Board must preserve lawns and order

I am an owner in a block of attached condominium townhouses. The front lawns are designated in the declaration as exclusive use areas. Neighbours on either side walk through those areas to visit each other. I have asked the board to remind the owners that they are not to use the exclusive use areas. But the board tells me that I am responsible for dealing with those owners. Shouldn’t this be the corporation’s obligation? The Condominium Act requires the corporation to take all reasonable steps to ensure that the owners comply with the act, declaration, bylaws and rules. The act states that a declaration must contain a specification of all parts of the common elements that are to be used by the owners of one or more designated units and not by all owners.

It is the obligation of the board — not you — to ensure that owners do not use common elements that are for another owner’s exclusive use.

In a recent column relating to proxies, you wrote: “The purpose would not appear to be to enable someone to collect proxies from numerous owners in order to secure the election of one or more candidates for the board.” What if that was exactly someone’s intention — to ensure the election of certain candidates?

As I pointed out in my answer, even though that is not the intended purpose, there is nothing in the Condominium Act preventing the collection of multiple proxies. A board could pass a rule prohibiting any person from collecting and submitting multiple proxy instruments naming the same proxy.

Aspecial board meeting was called at the request of three of the five directors to discuss suspected violations of procedures by the board. After the meeting was held the president declared that it would be treated as an “in camera” meeting and that no minutes would be prepared. Can he deny the other directors and unit owners the right to have minutes of the meeting?

If the meeting was called as an official board meeting, minutes should have been taken setting out all business carried out at the meeting. The president was not entitled to decide that, if minutes were taken, they would not be prepared and presented to the board.

Is a standard unit bylaw mandatory or necessary for a condominium corporation?

Since the Condominium Act provides that a board may make a standard unit bylaw, the bylaw is not mandatory.

The purpose of the bylaw is to determine the responsibility for repairing or maintaining improvements made to units and for insuring the improvements. It is not the case, as has been suggested, that if a corporation does not have a standard unit bylaw, all unit repairs are the obligation of the corporation.

A standard unit bylaw, however, will eliminate disputes between the insurers for the unit owner and the corporation as to which insurance policy covers the damage. The bylaw, therefore, is advisable.