“We are in the midst of a new chapter in the history of our country but it does have parallels in the past and it’s our aim to take you with us on this fantastic journey to not only survive the present but to conquer and expand your opportunities.  We have the insight, the hindsight and the foresight to be your guide, your mentor, your partner and your friend,” wrote KDA co-president Kalmon Dolgin on 30 March 2020.

What a trip it has been, indeed.  When the Covid-19 pandemic first gripped the New York City and Long Island regions in March, all offices were required to close down.  As it turned out KDA never stopped working. We began working remotely and we maintained our operations.  “Because KDA is essential to the buildings that we operate, our HQ office in Brooklyn stayed open throughout the pandemic,” said KDA co-president Neil Dolgin.  “There was always myself or a Dolgin family member and key personnel in the office during the work day to support our tenants, clients and staff, especially during the first months of the lockdown.”

Many of our properties were supporting essential services that were keeping the local economy alive, and we were there to oversee critical issues as our supers maintained the operation of the buildings. Food suppliers and PPE manufacturers in our industrial buildings stayed open to service supermarkets, bodegas and restaurants that were doing takeout.  Medical offices in our medical buildings remained open to provide essential services.

Our computer management system worked seamlessly to keep our brokers, bookkeepers and secretaries, most of whom were working remotely, connected with our clients and service providers. We also made sure that team members were protected, providing PPE as needed.

If a client needed to come by the office for a conversation, we were there to support them and social distancing and PPE rules applied. “People wanted to see a face sometimes, they didn’t just want to talk on the telephone,” Neil added.

We thank our staff and tenants who are the true heroes of the ongoing pandemic. These are the people who have continued to work during the shutdown in order to provide the essential services that are helping to keep New York City and Long Island running.

We commend our dedicated administrative teams, building superintendents and managers, and the countless support staff who continue to keep our buildings operating throughout the pandemic.

Photo credits:

Martin Sanchez, Unsplash.com, Sharon McCutcheon, Unsplash.com, Ivan Samkov, Pexels.com. Daniel Lee, Unsplash.com, and Alec Favale, Unsplash.com.