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Hi All,
I was reading the latest version of Strata Living (https://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/pdfs/About_us/Publications/ft045.pdf) published by the NSW Dept of Fair Trading. On page 27 it talks about the usual problem of Visitor Parking. I noticed under the section titled “Council enforcement of parking” the first paragraph states
“Council rangers may inspect strata schemes in their area to ensure the number of emergency and visitor parking spaces allocated in the development consent is complied with. They may fine the owners corporation if these requirements are not met.”
What criteria will they use to determine if the Development Consent is being complied with?
Let’s say the visitor parking area has the minimum number of spaces required and are marked as visitor parking, but some of the spaces are being occupied by owners or occupiers. Would those spaces still be considered a visitor parking space for the purpose of the Development Consent?
In my opinion in that scenario we would be below the minimum number of required spaces and be liable for a fine.
Our visitor parking is usually full of vehicles driven by residents after about 7:30pm at night, 7 days a week and some of those vehicles are driven by committee members.
Some years ago I tried to have this addressed at an AGM, however this was a fruitless exercise. Now that there are the new strata laws, I was hoping that a more successful result could be achieved.
Regards,
Blueman
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Replies
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Blueman – Does your scheme have a Visitor’s Car Park by-law? If it does then it is up to the scheme itself to decide how strictly they enforce the by-laws. Some schemes have a 3 hour limit on Visitor car parking but other schemes have no limit. In the case of no time limit then this defaults to the position of a “reasonable” time limit. These limits general depend on whether there is an on site building manager whose job it may be to police the time limits.
It is my understanding that the council rangers may have the authority to ensure that the number of visitor car spaces is as per the development plans but it would not be within their job description to mandate how the scheme polices its own by-laws with regard to the time limit for the visitor car parking. NB: Schemes are not permitted to use visitor car spaces for anything other than what they are approved to be i.e. car spaces cannot become a recreational lawn etc.
However, a commercial agreement can be entered into with the local council parking management services to monitor parking within a scheme. If you live in a scheme where visitors or non residents are continually parking illegally on your scheme’s common property then the owners corporation may seek parking management services from their local council. The council would need to agree, and charge a fee.
See here for more details: https://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/ftw/Tenants_and_home_owners/Strata_schemes/Parking_in_a_strata_scheme.page
Some good points raised by proudsceptic. Most likely your scheme has the minimum number of visitor car park spots as per the development consent, so that’s not an issue. Your main issue, as you mention, is that the visitor car park spots are filled with vehicles that are not owned by visitors. This is a very common problem is strata schemes.
If this is the case, there is no need to enter into a commercial agreement with your local council to monitor the car parking situation as your owners corporation through the executive committee should be enforcing the by-laws of the scheme.
Most schemes, including yours, will have a by-law covering parking. If your executive committee isn’t enforcing the by-laws of scheme, including your parking by-law, you can apply for mediation against the owners corporation. If need be, you can take the matter to the Tribunal for an order.
One of the problems in many (medium or large) plans is determining which unit owns the offending vehicles.
Ownership details are not readily obtainable, and the registration could be in a company name or at another address.
Notices on windscreens tend to be ignored if the owners know they can’t be traced.
OK, here’s an option. The new Strata Regulations (below) allow for vehicles that “obstruct the use of common property” to be moved to somewhere they are allowed to be parked after due notice has been given.
I reckon a notice that said that, in a way that complied with the regs, would be enough to scare most rogue parkers off. If it didn’t, you could then decide whether you wanted to find out if it was legal or not by actually shifting the offending car and seeing what happened.
I am not a lawyer but I think it would be worth a spin. What’s the worst that could happen?
By the way, it would help greatly if you had a by-law that defined who could use visitor parking and for how long. That way you can prove they are not a bona fide visitor and are therefor obstructing the use of common property.
Meanwhile I have created a “Move it or lose it” pdf form that you can download and print by clicking on that link. You should check with your strata manager or lawyer before using it. But at the very least it could be a bluff that’s unlikely to be called.
Fill in the form with the time and date, add the phone number of someone who doesn’t mind being verbally abused over the phone, take two pictures, one of the form on the car, the other of the car with the form on it, and see what happens.
I’d be interested to hear what the rest of you reckon to this.
NSW Strata Schemes Regulations (2016)
34 Removal of motor vehicles: section 125 of Act
(1) This clause applies to a motor vehicle left on common property that is placed so that it blocks an exit or entrance or otherwise obstructs the use of common property (my emphasis).
(2) The owners corporation may take action under this clause if the owners corporation has placed a removal notice on or near the motor vehicle and the requirements of the notice are not complied with within the period specified in the removal notice.
(3) A removal notice must:
(a) not be less than the size of an A4 piece of paper, and
(b) be placed in a position or be in a material so that the contents of the notice are not likely to be detrimentally affected by weather, and
(c) describe the motor vehicle and state the date and time the notice was issued, and
(d) state that the motor vehicle will be removed if it is not moved from the
common property or so that it no longer obstructs common property before the date and time specified in the notice (being not earlier than 5 days after the notice was placed on or near the motor vehicle), and
(e) specify contact details for a member of the strata committee, the strata
managing agent or a delegate of the owners corporation in relation to the
notice.
(4) The owners corporation may cause a motor vehicle to be moved to another place on common property or to the nearest place to which it may be lawfully moved, or moved so that it no longer blocks an exit or entrance or otherwise obstructs the use of common property, and for that purpose the owners corporation is taken to be the owner of the motor vehicle.
(5)The Tribunal may, on application by the owners corporation, order that the owner of a motor vehicle moved to another place under this clause, pay to the owners corporation the reasonable costs incurred by the owners corporation in moving the motor vehicle.
(6)In this clause:
motor vehicle has the same meaning as in the Impounding Act 1993.If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.