At the registry site you may find info on:

• Name of all our directors and when each director’s term started
• Name of our management company and condominium manager
• Registration date of the Declaration
• Name of declarant (the developer)
• Address for service for the condominium corporation
• Address listed on the Declaration (which may be the address of the condominium property)
• Number of units and number of voting units
• Fiscal year end
• Date of our last AGM

Our region is Ottawa-Carleton and our number is 82.

If an owner is unable to attend a meeting he or she may delegate a proxy. A proxy is a person representing the absent owner. There are new changes to the procedures and forms involving proxies. You should be aware of these changes before the next AGM.

I’m listing links to news that should be of interest to FP and other condo owners.

Serving Condo Notices Electronically

Ontario Releases Report on Elevator Availability

B.C. Government Enters into Agreement with Airbnb to Collect Taxes

Proxies – The Don’ts and Do’s for Managers

Accessing Condo Records – Ministry Releases Guides on New Procedures for Records Requests

Human Rights Policies -Does your Condominium Corporation have one?

Looking Back at Condominium Law in 2017 – The Highlights

Can you grow marijuana in your unit? Can you smoke it? Can the Board regulate it?

Some answers.

More here.

Our bylaws and rules allow an owner to install an electric vehicle (EV) station at the owner’s expense. The Board must approve the installation.

As electric vehicles become more common, Ontario proposes to make it easier for a condo owner to install the necessary charging equipment. Please see this site for updated info. This site includes more info on charging of EVs.

One of our Frobisher Place rules states. “A lease must cover a minimum period of 12 months, unless a lease-to-purchase agreement is in place.” Nevertheless, policing such a rule can prove difficult.

To avoid problems while still allowing owners to rent through Airbnb, a Toronto condo has negotiated an interesting agreement with Airbnb.

See also the City of Toronto report on short-term rentals.

I will concentrate on news of interest to Frobisher Place owners or condo dwellers in general. Updates may appear on our home page or the tips page.

The CAO has listed on its website the ten most common issues relating to condominium living:

1. Records
2. Meetings
3. Rules
4. Personal Property
5. Noise
6. Pets
7. Odour
8. Issues with Condominium Manager
9. Neighbour to neighbour
10. Short-term rentals

For each issue the CAO website sets out:

• An overview of the issue;
• How the issue is dealt with in the legislation and/or the condominium declaration, rules and by-laws;
• Suggested solutions (primarily self-help remedies) to resolve the problem in an orderly manner;
• Additional help alternatives such as mediation, arbitration and legal proceedings that can be used when the issue has not been resolved using self-help remedies.

The CAO also provides owners with a sample letter/e-mail for owners to use when contacting the condominium corporation about an issue.

Plastic shopping bags are a problem. They find their way into the environment, hanging from trees, blowing along roadways and endangering marine wildlife. I’ve been using cloth bags for years, always keeping a couple in my vehicle so they are ready for any shopping.

I have some sturdy reusable cloth bags I would give away free. If you would like one click here.

It’s likely the Board will soon propose new or revised bylaws.

A new or revised bylaw must meet two conditions:

1. It must respect Ontario condo legislation. You will find links to this legislation here.
2. It must be approved by a majority of owners. In our case that means at least 104 owners must vote in favour.

Aside from the required conditions, owners should make sure we’re satisfied that a bylaw:

1. Is it necessary? Does the bylaw address a need? Is it an improvement over what we have had up to now?
2. Is it sufficient? Does the bylaw deal with all circumstances that could arise?
3. Is it desirable? Does it improve our lives and property value?
4. Can it be enforced? If there are violations who deals with them and how?

It’s important to remember that any new bylaws will be with us for a long time. We would be approving measures that will govern Frobisher Place now and for many years to come.