Author, columnist, and condominium manager Marilyn
Lincoln pointed out in one of her articles published a few years ago that “The word “condominium”
actually means “joint sovereignty or
ownership;” another interpretation means “together for a common benefit.” If there is to be joint ownership
and sharing, there will also need to be a sense of a caring community, pride of ownership and a respect for fellow
owners…
Pride and commitment cannot be built and
maintained if the community is constantly in a “we vs. them” scenario.”
The “we vs. them”
mentality is deeply rooted in a “Top
Down” governing approach based on the principle of we, The Members of The
Board of Directors, issue instructions and you, unit owners, follow obediently
all the instructions. You do not challenge our authority since we rely on
experts, such as The Senior Property Manager and an army of consultants who are
so certain about the validity of their authoritative opinions that they do not
submit written recommendations. All our experts are expected to be treated by
unit owners as infallibles belonging to the category of “Semi Gods”.
Based on the
authoritative opinion of our experts, we, The Board of Directors, believe that
if we do not impose a 100% increase in maintenance fees we will have to slap
unit owners with a “Special Assessment”
that may reach a couple of thousands of Dollars. No owner should tell us why a “Special
Assessment” is needed when you have approximately $1.4 million Dollars in the reserve
fund of the corporation.
We, The members of
The CMC, based on the authoritative opinion of a retired police officer, who
became a self-declared “Safety &
Traffic Expert” decided to adopt speed bumps as the most efficient measure
to force cars into a full stop by the time they reach stop signs in the complex.
When an owner threatened to sue us because the “Safety & Traffic Expert” failed
to realize that bumps can damage the lower backs of people struggling with bone
density related medical problems, we decided to spend thousands of dollars to
convert speed bumps to speed humps because they have a safer impact on the
human body. When we, The Members of The CMC realized that speed humps are
destroying the asphalt and they have to be removed winter time to allow snow
ploughs to clear the snow, we decided to invest more money on a project called “Permanent
Speed Humps”. The implementation of the project is scheduled tentatively for June
14, 2017.
We,
The Members of The CMC, take very seriously the safety of our community and we
will spend thousands of Dollars to address the concerns of pedestrians/unit
owners complaining that drivers are not making a full stop at stop signs. But
when unit owners complain that too many illegal activities are taking place in
The Gazebo area near the tennis court, from alcohol consumption, to smoking, to
urinating on trees, to … we will not install a camera to monitor the area, even
if experts tell us that it can act as a serious deterrent of illegal
activities, simply because we the self-styled expert members of The CMC,
believe that a camera monitoring the Gazebo area will undermine the sense of “Community”
in the complex. It does not matter that we have more than 40 cameras monitoring
common areas, but that one extra camera should not be installed. Owners in the
complex may wonder why The CMC is so indifferent about illegal activities in
The Gazebo area, “Why do
they do this? Because they can!” “Why do they all get away with this? Because
they can!”
Do
The Gurus of The CMC have a legal obligation to eliminate illegal activities in
the Gazebo Area. Absolutely based on the following sections of The Condominium
Act:
Use
of common elements by owners
116. An owner may make reasonable use of the common elements
subject to this Act, the declaration, the by-laws and the rules. 1998,
c. 19, s. 116.
Dangerous
activities
117. No person shall
permit a condition to exist or carry on an activity in a unit or in the common
elements if the condition or the activity is likely to damage the property or
cause injury to an individual. 1998, c. 19, s. 117.
The
Gazebo area is not licensed for alcohol consumption, hookah smoking, and is not
designated as a public washroom so all the previously mentioned activities, and
a whole range of other illegal activities that we cannot list, do not constitute
a reasonable use of the common elements. Why after years of
uphill battle we do not have a camera? Because they don’t owe unit owners an
explanation. They are the “Semi Gods” in charge of running the complex.
The
Semi Gods expect us to engage in an act of idolatry by prostrating and
bowing our heads in a state of awe before, Boards of Directors, Property
managers, and lawyers who decide which unit owner should be destroyed
financially or which unit owner should be spared the execution. This attitude
of elevating something human (expertise) into the status of an infallible sacred
object, is the new form of “Idolatry”
the Captains of The Condominium industry want to impose on condo owners
throughout the province.
This
new form of idolatry expects unit owners to buy at face value the argument that
Board Members and Property Managers are the “sole arbiters of their own vested interests”. Consistently, and
multiple times in the past, unit owners were fed the argument that The Board does not have a legal obligation to
follow the spirit of the law and the ethical values implicit in the law.
Minimum compliance with the letter of the law, especially during AGM elections, is more than adequate for The
Board and The Property Manager organizing the election on behalf of The Board. That
is why also, during election speeches, Board supported members talk about personal
academic credentials only. No one mentions anything if the academic degree will
be mobilized for the ultimate vision of “serving
the common good”. No one wants to listen to the opposition’s argument that
academic degrees and employment credentials, if not employed for a higher
purpose/cause will lead to an arrogance and a vanity that will force you to
recreate God in your own image rather than acknowledging that we humans are
made in the image of God, and our ultimate purpose in life should be to pursue
the common good in a just and equitable fashion.
But
then again let us accept the fact that decision makers made it very clear to us
that Board elections are not “Public
Office” elections, and no one should assign any significance to moral
values. Years ago, captains of the condo industry advised condo owners that
Board of Directors in condominiums are not The Fourth Level of Government in
Canada, and Condominiums are regulated like “Private Clubs”.
“Buying a condo unit is also like joining an
investment club. You invest $100,000 to $1 million, or more, in "an
investment pool" and elect five directors, who have anywhere from great to next to no management and financial
skills, to look after your investment. If they manage the condo corporation
well, your investment grows in value. If they manage poorly, you lose money.
Like all other investments, there is a best time to buy and a best time to
sell.” http://condomadness.info/intro-club.html
So
instead of seeking a higher degree of compliance with ethical values and
principles, it may well be the ideal time for condo owners to surrender and accept
the fact, that we all joined a private club, and hopefully Divine Grace,
prayer, and positive mental attitude will safeguard our investments from the
corruptive influence of money and power, and by the time we are shipped to an “Old
Age” residential unit we still have our initial investment in our bank account.
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