Background
Ohrbach Group is a second-generation, full-service real estate organization that owns and manages a diverse portfolio of both luxury and affordable housing properties. Based in New York but with investments across the country, Ohrbach has 35 affordable housing properties with 6,807 apartments and nearly 15,000 residents.
The relationship with Ohrbach Group began in 2018 with the University Square Apartments in Center City Philadelphia, which did not have a video surveillance system. The company wanted to add video to the exterior of the property and to common interior areas. A key requirement of the project was to deliver a video surveillance system in which installation and ongoing costs could be minimized while still ensuring resident safety and comfort.
Upon completion of the University Square Apartment project, Ohrbach asked CM3 to add video surveillance to the Country Commons property in Bensalem, PA. An additional seven properties followed – with varying security system needs.
The Challenge
One unique challenge was the intercom system. For select senior living properties, Ohrbach wanted to provide a video intercom system without running cable and without relying on a mobile solution that would allow residents to unlock doors when they were off-site. For other properties, the physical property configuration was such that a video intercom solution could not be affordably deployed.
The Solutions
Intercom Systems
The intercom system presented unique challenges, and the solutions CM3 deployed were a dichotomy: Leading-edge tech for some locations and back-to-the-basics, tried-and-true for others.