snobl – Hmmmm. Something doesn’t sound quite legit here – you could be being told something that isn’t correct!
From the information that you have provided I do not believe that the EC can make such a decision. Decisions regarding common property involve Special Resolutions at General Meetings. This Special resolution should be followed up with a By-law or the Special Resolution has no effect see SSMA 2015 [s108(5)].
How is this area marked on your strata building plan? Is it common property?
If it is common property then who owns the washing machines and dryers? Are they owned by individual owners or are they owned by the strata scheme?
If they are owned by the individual owners then who gave the owners the authority to install these machines and use common property in this way?
Who is paying for the electricity and the water utilities for these machines? Are the 4 owners who have installed their machines in this area paying any lease or license fee to use this space?
If the machines are owned by the strata scheme then a roster of use should be formulated so that all owners and/or residents are able to access the machines via their designated access time – perhaps in 2 hr time blocks per owner per washer and dryer.
The ‘shared laundry’ (i.e. communal laundry) would most probably be common property. In the absence of any lease or license over the common property space by the 4 Lot owners then all Lot owners own the common property. Generally, a shared laundry contains machines that are owned and maintained by the strata scheme as they are common property assets. These assets are able to be used by all residents of the scheme.
I would be asking the EC to show you any documentation that proves that you cannot access this area for the purposes of washing and drying your laundry. You may need to resolve this issue by seeking Mediation with your EC via Fair Trading.