Most of my colleagues in multifamily residential buildings have probably been inundated with advice about responding to Covid19.  Corporate leaders and whatever property management association you belong to will have specific protocols for dealing with the pandemic.  

However, I did get one request for some info, so if there’s one property manager out there, maybe there are two…

The Center for Active Design (CfAD) came out with “Five Essential Strategies for Optimizing Buildings for Covid19” earlier this month.  In addition to those essentials, I’ll throw in another seven that are worth considering.

CfAD Five Strategies for Optimizing the Building

First the advice directly from CfAD:

1. Increase ventilation: While recirculating air has become the default in our buildings, ventilating with outdoor air is vital to diluting airborne contaminants and decreasing disease transmission rates.  
2. Post educational handwashing signage.  
3. Strengthen cleaning protocols: Adjusting cleaning protocols to meet the demands of the current situation is another valid approach.  Increase cleaning frequency, replenish cleaning supplies ahead of time, and ensure that bathrooms stay stocked with hand soap, hand sanitizer, paper towels, and tissues.
4. Maintain optimal humidity: Evidence suggests that viruses survive better in low-humidity environments.  Buildings can increase humidity via heating and ventilation systems to maintain an optimal range of 40 to 60%, or by purchasing and installing portable humidifiers throughout.
5. Filter indoor air: While changes to air filtration practices may take more time to implement, it is worth mentioning as this approach can help property managers, architects, and engineers plan for the future.  Research suggests that filtration of recirculated air may be effective in reducing transmission of airborne infectious diseases. When operating at their full potential high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters can remove 99.7% of particles that are 0.3 microns or larger.

Seven Operational Suggestions for Dealing with Covid19 in Multifamily Buildings

As the CfAD essentials are attended to, consider these operational suggestions to limit exposure as well:

1. Establish alternate communication channels between staff and residents: Use phone, email, a drop box to limit contact.
2. Communicate regularly and clearly about the situation: This should focus on the pandemic AS IT APPLIES TO YOUR BUILDING.  Don’t try to be FoxNews or CNN.
3. Follow social distancing requirements for your jurisdiction:  The community room and exercise room are probably not essential, but the laundry room is.  Publicize clear guidelines about how to maintain social distancing within those essential spaces.  Don’t forget about the elevators, stairwells, mail room and hallways.
4. Support resident efforts to interact through virtual social events, exercise sessions, and fun activities.  We are all susceptible to adverse outcomes from isolation and loneliness. Look for creative solutions. (See how community design impacts loneliness.)
5. Encourage residents to spend time outdoors in nature .  Everyone will be happier! If you have outdoor amenities, they need to be included in your upgraded cleaning protocol and social distancing guidelines. In the case of playgrounds, they may need to be shut down.
6. Consider distributing wellness kits for each resident household.  Think hand sanitizer, wipes, tissues, face masks, exercise bands, tea bags, and something to elicit a smile.
7. When you have a case of Covid19, or someone who has been exposed and must self-quarantine (employee or resident), consult with the local health authority.  Follow all appropriate privacy guidelines. Limit any service requests unless it is an emergency. Consider emergencies as a condition that will result in damage to the property or threaten a person’s life, safety or well-being.  Make sure staff has appropriate personal protective equipment when responding to such service requests.

Other Guidance

In addition to these, there are guidelines from the business and Human Resources perspective. These can be far reaching but are sure to include disaster and business continuity planning, employee safety and leave policies.  

For those without a solid set of corporate protocols, start with the http://CDC.gov and property management associations then adapt your own.

Over time, guidance for how best to respond to this situation, and prepare for the next epidemic, has grown. This will continue.  Some of these strategies will likely become standard operating procedures as we face a different world.

Whether it’s Covid19 in multifamily buildings or some other infectious disease, our response can make all the difference.