Our unit complex went down the road of creating a renovation by-law when it came to my attention the guy next door was intent on knocking down a load-bearing wall. The intention was to also allow for previously unapproved renovations to be approved retrospectively. This “renovation amnesty” was thought to be best way forward in order to get owners to be responsible for their works and any problems if they surface in the future.
The by-law was supposed to be specific to our unit block but it really was very generic and required quite a few changes to the first draft. The committe members found the document to be complex and difficult to understand and consequently the process of getting feedbck was draw out over about 5 weeks. The suggested changes were sent back to the lawyer who had emailed to say that they would be in contact. Many weeks passed. Then it came to my attention that the invoice for the by-law had been paid. When I questioned the Strata Manager his response was that because the committee took so long the payment was finalised and the changes were considered so extensive the OC will now be required to pay additional costs for its completion.
Who the hell pays for work before its finished? And at no point were we told about any deadlines or time restrictions in which to provide ammendments to the first draft of the by-law. Also no pricing schedule for additional work. This just isnt right but I'm not sure there is anything that can be done, except to pay the extra, a half finished by-law is of no use to anyone.