Sinatra & Company Management, (“SCM”) cares deeply about the safety and health of our residents. In response to the increasing spread of Coronavirus we wanted to make you aware of the precautions SCM is taking while maintaining a consistent level of service to you, our residents.

Update as of March 27, 2020

Sinatra and Company Management (“SCM”) continues to stay informed about the Coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic. The health and safety of our residents and employees is of the utmost importance, and we therefore wanted to share with you guidance to assume all people and places that you come in contact with could be a source of exposure to COVID-19.  

We encourage residents to use common sense measures such as:

  • Follow your local news, local health department, and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 2019 Novel Coronavirus website for additional updates and information.
  • Stay alert for known exposure to, and symptoms of Coronavirus, and follow any self- quarantine and health care directives from your health care provider, or the CDC.
  • Use good hygiene practices at home, and wipe down any sources of contamination such as individual unit doorknobs, mail slots, or mats.

To reduce risk of resident exposure to COVID-19:

  • SCM has been in contact with local health officials, and national industry authorities for recommended protocols related to multifamily and commercial building operations.
  • SCM has increased cleaning activities, prioritizing the disinfecting of common areas, including, but not limited to: All high-touch areas such as faucets, door handles, desks, chairs, dog bag dispensers, package lockers, leasing/business offices, mailboxes, laundry rooms and other areas that residents and guests access, with EPA-registered cleaning agents.
  • SCM has ordered the prioritization of work orders to urgent maintenance requests only in order to reduce chances of cross-contamination; SCM will notify you when routine service requests will be available.

If you have any questions about protecting yourself from COVID-19 in your community, you should contact the local health department or the CDC.

As of Tuesday, March 17, 2020 the Buffalo, NY Headquarters and garden community leasing offices in NY, IL, IN and TX will be closed to all incoming traffic until further notice.

    1.  Currently all office staff will be present and working behind the scenes via phone and email.
      At the garden style communities, all common areas will be closed until further notice, including gyms, recreational space, computer areas, social rooms, etc.
    2. For the residents of Castle Point Apartments in South Bend, IN, we will open the office area to pick up packages and access the laundry card machine from 10 am – 11 am and 5 pm – 6 pm Monday through Friday. Weekend access will be from 12 pm – 1 pm on Saturday. If possible we ask that you load your laundry card for an extended timeframe and delay any non-essential package deliveries moving forward.
    3. Residents should pay rent online using Rentcafe.com or by using the drop box at the Buffalo HQ or at the leasing office in your community. If dropping off in the drop box, please make certain to include your name and your apartment number for proper identification. Please see the Rent Cafe online payment instructions below.
      Please note with your payment if you are requesting a receipt and then receipts will be emailed, and or hard copy mailed if you do not have access to email.
    4. Work orders should be requested online using Rentcafe.com or by phone. Staff will be inquiring if anyone in the home is sick prior to conducting the work order.
    5. Currently all maintenance staff are onsite and working to respond to essential work orders that involve water, toilets, heat or electric. These work orders will be addressed in the standard manner and timeframe typically followed at your property.
      Maintenance associates will be taking extra precautions to protect you and themselves against the spread of any germs. Staff will respond to all work orders wearing masks and gloves and sanitizing doorknobs and surfaces as they work. If someone in the home is sick, we ask that they remain in a different room, away from staff while they are working.
      Residents are urged to refrain from any non-essential work orders as we all do our part to avoid any unnecessary interaction.
    6. For the safety of everyone, we remind you to open doors with your forearm or elbow, push elevator button with your knuckles, and cover your cough or sneeze with a clean tissue and immediately discard of it. It is best to ride the elevator alone when possible or a maximum of 3 people at a time.

As the Sinatra and Company mission states, we are rooted in PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST. During this difficult time, we will do everything we can to balance the needs of you, our residents, as well as our employees. We truly appreciate your patience and cooperation as we work together through this uncertain time. We will continue to communicate on a regular basis, and we welcome any concerns or questions you might have. Please contact your Property Manager and we will do our best to get back to you within 24 hours. Together, we will get through this.

Online Rent Payments
We are asking that all residents make every effort possible to utilize our online rent payment option. Please note that there is no additional cost to you to pay your rent online. If you are not already utilizing this convenient payment method, please follow the simple steps below:

    1. Go to rentcafe.com
    2. Go to Resident Login in the upper right-hand corner
    3. At the next screen click Send Verification and enter your email address
    4. You will then receive an email with further instructions on how to register
    5. Please contact your Property Manager if you are unable to access
    6. If you are unable to pay online, all offices at this time remain open for rent payment drop off or you can send via USPS.
      Please note all rent payment due dates remain in effect as noted in your lease.

 

Property Cleaning
Our maintenance staff will be providing more frequent cleanings of common area doors, elevators, railings and surfaces that tenants will be in contact with. We urge all tenants to follow the “common sense” preventative steps so that together we can avoid any further spread of germs.

 

Plumbing Maintenance Violation Prevention
Due to the recent outbreak of COVID-19 and the limited supply of toilet paper it is imperative that we don’t flush anything other than toilet paper down your toilet.

This includes wet wipes, feminine products, paper towels, and other paper products regardless of what the label says, they can damage the plumbing system. Flushing of these items may not cause an issue right away as they could go down the toilet just fine, without the need for a plunger. The problem comes later, when they move through your sewer system.

We will continue to maintain property work orders in an expedient manner and any clogged toilets due to flushing of these items will create unnecessary issues. This also creates unnecessary risk to our plumbers who would be required to snake or replace damaged piping due to clogs.

Improper use of lavatories is a lease violation. Those found in lease violation will be charged for any expenses incurred due to the violation.

 

Communication
SCM will post all Coronavirus communication to our residents on our website (SinatraAndCompany.com) as well as sending information through Rent Café to your personal email on file. Please check these resources if you have any questions or concerns.

From the CDC’s Website, “Prevention & Treatment”

The CDC recommends everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of all respiratory diseases, including:

  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth.
  • Stay home when you are sick.
  • Monitor yourself for the symptoms:
    Fever, Cough, Shortness of Breath
  • Employees who have symptoms of acute respiratory illness are recommended to stay home and not come to work until they are free of fever (100.4° F [37.8° C] or greater using an oral thermometer), signs of a fever, and any other symptoms for at least 24 hours, without the use of fever-reducing or other symptom-altering medicines (e.g. cough suppressants).
  • Employees should notify their supervisor and stay home if they are sick.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
  • Follow CDC’s recommendations for using a facemask.
  • CDC does not recommend that people who are well wear a facemask to protect themselves from respiratory disease, including COVID-19.
  • Facemasks should be used by people who show symptoms of COVID-19 to help prevent the spread of the disease to others.
  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
  • If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.

These are everyday habits that can help prevent the spread of several viruses.

The CDC is currently reporting:

“The severity of illness or how many people will fall ill from COVID-19 is unknown at this time. For the general American public, such as workers in non-healthcare settings and where it is unlikely that work tasks create an increased risk of exposures to COVID-19, the immediate health risk from COVID-19 is considered low. The CDC and its partners will continue to monitor national and international data on the severity of illness caused by COVID-19, will disseminate the results of these ongoing surveillance assessments, and will make additional recommendations as needed.”

The entire SCM organization is diligently staying abreast of all recommendations and preparing for any changes to the CDC’s severity and health risk levels. We are actively preparing a plan should the need arise in response to increased risk or exposure to any of our properties to protect our residents and our employees.

See below for further resources on the Coronavirus:

Thank you for your attention to this serious issue and we appreciate you doing your part to keep your property and your neighbors safe and healthy.