feature

By Emily Landes

On November 29, 2007, SFAA honored the best of the rental housing industry with a lavish dinner and awards ceremony at the Palace Hotel. Trophy Award participants were nominated by SFAA members, employers, friends (or even themselves). Each nominee was then sent a packet containing some specific questions. Nominees were encouraged to answer these questions fully and invited to include documents and other materials that might enhance their chances of winning. The completed packets were then kept locked up at the SFAA offices until the out-of-town judges were ready to review them.

These judges (from as close as the South Bay and as far as San Diego) carefully reviewed the submissions, selected finalists and then had the difficult task of choosing the winner in each category. The names of the 13 winners were then sealed in envelopes that were not opened until the event. (There were also three other winners selected by members of the Trophy Awards committee. For profiles of these winners, please see “The President’s Report” in last month’s issue of SF Apartment Magazine.)

SFAA is very proud of its first-ever Trophy winners and wants its membership to know a bit more about these accomplished and well-respected members of our industry.

Residential Amenities of the Year:
The Paramount
The Residential Amenities of the Year property is any San Francisco residential income property that goes the extra mile to care for its residents, providing superior programs, support or services to enhance the tenants’ environment.

With amazing views, gourmet kitchens and oak floors, The Paramount at Mission and Third streets is just the sort of luxury apartment building the judges were looking to honor with this award. “Everyone at The Paramount felt very proud to be associated with the SFAA and to win the award,” says Chris Bricker of Related Rentals Management, which runs The Paramount. “We won an award for best amenities, but the quality our management company is most proud of is the team of people at our buildings who offer excellent resident service. They deserve all the credit for keeping our amenities in great condition and making our residents confident that they come first.”

Industry Partner of the Year:
Property Management Systems
The Industry Partner of the Year Trophy is presented to the vendor or product supplier that has provided exemplary service to SFAA and/or its members. It is presented in recognition of the company’s extraordinary support of the residential rental housing industry.

SFAA could not ask for more support than it has received from Property Management Systems, which strives to help owners and tenants through education and outreach, including teaching many classes for SFAA and writing articles for the magazine. “For the most part, property management is complaint driven, so to receive a ‘pat on the back’ from peers working in the industry, who understand its ins and outs, is a reward that makes the company and its employees proud,” says Elizabeth Miller of Property Management Systems.

Administrative Professional of the Year;
Maintenance Technician of the Year;
Property Manager of the Year:
West Coast Property Management
The Trophy Awards dinner was a big night for West Coast Property Management, which took home three awards. All three winners said they were a little dubious about the comprehensive application they had to fill out after they were nominated, but ended up learning a lot about how they felt about their positions in the process. “I didn’t know what I was going to write,” admits Vickie Wong, who won Administrative Professional of the Year. “But once I started putting my thoughts together, I realized, ‘Wow, there is some meaning to my job.’ This is what I like to do. Everyone looks at it as just a job: you come to work, and you do what you do. But, after you have it written down, you realize there is a purpose and it’s a great feeling.”

A large part of that purpose is helping the people, whether they be tenants or owners, in the more than 300 properties that West Coast manages. Ken Webster feels that he won for Maintenance Technician of the Year not because he was the best or most experienced candidate in the city, but because he was best able to express the joys that can come from an often messy and physically demanding job. “I think I did pretty well in writing down what most maintenance techs feel about doing this work,” he explains. “We do it because we’re trying to make the best living environment that we can. We do a lot of hard, physical, dirty work, and you have to like doing what you’re doing if you’re going to make it at this job.”

Webster says he will definitely compete again next year, as the Trophy Awards are one of the few venues for his industry to be recognized. “I’ve never received any kind of award, or even heard of an award, for a maintenance tech,” he says. “We just try to do our job and hope that everything goes well and nothing leaks!” Also entering again next year will be Tai Chi, who won for Property Manager of the Year. But, even though he will enter, Chi says he actually hopes not to repeat his win. “I would like to see another property manager get the award because I think it’s a recognition for all the property managers, not just one person,” he says, adding that he and his fellow property managers are used to getting attention only when things go wrong. “I think that the industry recognizing property managers is a good thing and hopefully it will motivate property managers to not just maintain the building, but be proud of what they’re doing.”

Leasing Consultant of the Year:
Gavin Coombs
The Leasing Consultant of the Year can be any leasing professional or manager whose primary responsibility is leasing San Francisco residential income properties. The leasing consultant can be either a dedicated, on-site employee, or someone who is responsible for the leasing of many units in multiple properties.

The latter description does a good job of beginning to describe Gavin Coombs. Not only has he been a busy leasing professional with scores of San Francisco clients, but he’s also a real-estate broker, an agent and even an interior designer. Even with all of these different tasks vying for his attention, Coombs says, “100% of my focus is placed on optimizing owner interests.” Coombs is “supremely elated” to win this award and even says that it is the “crowning achievement” of his real-estate career. Like many of the winners this year, he hopes to be nominated again the next time around. “I’ll never tire of accolades and recognition for my work,” he explains.

Resident Manager of the Year:
Marie Bouquet
The Resident Manager of the Year can be any resident manager living onsite that is responsible for the management of a single San Francisco residential income property. The resident manager may, or may not, also supervise other onsite staff and is likely involved in the leasing, bookkeeping and physical maintenance of a property.

As the resident manager of the Grosvenor Atrium, an 80-unit corner building at Broadway and Franklin, Marie Bouquet’s resident retention and skilled community relations are just a few of the reasons she won this award. Bouquet felt that her pride in the property translated into her application and she feels happy and rewarded at having won the award. “It gives me encouragement and inspiration,” she says.

Green Building of the Year:
Bob Mayer
The Green Building of the Year is a San Francisco residential income property that has made exceptional efforts to support environmental and other conservation programs. The property must be a model of energy and environmental efficiency.

Bob Mayer has certainly achieved these green goals in his Edwardian building. He installed independent meters so that tenants pay for their own actual use of water, gas and heating; he insulated most of the building; he installed fluorescent lighting throughout the building, with motion sensors to keep the lights off when they are not needed; and he installed a new water delivery system. It takes a lot of work to make all those upgrades happen, so Mayer invited his workmen to the Trophy Awards dinner and reports that they were “simply ecstatic” when the building won. Mayer keeps the trophy right by his desk, where he can be reminded of all he’s achieved, even as the bills from that achievement are still rolling in. “I look at it every day and it brings me happiness as I pay for the remaining construction bills
at the property, which doesn't bring me happiness,” he jokes.

Independent Owner of the Year:
Richard Shorkey
The Independent Owner of the Year can be any owner-operator of San Francisco residential income property. The independent owner may employ onsite managers or other staff, but must retain the primary decision-making responsibilities of the property.

Trophy winner Richard Shorkey is not only the primary decison maker at his own properties, he also looks after buildings owned by his independent-owner friends. For more about Shorkey, turn to page 22.

Property Management Firm of the Year;
Repositioned Property of the Year:
CitiApartments
The Property Management Firm of the Year must demonstrate exemplary service to its tenants, clients and the industry. The Repositioned Property of the Year is a San Francisco residential income property that has completely changed its character and, in doing so, enhanced the conditions in which the residents and neighbors reside.

Both of these awards really concern customer service, whether the customer is a tenant in need of an upgraded building or a landlord in need of management for that building. Clearly, this is an area where CitiApartments excels. “We’re proud of our employees and the service they provide,” says Jim Naylor of CitiApartments. “Any property management company can fix a pipe, snake a clogged toilet or change a light fixture. The spirit of CitiApartments exceeds these mechanical, mundane activities.”

Naylor adds that the company endeavors to “create community” in its buildings, a goal that was certainly achieved at The Saratoga, the Repositioned Property of the Year. For more information on The Saratoga’s transformation, turn to page 16.

General Manager of the Year;
Maintenance Manager of the Year:
Trinity Properties
The General Manager of the Year is any professional manager who oversees the onsite staff of multiple properties but does not necessarily live at the property, and who reports back to senior managers, most likely at a corporate level. The general manager is usually employed by one firm, but oversees the operations of several  properties.

As the general manager for Trinity properties, that description fits Craig Waddle—a certified Residential Manager Professional—perfectly. From charming Victorian apartment houses to luxurious high-rise towers, from Pacific Heights to the Mission, Waddle somehow manages to keep all of Trinity’s properties looking great and its tenants, who include both longtime residents and short-term corporate clients, happy with their units.

The Maintenance Manager of the Year is any maintenance supervisor directly responsible for overseeing a maintenance staff working to maintain, repair or improve San Francisco residential income properties.

Trophy winner Mariusz Gajdka manages all of Trinity’s properties, overseeing not just maintenance but also painting, woodworking and janitorial departments. Since 2004, when he first came on board, he has redesigned hot and cold water distribution and ventilation systems, and also created a new system for the regular maintenance of Trinity’s elevators.

 

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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of SFAA or SF Apartment Magazine. Emily Landes is the managing editor of SF Apartment Magazine and Rental Housing. Copyright © 2008 by SF Apartment Magazine. All rights reserved.