my place or yours – workmen on common property

Have received correspondence from our SM on behalf of our EC.  It doesn’t mention power tools or workmen carrying out works on common property.  Nor does it mention parking in visitors car spots or in the driveway.  It is telling us how to park on the street.  I have already been in receipt of a note telling me how to park on the public street. 

And another matter on the note.  Please fold up your cardboard boxes before placing in the recycling bin.  No mention of rubbish/building materials left on common property.  No mention of rubbish not wrapped up before placing it in the bin.  But fold your cardboard please.

God help me.

I give up.

The latest from our esteemed informed EC is in regards to the security screen doors for each townhouse.  An existing feature, common property, the paint on these screen doors is peeling off in shards.  One flick with a finger nail results in an 8cm length of paint coming off.  My own screen door has half the paint missing resulting in exposed aluminium.  This is starting to deteriorate with a white powder substance evident on the surface.  

The EC has finally, after three years of quotes, managed to get the exterior painted for the first time in 14 years.  In regards to the screen doors they have said we could just “touch them up” ourselves if this bothers us.  Well it does bother me in more ways than one.  Not only is it unsightly, but one cannot just touch up aluminium.  It is more involved than that.  One has to scrap off as much paint as possible, sand the edges of existing paint, wash down with sugar soap, rinse, paint exposed aluminium with an etch primer, then paint with a paint suitable for aluminium.  All on a screen door with an intricate pattern on it.  Easy!  Or you can put up with paint falling off every time you open or close the door.  What a welcoming sight when one has visitors with the peeling paint on the screen doors and adjacent balustrades framing the newly painted surfaces!

Wouldn’t it be better and easier to get the doors either powder coated or replaced.  Getting all the doors done at once would be cheaper and if it is a matter of cost, a special levy to cover.  apparently not.  But our EC isn’t thinking about that or like that.  But we have to make sure we fold our cardboard boxes and be mindful of how we park on the street.

Beam me up Scotty, there is no intelligent life here!

Thank you so much just get on with it for your reply.  

Unfortunately I am alone in my thinking in this complex.  I have often stated elsewhere on this forum that the owners in this complex walk around with blinkers on believing that everything is OK.

The owner I have mentioned in this topic is the same one I have mentioned before in the past.  He has destroyed common property on numerous occasions.  When I was on the EC we got a strata lawyer involved.  The owners did not support this.  Thought it was  unfair that we “picked” on this owner and that we should have given him a chance. We gave him 9 months to rectify before contacting a lawyer.  We thought that chance enough.

I believe this idea about just touching up the screen doors was discussed at the AGM which I did not attend.  The owners here live in their own little world.  A world where they believe that they will never have to pay for anything because this is strata.  If I told you how little we pay in levies, despite an increase, you would be astounded.  I will say that I myself pay less than $2,000 a year.  If I had my way it would be about $2,500.  I can imagine everyone at the AGM just nodding their heads at the idea of touching up the paint on the screen doors.  Anything is better than paying more, isn’t it?

Yes I could take this further.  I have the knowledge and the support of those on this forum who have taken the time to reply and make suggestions.  But no one here is supportive.  Last time I tried to rally the support of an owner about the lack of maintenance in the complex, his big concern was that the garbage bins smelt.  Ah,  well that would be the unwrapped used disposable nappies I would think.  But no notice about that.  No one is up in arms about that.  Nor the peeling paint.  But don’t you dare not fold up a cardboard box before placing it in the recycling bin.

I find it embarrassing that people seek me out for advice on strata problems while I myself live in a complex that is dysfunctional and one step away from a dump.  I avoid strata discussions as much as I can now.  What can I offer when I have to sweep up the paint that drops off my screen door everyday.  The only support I get is on this forum.  And I am thankful of that.