Member Spotlight: Real Estate & Property Management During COVID-19

July 21, 2020

WRITTEN BY STEPHANIE EGGERS, FELLOW

A Better City members continue to step up during these challenging times to help residents remain reassured that services will remain unchanged and safety precautions will be adopted in properties. Real Estate and Property Management firms have a responsibility to keep residents and essential workers at their properties safe while providing financial assistance to those directly affected when possible. Their actions are also supporting those on the frontline with PPE shortages, providing an operational road map for businesses that occupy their spaces when reopening and moving from the building lobby to respective desks. This week’s spotlight focuses on the work of Real Estate and Property Management Firms in the A Better City Community that are actively engaged in providing the community and residents with essential services while understanding the economic impact of the pandemic on individuals.

PUTTING COMMUNITY FIRST

Our members recognize the unique opportunities they have to make a positive impact in the community during the fight against COVID-19 to aid the strained healthcare systems with PPE and emergency facilities as well as providing educational materials to the general public on how this pandemic is shifting the real estate industry and the greater economic system.

Avalon Bay is providing direct support and guidance for residents that have tested positive for COVID-19 or are in quarantine after possible exposure to limit the spread within the community. They have also published a list of resources on their website about general public health guidance, mental and physical health tips, and resources for those who need assistance with getting food or other basic needs.ⁱ
Colliers International and JLL has a multitude of resources and webinars about the economic impact of COVID-19, specifically on the real estate industry, how offices can navigate reopening, and greater changes coming to the economic system as a result of the pandemic.ⁱⁱⁱⁱⁱ
Hines pulled together their inventory of PPE from different properties and facilities to donate over 11,000 N95 masks, 38,000 surgical masks, and 52,000 surgical gloves to hospitals along the East Coast. They donated another 35,000 masks including 2,300 N95 masks, 43,000 gloves, and 5,000 gowns to hospitals in the West Region.^iv
JLL aided in the development and advancement of the production of N95 masks at a warehouse in Phoenix and accelerated production at a facility in Rhode Island.^v At the height of the outbreak in the Northeast, they supported the NHS in converting a university conference center into a critical-care 300 bed hospital in Bristol, CT.^vi
The Davis Companies was a key player in preventing the spread of COVID-19 throughout the homeless population of Boston. They granted the city access to the shuttered Kindred Care hospital in Brighton to provide 70 beds for the homeless at the height of the pandemic.^vii

ADAPTING OPERATIONS FOR EMPLOYEES AND RESIDENTS DURING COVID-19

In alignment with social distancing policies and the need to take proper precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19, our member real estate and property management firms have adopted policies that keep employees and residents safe while alleviating challenges in working from home and business closures.

Avalon Bay closed community amenities like fitness centers and lounges while increasing the frequency of cleaning of any common areas that remained open. During this time, they are offering tenants with financial relief by waiving late fees and setting up flexible repayment plans as necessary.
To protect employees, Avalon Bay, Hines^viii, and JLL^ix have provided maintenance teams that have essential roles with proper PPE and adopted work schemes that limit interpersonal contact while all other roles were shifted to remote work. JLL, recognizing that some employees may have issues logging on from home, distributed over 2,500 computers to workers in need to accommodate productive working from home. Avalon Bay has also transitioned to virtual viewings for prospective tenants.^x
JLL adopted retrofits within properties and offices, including hygiene screens at front desks and catering areas, to protect workers and prevent the spread of COVID-19 and are analyzing data on the impacts of COVID-19 on how people interact in these spaces.^xi
WS Development is providing financial program resources and assistance for their retailers and offering virtual consultations to help them through the necessary application process for different programs.^xii

PLANS FOR REOPENING

Although social distancing and face coverings in public will be a part of our world for the foreseeable future, our members are using their expertise to consider how workplaces and consumer locations can safely reopen and ensure employees will feel safe returning to the workplace.

Hines is providing support to the Workplace Operator Readiness Council (WORC), a global coalition that is developing guidelines to minimize the risk of COVID-19 spread in work spaces.^xiii
WS Development has published an extensive reopening plan summary for their consumer locations that includes detailed sanitization practices in facilities, and outlines PPE requirements for both employees and customers, although they are expected to continue to follow social distancing protocols. They have announced the continuation of curb side pick-up where demanded and advice to businesses that are resuming retail and restaurant operations on how they can use marketing tools to convey an enjoyable yet safe experience for returning customers.^xiv

We see our member real estate and property management firms working diligently to keep residents and employees safe while leveraging their capabilities to support frontline workers and the healthcare system. In the coming months, as the pandemic progresses in Massachusetts and organizations explore how to resume regular operations, they will rely on expert guidance from groups like WORC to develop strong reopening plans like WS Development has to provide customers with peace of mind.