Condo Smarts: It's essential to maintain parking garages

Dear Tony:

Our Victoria strata corporation approved $5,000 in our budget this year for the parking garage to be power washed and cleaned. Our strata council decided not to proceed with the work to save money, and as we are approaching the end of the year, we actually will have a $30,000 surplus! What’s the point of approving the budget when a strata council doesn’t follow it?

— Jacquie M.

Dear Jacquie:

When a strata corporation approves an annual budget, they are both authorizing the corporation/council to manage those expenses, while at the same time giving a legal direction to council to implement the budget. The duty to “maintain and repair” common property is a fundamental principle of the Strata Property Act, the Regulations and the Bylaws of a strata corporation. Neglecting common property repairs and maintenance simply results in damages and greater costs in the future. Get elected to strata council and be a part of the solution.

It is essential that parking garages are maintained, as they are a principal part of the structure of the buildings. Winter salt carried in by vehicles will cause serious damage to concrete piers, membranes that protect the concrete which is not resilient to salt, the re-bar that forms the structure of the concrete, and the drains and sumps. All of these building components require maintenance.

Most parking garages have sumps in the event the parking garages flood, and grease traps separate the basic sludge that builds up in the drainage systems, preventing it from entering storm sewers. Dust and dirt buildup affects fans, blowers, electrical rooms on parking levels and elevators, and motors and drives of your entry system. This reduces their performance and life expectancy.

Storage of tires and personal property in cardboard boxes or wood increases the risk of fire in parking spaces, and provides a haven for rodents and pest infestations.

Most parking garages have a slope down to their entry. The California drain in front of your doors is a critical barrier to prevent flooding. This should be checked routinely and all drains in the parking garage flushed as least once a year. In a perfect world all of this would be overkill, but our offices receive too many complaints regarding parking garage failures and problems. Go back to the basics: maintain and repair your common property.

Tony Gioventu is executive director of the?Condominium Home Owners Association. Email?tony@choa.bc.ca.?