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Unfortunately, I live in a really lovely apartment in a really nice building, that is inhabited by a couple of controlling bullies who want a lot for themselves, but nothing for everybody else. It’s been ongoing for years and years, with certain people off and on the committee over and over. There were a small handful of us who have the interests of the majority at heart, but it’s always a constant battle. As it currently stands, we don’t have a committee and are under compulsory management (after the previous committee made up of the above-mentioned bullies were caught misappropriating funds to contractor friends of theirs and changing by-laws to suit their lots).
Overall it’s been a lot better without a committee (as nobody has to listen to their complaining), however we still have the issue of a couple of tenants (with only one garage) having multiple cars and parking them randomly around the building. I suffer the worst from this (along with my neighbor) as our garages are at the end of the basement and we always end up with cars parked across the doors.
Fortunately, there is really only one tenant who is causing the problems, and their digging their feet in. We take photos when required and the manager is going through the whole process, but it’s slow and painful. This tenant has also taken it upon himself to moan to one of the former committee members (who is still upset about being kicked off) and this member has taken it upon himself to bully and harass my neighbor and I. We are finding hand written letters daily plastered across the building saying we are “using scare tactics” and “making residents lives hard” by taking photos and sending them to the manager. He’s also running around pulling down the no parking signs that the managing agent has put up. As some background, this former committee member has been painful for years and tends to react quite aggressively when he doesn’t get his own way (I had to make a police statement years ago after he showed up my door and threatened to murder me for not selecting a certain contractor).
It’s making life pretty unpleasant for those residents who want to do the right thing. It’s not nice to see public notices attacking you when you wake up in the morning! The manager is sympathetic, but has said there’s really not a lot that can be done. Their motivation is understandably thin given there’s no committee to deal with.
Has anyone had any success in managing these sorts of people?
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@N860CR said:
…the previous committee … changing by-laws to suit their lots…
How could the committee change by-laws? That requires a resolution of a general meeting.
@N860CR said:
Has anyone had any success in managing these sorts of people?You might consider taking an AVO against the former committee member – verbal abuse, including putting up signs, could be interpreted as assault.
And you could ask the strata manager to get orders from NCAT against the former committee member under section 232, “Orders to settle disputes or rectify complaints”, telling the owner not to take down signs put on cars or do anything else that interferes with the proper running of the building.
This bully is clearly not used to getting his own way – best thing to do is to make it clear that things are just going to get worse for them if they don’t pull their head in.
By the way, for anyone else reading this, this is a perfect example of how allowing one or two people on your committee to make decisions that benefit them and only them, quickly becomes an issue of entitlement and a source of conflict when you finally try to put things right.
Get it right at the beginning and save yourself years of grief later.
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