Co-ops

Elevator passenger age restrictions--urban myth or true co-op tale?

By Lucy Cohen Blatter  | February 24, 2012 - 7:47AM
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Co-op rules never cease to amaze us.

Over on UrbanBaby, a mom describes being chastised by the doorman for letting her child ride the elevator alone. Apparently, her co-op board has a rule that kids under 12 should not be alone in the elevator.

Speculating that the ban was likely the result of a "10-year-old who pushed every button on the elevator and pissed off the board president or an 11-year-old who got stuck between floors," some parents posted that they understood it both for issues of safety ("who knows who's going to get on or pull your child off?... There are strangers going in and out of your building all day and night") and annoyance (e.g. kids pressing every button).

Pffff, says another: "Idiot teenagers are more likely to do stupid things in an elevator than the average 10-year-old," while another scoffs, "Wow, helicopter building staff instead of a helicopter parent! Lower that chopper...."

We polled a handful of property managers to see if bans on tots in elevators are a common thing. Interestingly, none of them had ever seen this kind of co-op board rule.

So what do you think -- have you heard of a ban like this, or is it another NYC co-op board myth? Truth and fiction aside, should there should be age restrictions for solo elevator rides?

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