Yeah, the fire code.
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Condo giving my bike the boot
- Thread starter Twoth
- Start date
Yeah, the fire code.
icecube172
Well-known member
I agree with the idea of getting the rest of the riders from your condo together to have a word with the condo board.
Other Options:
1. sell condo move to house
2. buy truck, store bike on truck
3. buy van, store bike in van
4. store bike at my garage, if you are willing to come up to stouffville
Other Options:
1. sell condo move to house
2. buy truck, store bike on truck
3. buy van, store bike in van
4. store bike at my garage, if you are willing to come up to stouffville
I'm on the condo board at my building and, as Corporate Secretary, am in charge of the Rules and other legal documents. I have two motorcycles and car (but two parking spots). There's another motorcycle owner on the board so no issue in my building. Some comments:
1. Usage of the parking spot is specified in the Declaration, not the Bylaw. To change the Declaration requires 90% approval from all owners. This is next to impossible to achieve. Bylaws require 50%+1, and even getting those passed is a challenge.
The exact wording of the relevant section of the Declaration (yours may vary but lawyers like using templates!) is as follows:
"Each Parking Unit shall be used and occupied only for the parking of a motor vehicle as may be from time to time defined in the Rules... the Owners of Parking Units shall not park more than one motor vehicle within the boundaries of such Parking Unit... in no instance shall any portion of any motor vehicle parked within a Parking Unit protrude beyond the boundaries of the Parking Unit and encroach upon any portion of the common elements or upon any other Unit."
2. In our building, we are obviously ignoring the first part of the wording (i.e. only one vehicle allowed per spot), but we enforce the second - i.e. you shall not exceed the space you've been allotted. We have high calibre people on the board (all professionals, not just a bunch of nitty busy-bodies) and take a pragmatic approach to these things. Your board may be full of frustrating nits. If they choose to enforce the exact wording of the Declaration, there will be little you can do about it.
3. If you have any evidence that there have been more than one vehicle parked in a spot for any length of time, you can use that as a defense. Provisions of the Rules or Declaration that have not been consistently enforced lose their effect (at least that's how judges have ruled, especially in cases related to pet restrictions).
4. Get on the Board - it's the easiest way to make changes and argue your case. Plus you may learn a few things about how condo corporations operate. I particularly like to keep an eye on management, the budget and potentially reckless spending.
Good luck!
1. Usage of the parking spot is specified in the Declaration, not the Bylaw. To change the Declaration requires 90% approval from all owners. This is next to impossible to achieve. Bylaws require 50%+1, and even getting those passed is a challenge.
The exact wording of the relevant section of the Declaration (yours may vary but lawyers like using templates!) is as follows:
"Each Parking Unit shall be used and occupied only for the parking of a motor vehicle as may be from time to time defined in the Rules... the Owners of Parking Units shall not park more than one motor vehicle within the boundaries of such Parking Unit... in no instance shall any portion of any motor vehicle parked within a Parking Unit protrude beyond the boundaries of the Parking Unit and encroach upon any portion of the common elements or upon any other Unit."
2. In our building, we are obviously ignoring the first part of the wording (i.e. only one vehicle allowed per spot), but we enforce the second - i.e. you shall not exceed the space you've been allotted. We have high calibre people on the board (all professionals, not just a bunch of nitty busy-bodies) and take a pragmatic approach to these things. Your board may be full of frustrating nits. If they choose to enforce the exact wording of the Declaration, there will be little you can do about it.
3. If you have any evidence that there have been more than one vehicle parked in a spot for any length of time, you can use that as a defense. Provisions of the Rules or Declaration that have not been consistently enforced lose their effect (at least that's how judges have ruled, especially in cases related to pet restrictions).
4. Get on the Board - it's the easiest way to make changes and argue your case. Plus you may learn a few things about how condo corporations operate. I particularly like to keep an eye on management, the budget and potentially reckless spending.
Good luck!
lennay1031
Well-known member
And if they still don't listen then take the time to jot down the plates of all the cars that do not know how to park properly and report the lot of them. Place a note on each offender too. Do it as many times until they change or until you feel better.
I hope it all works out for you. Would give all of us who are thinking about condos some hope for the future.
I hope it all works out for you. Would give all of us who are thinking about condos some hope for the future.
johnnycage
Well-known member
I agree with dcx135. I live in a coop and am on our board of directors for the very same reasons. I highly doubt they have properly implemented that restriction so I would challenge them on it. As dcx135 says, join the board.
to the OP, i remember reading somewhere that in some condos, parking is part of your condo, meaning you own it. its part of your property and along with its value and everything. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that if this applies to your condo, its your property and you choose what you want to do with it. please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.
Living in a condo means having to abide by the condo rules & regulations, however it could just be that a few other residents don't like the fact that you're parking 2 vehicles in your spot. Easiest advice is to search for another spot to rent for your bike, but request a copy of the condo policies and rules and check them out for yourself. Walk around your underground and take pictures and note if anyone else is parking/storing anything in their spots other than their (1) vehicle. Document your findings and attend your next condo annual general meeting to bring attention to your concerns.
OpenGambit
Banned
You are wrong.
you may want to read his post. Every condo has the same rule, the only difference is which board choses to ignore or apply it.
My condo posted a notice as a warning to motorcycle riders that they will start policing this rule, but I made sure from the moment I moved in that I had a 2 car spot so I could park my bike
Thankfully I am moving to a house in a few months. Condos are a pain in the ***
So you are saying that some condos would allow auto repairs, hazmat storage, rock band rehersals, dog kennels etc.
Wrong!
There will be rules / regs / bylaws. The question is how unforgiving.
Twoth
Well-known member
The declaration (as I got today by email from management) states that the parking spots are for motor vehicle parking purposes, where motor vehicle is a motorcycle, car, truck, van etc... Nowhere in the by-laws or declaration does it say the word "one" or "singular".. however it also doesn't say 'multiple'. Their argument is that the lawyer to the condo told them they are allowed to interpret this statement, and they have chosen to interpret it as a singular vehicle. I'm fighting back as much as I can because I really don't agree with the way they are dealing with this either.
To answer some of the questions: I am NOT an owner which makes this more difficult because in all reality I have no say. There are multiple other owners that have motorcycles however, and they are fighting as well... all I can really do is support. I was considering buying a place in this condo, but I've told them this will definitely be a deal breaker for me. My beef is with their lack of visibility for their reasoning behind prohibiting dual vehicle parking. I've spoken to both of my immediate parking neighbours and they both think it's ridiculous that I'm being told to move my bike, implying that they do not care if I have it where it is.
I'll let you all know what happens if anything moves forward... I'm hoping they'll at least let me keep it for the season so I can move next year.
To answer some of the questions: I am NOT an owner which makes this more difficult because in all reality I have no say. There are multiple other owners that have motorcycles however, and they are fighting as well... all I can really do is support. I was considering buying a place in this condo, but I've told them this will definitely be a deal breaker for me. My beef is with their lack of visibility for their reasoning behind prohibiting dual vehicle parking. I've spoken to both of my immediate parking neighbours and they both think it's ridiculous that I'm being told to move my bike, implying that they do not care if I have it where it is.
I'll let you all know what happens if anything moves forward... I'm hoping they'll at least let me keep it for the season so I can move next year.
D-3vil
Well-known member
Normally, when a contract is signed between two parties and ambiguous wording is involved, this gets interpreted against the party who wrote the contract. In your case, however, this is a set of bylaws and not a contract per se, but it would be interesting to see whether anyone else has fought this in the past (legally) and won.
OpenGambit
Banned
Contra preferenum is rarely applied today, and is clearly not applicable here in any event.
Re the bold, the owner can speak up for you if he/she wants to keep you as a tenent.
Depending on how many units are for sale in the building your potential as a buyer may be limited.
I've been dealing with condos for over 20 years and from what I see someone is trying to set a tone for the building by limiting vehicle types or public area usage. Some people feel that their status in the community is lowered if a Chevy gets parked next to their Mercedes.
GayManLoveIsOK
Well-known member
in my building there are only a few bikes, i think 3 tops...including myself...but what i notice happening is that as much as i have a bike and car, that's it, some other people have a baby stroller or a car battery, odd things lying around...it starts to make the place feel like a dumping ground...i can't say anything cuz i'm of course storing two vehicles in my spot and don't wanna have to push my luck...it starts with one person dumping stuff and then everyone else follows suit until someone says something...so as much as i shouldn't be parking my bike with my car, i do agree with the rule of one vehicle per spot (even if it's not written per say in stone) just so that people aren't dumping crap in their spot mucking stuff up...good luck though, get yourself on the board and hope there is an agreement you can come to...non costly of course...
Fight it as best you can, and if that fails, move since you don't actually own the place.
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