Fifth Ave. co-op board sued for $600K over washing machine

 Helen Siller, 63, is taking her white-glove building’s co-op board to court over a washing machine. 

The $600,000 lawsuit comes after the board at 11 Fifth Avenue forced Siller to replace her broken Maytag washer with one of three, pricey approved brands, according to the New York Post. Siller had allegedly been promised by Diane Nardone, the co-op board president, that her washer was grandfathered in and not subject to the new house rules.

“This makes as little sense to us as it does to you,” Siller’s lawyer husband Stephen Siller told the Post.

According to the Sillers, installing an approved high-voltage appliance – a Miele, Bosch and Asko, which start at around $900 – would require expensive electrical work. They simply want to purchase another $300 to $400 Maytag.

“If the board thinks I am going to get a self-venting anything and patch the hole at my expense, we will let a court decide” Stephen wrote in an email to board president Nardone on Feb. 3.

Nardone fired back “I do not appreciate your tone or your threats. Go to court. We’ll let a judge decide whether our house rules and our alternation agreement should be enforced,” according to the suit. [NYP] –Christopher Cameron