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We have 6 complexes in one apartment development – each have their own BC Manager and own EC.
The complex of 23 units that has a combination of owner occupier, private rentals and short term rental lets was recently raided by police (videos and information can be found online) who found 4 brothels operating on the premises in Reid – 3 were illegal brothels, these are apparently rented as part of the short term rental lets and 1 is a registered sole operator who owns the unit.
Its my understanding strata/BC must approve a business to operate on the premises.
So evidence of this approval should have been provided to the Office of Regulatory Services (ORS) before they registered the sole operator sex worker at an unit/apartment complex address.
Given that ORS will not release information about sole operators I am assuming all we can do is write to our local ORS Minister and advise that no strata approval exists for any business to operate in the complex and point out that if ORS registration was given if would need to be revisited as approval under one Act should not contradict the requirements of another Act.
The illegal brothels have been operating for the last 14 months so we are pleased they are finally gone, we’d like the sole operator gone to, not for any reason other than this is our home, some raise children some just enjoy living here, others are visitors to Canberra. Hard to understand why the ACT government says its okay for a sex worker to work where we live because frankly its way to close in an apartment complex.
Is my understanding correct regarding the restriction on business / strata approval and registration?
We are having a joint complex meeting shortly and this will be a topic for discussion.
Given the ACT have also recently passed a bill removing the need to register sole operators such action may be un-necessary which leave the BC consulting with a strata lawyer in order to manage the issue of a business operating on the premises without appropriate approval from the BC/strata.
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I don’t have a solution for you, only a few observations.
The ORS is now called ‘Access Canberra’. I think you can contact them for general advice on what is legal and what is not or what approvals would be necessary. Worth a try.
I can’t find anything in the Unit Titles (Management) Act that says a unit owner must apply to or notify the Owners Corporation about conducting business within their unit. I suspect you would have to demonstrate nuisance or interference with the use and enjoyment of the common property, which would then be a rule infringement.
Does the complex have CCTV? If so, might a screen showing people entering the complex embarrass paying guests? Especially with a pull through on the screen advising that footage is shared with police as required.
Of course intercom entry would prevent people just wandering into the complex. This is another issue that affects all residents.
Have you talked to the resident and asked if they are running a business? If the confirm they are then you can ask how they ensure the security of other residents in ensuring they know who they’ve allowed to enter the building and that customers leave once they’ve concluded their business.
If the business does involve intimate matters then there is also the potential for hazardous waste. How is this being disposed of?
What is a registered sex worker? Registered with whom? Or is this a registered business that just happens to be a sex worker.
In any case, a sign on the door that says something like “This foyer is monitored by video cameras. Please let us know by emailing this address or texting this number that you don’t want to appear on our “Visitors” Facebook page” might do the trick.
It’s a sad fact of apartment life that drug dealers and prostitutes like the security that unit blocks offer. However, prostitution isn’t illegal in most states (whereas drug dealing is).
By all means, install actual security cameras – not just to deter the sex workers’ clients. Apart from that, unless there was some tangible sign that this “sole operator” was doing any harm, I’d be tempted to just let it be.
Given that many people work from home these days, you might find the residential zoning isn’t that helpful
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If the tenants are renters you might be able to inform the owner on the chance they are unaware what is going on, (and even just letting them know that their name is being mentioned as much). Unsure there, but as I understand it, in Qld if drugs or anything illegal is/are busted by police on the property the owner also gets pinged. I advised an agent of that (right or wrong? – dont care) and the problem tenant was gone that afternoon.
@JimmyT said:
”In any case, a sign on the door that says something like “This foyer is monitored by video cameras. Please let us know by emailing this address or texting this number that you don’t want to appear on our “Visitors” Facebook page” might do the trick.”
I like Jimmy’s advice above.
In Qld: we also had sex workers living and operating in our building – a 3 story walk up. Our male tenants were unhappy that men who were clients of the sex business parked in their car spots all throughout the evening, and during the day men paced the street checking their watches to assess whether it was their turn or not.
We contacted the police, the local mayor and real estate agency. We didn’t think they were acting on our behalf so we pressured them to follow up.
To our relief everyone acted on it! The police found that one of the Thai women running the sex business was an illegal immigrant and was arrested and put into detention. One was not on the lease and left, and the last one was evicted from our building. Finally, we had our building back.
It’s just not appropriate to have this type of business in a family community complex. The best place for them is in a factory outlet far away from families because this type of work attracts drug addicts and so on.
We had a brothel in our block. We rang the local council. A council guy came to see then sent the owner a letter. The tenants who were running the business were gone in a week. Apparently using an apartment zoned residential as a brothel was illegal in NSW. We are also very close to a church and a school which contravenes the law as well. It may be the same in Canberra. If the owners were running the brothel they could have been prosecuted.
Apparently the council guy came , saw the men hanging around then checked ads online and rang numbers until he found the address. This was the evidence. The council told us they close down around 30 illegal brothels a year! The irony is that here are two legal brothels that have been operating for over 10 years less than 5 minutes walk away!