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Good Afternoon All,
Our strata plan’s AGM is scheduled to be held in two weeks.
I have been advised that a motion is to be added to the agenda requesting that a separate switch be added to the garage lighting, by-passing the sensor lighting, to enable the manual switching on of the garage lights.
The rational for this request is that one owner wishes to have better illumination in the common area when they wash their car.
The (common) garage area is adequately lit during daylight hours and the sensor (motion & ambient light sensitive) turns on the light when the garage area requires additional illumination.
For the owner requesting the additional switch to move their car when washing it to full daylight – i.e. to the garage exit to the street – is a distance of circa three car lengths.
Our strata plan comprises of 4 townhouses, thus there is no problem re entrance or exit of the garage common area when washing a car in the exit. Our townhouses are 20 years old and have had the same owners for the whole time. This issue has never been raised previously.
My questions are,
- As there is only one owner who wants or would benefit from this request should the other owners be charged for it via strata funds? I have no idea of the cost, but we would need the work to be carried out by a licensed electrician and it is an expense which does not benefit all owners.
- As there are 4 lots, equal in voting value, am I correct is assuming that three owners are required to vote for a proposal to have it carried?
Thanking you in anticipation,
Dudley
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Replies
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Dudley – to answer your questions in their same order:
- If those Owners who vote on the Motion, including by proxy, do so in favour then its carried, and the Owners Corporation would use its (collective) funds to pay for the work
- Albeit minor, the proposed works would comprise and addition (i.e. a switch and some wiring) to the Common Property, and if that strict line is taken then the applicable Motion must be put as a Special Resolution that to pass requires ≥75% to vote in favour in accordance with the unit entitlement of their respective Lots. So in your Plan’s situation, YES, 3 of the 4 Owners would need to vote in favour for the Special Resolution to pass.
If I’m correct by assuming that you don’t want the Motion to pass, remember that as the wording of the Act actually states that for a Special Resolution to pass, a vote against by “not more than one-quarter in value” is required, in your situation with four (4) Lots having equal value (i.e. units of entitlement), a vote against by you alone won’t defeat the Motion.
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