Bold programs can stop sick building plague.

It's flue season in New York. But after all the media hype and alarm about "sick" buildings, you're as likely to hear "call the building owner" as "gesundheit" when somebody sneezes in the workplace.

The fact is, building owners and managers have been aware of indoor environmental issues for a long time. Years before the media turned its cameras on stories about the dangers of electromagnetic radiation, the presence of lead in water and paint, indoor air quality and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), professional property managers began educating themselves about the issues.

Now, with the cameras on or off, property managers are proactively taking steps to educate their teams about the issues and limit their personnel and tenants from exposure to any potential dangers.

Health concerns are just one important facet for this effort. A prudent asset manager must always focus on preserving the longterm value of a property. Safeguarding the value of an asset and limiting any ownership liability are top priorities.

Further, lending institutions are as aware of environmental issues as tenants and owners. Banks and other financial institutions now require in-depth environmental audits of the properties they finance.

Awareness of indoor environmental issues by so many concerned parties requires a special effort by the professional property management community. Property managers who witnessed the hysteria over asbestos in the late 1980's are well aware that careful, systematic programs for the control of indoor environmental exposures must be introduced.

There is legislation currently proposed, but no laws have been made to set standards for indoor air quality in office buildings. And there are many health issues that have not yet been thoroughly researched or substantiated. Nonetheless, professional property managers need to address the concerns of their tenants, the safety of their employees and the protection of the longterm value of their buildings.

That is why professional property managers are taking responsibility for the initiation of such safety programs. We at Newmark have taken an aggressively proactive approach to indoor environmental issues. First, we have developed an ongoing educational seminar program to teach our entire roster of management professionals -- from the corporate property manager to the building manager and superintendent 'about the issues and potential dangers. Once educated about the issues, the property management team must the be vigilant in maintaining strict safet measures to limit exposure of tenants and personnel to potential dangers. Newmark's company-wide environmen tal management program ensures that each property comes under tremendou scrutiny to detect potential environmen tal issues. Once evaluated, the hands-o management team takes immediate step to eliminate or limit exposure to potetial risks.

Since standards on indoor environ mental issues have yet to be established through legislation, the real estate in dustry must set the stage for the consci entious treatment of these issues and any potential hazards they pose. Th. first step is education -- and maintaining a level-headed approach.

Through vigilant educational and pro active maintenance programs, prores sional property managers should be able to stem the tide of alarm about "sick' buildings while ensure the safety 0 their tenants, employees and the proper ty itself. Gesundheit!