux, chairman of the Woods Edge board of trustees, was no stranger to construction problems. A property and casualty insurance agent by profession, he knew a cost-effective revitalization of the property was very much in order. Bid requests issued by Noblin & Associates’ project manager Paul Martin led to the selection of Kelly’s Property Services. The choice was based on two criteria: cost competitiveness, and Kelly’s well-known reputation as a single-source provider of roofing, carpentry and related services. “Woods Edge has special problems,” says Fin Korhonen, Kelly’s most senior project manager, as he steps down from the platform of a massive hydraulic lift being used to deliver new shingles to one of Woods Edge’s buildings. “In consultation with the Woods Edge board, Noblin and the Dartmouth Group, we’ve devised an ‘all at once’ program in two phases. We’re ahead of schedule in installing new roofs, cheek walls, flashing, unit windows and decorative fascia panels. Once we ensure all residential units are weather-tight, we’ll completely replace all 18 decks in the property.” Unique Approach To gain a better sense of Kelly’s unique approach to remedying Woods Edge’s multiple exterior problems check out www.kellyspropertyservices.com. Along the right-hand margin of the company home page, you’ll find a roster of easyto-access slide shows — more than three dozen, in fact — that graphically highlight the astonishing depth of Kelly’s residential and commercial services. Perhaps an easier way to grasp the value Kelly’s brings to community revitalization is to imagine a master Mid-size residences at Wood Edge are attractive, but in need of revitalization ADVERTISEMENT

http://www.kellyspropertyservices.com

Condo Media - January 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Condo Media - January 2010