We Were Recently Made Aware Of Posts On Facebook At “Edgewater (Chicago)” Accusing Our Door Staff Of Discrimination

Specifically, a resident claimed that for 6 years now she has suffered at the hands of two employees who were not buzzing her in at the front desk. The context of the post was that this was being done purposefully. That the employees were targeting and discriminating against her, and that it was her observation that Caucasians were let in without obstruction. In fact she claims she stood outside one day and watched, and that our staff did not buzz in any people of color.  Additionally, this resident described speaking to a resident who wears a hijab, who in conversation apparently alleged she suffered from the same behavior. Now, she describes being on a “divine” crusade to fix the problem.

1. First we would like to say, posts like this are mean-spirited, unfair and unproductive. We cannot and would not reply directly to social media posts like this – but we will address it here for our Owners and residents. Even if we could respond directly, no good would come from it. The damage is done, despite that we were not given any opportunity to investigate, confirm and address the alleged problems. We learned of this after it was already posted and read by people who just accepted it without question and assumed it to be true.
2. Perhaps more importantly this is nefariously unfair to our employees. Without giving them a fair and reasonable opportunity to respond, the damage is done for them too. Now, a preset perception of our employees will circulate whether the allegations are true or not, demoralizing them and subjecting them to unnecessary negativity. Well, all employees have the right to a fair and reasonable opportunity to address any complaints about their service and behavior. If we verify any problems we need a reasonable opportunity to provide them guidance, counseling and if appropriate progressive discipline. By circumventing this process, the resident unjustly tramples on their rights.
3. Finally, it turns out this was nonsense. Our Security and Operations manager, Scott Turton, after learning about this post, contacted the resident. After discussing this, she shared the date and time of a recent event where she allegedly entered and was not buzzed in. This turns out to be untrue – the employee did buzz her in. It is true he did not buzz her in immediately, but he was assisting a Health Club Member at the time. In the surveillance, you see he eventually noticed the resident and hits the button. So, we decided to look back further. The last time this resident actually used her fob in the lobby was July 3rd. And at that time, it was a security guard who was busy assisting someone else. This is not discrimination…it’s bad timing.

In an effort to be as objective as possible and take a more critical look at this, we identified the other resident who wears a hijab. The last times this resident fobbed in was July 8th, July 3rd and June 30th. In every single case, the employee at the desk was busy, but eventually noticed the resident and reaches to click the button about the same time the resident swipes their fob. One day he is cleaning out old permission to enter forms, one day he is on the phone, and on another date the employee is going on break and being covered by the guard – the guard was coming around behind the desk at time, and it just so happens the resident beats him to the punch with her fob.

So, despite this rogue Facebook post, it turns out there is absolutely no evidence of any wrongdoing or discrimination on the part of our staff. It might be annoying to occasionally have to fish your fob out to enter, sure. But considering the facts we can verify with fob records and surveillance, the opinion expressed in the FB posting is a misunderstanding and one we would have preferred brought directly to Management’s attention so we could provide more direct and prompt consideration to our residents, owners and staff.

Management and the staff are not perfect. We have investigated reports in the past of residents and Owners saying the staff at the desk ignore them and do not buzz them in. We have found situations where we believe the staff should have been more attentive and courteous. We provided counseling and guidance appropriate to each situation and let the resident know we would work to improve their experience.

However, most times we investigate, the answer is the same – the staff is attending to other business – people in front of them – the phone – deliveries – something happening on one of the 42 camera feeds that are in front of them! They have two hands, two eyes and two ears. Not eight. No one should expect they are entitled to be buzzed in 100% of the time. They may not know you. They may not see you coming through. They may be attending to other business they are responsible for. That’s why there are key fobs, and you should always be prepared to use them when you are coming and going.

Rather than attacking our team with misleading social media posts, and creating a needlessly adversarial environment, let us do our job! We openly welcome the opportunity to address any situation where you feel our team was lacking. If you feel like they are purposefully not buzzing you in – or ANYTHING. That’s why we are here, we just need a reasonable opportunity to do so. You can write us anytime at parktowercondo-mgmt@habitat.com, and we will look into any situation you feel needs to be addressed.

Please partner with us when there are problems or negative interactions with our staff. Let us do our jobs to improve the Park Tower living experience.