@Whale said:
Changes and additions to the common property of a Plan can only receive the consent of an O/C if >75% of those in attendance at a General Meeting, both personally and by proxy, vote in favour – and where that percentage is determined from the units of entitlement (UOE) of those voting and the aggregate UOE of the Plan (i.e. a “poll vote”); that’s a special resolution. Under this scenario the works can proceed, and the O/C is responsible for the on-going maintenance and repair of whatever it is that’s been consented and thereby attached / added to its common property.
OK so only the OC can approve changes to the common property by a vote of 75% in favor and if that happens then the OC accepts responsibility for the ongoing maintenance of the item approved (if no SBL registered). This is not difficult because most owners would not realize the implication of granting permission for the change and so vote in favor thus lumbering the Strata with the ongoing maintenance. The only thing the proposer has to do is make sure it is voted as a special resolution rather than a ordinary resolution.
But what happens if an owner says he received the 75% approval 10 years ago for an a/c unit which has now failed and he wants the OC to replace it. I serious doubt many keep an ongoing record as you do and the chances of finding a copy of the motion from 10 years ago is remote. So the OC is lumbered with the replacement cost.
The onus should be on the lot owner to prove it.
Also what happens when a new owner buys a lot the responsibility of the owner who did the changes vanishes once a new owner appears.