Question: We purchased our apartment a year ago because the building has a theatre to play DVDs. The committee has updated the player to a device that offers streaming only. We feel like we’ve been rob of a facility.
We purchased our apartment about a year ago. We chose this building because it has a theatre. We are devotees of film and have a large collection of DVDs representing all genres and critically acclaimed works by international directors.
The theatrette contained a DVD player and this was the only player available.
Last week we found out our Body Corporate has removed the DVD payer and “upgraded” to a device that only has the capacity for streaming.
We haven’t approached the body Corporate about this decision they have made on behalf of owner/residents. We feel they have stolen a service from us in stealth and also degraded an asset.
Answer: Living in strata comes with a number of harsh realities, and here is one of them: sometimes, you don’t get what you want…and you have to suck that up
Hey – I’m a connoisseur of films by acclaimed directors too. I also watch a fair bit of streaming content.
None of these points are relevant, of course, and I’m afraid that your claims of ‘stealth’ and other hyperbole are also not relevant. From the banal strata perspective, the issue here is whether common property has changed or, to use legislative terminology, has it been ‘improved’. It’s not an ‘improvement’ in the artistic or aesthetic sense, it is ‘improvement’ in the sense that something has changed or been omitted. The body corporate committee can make an improvement to common property, without reference to owners, provided the improvement is under a monetary threshold in value and other criteria are met (e.g., that it does not pose a nuisance or hazard).
Another argument here is that your access to common property has been altered and generally speaking, that is not something the committee can do – it is typically what is called a ‘restricted issue’.
Your job now is to undertake the necessary enquiries to find out what has gone on. If you do not have any minutes or other communique from the committee, then you need to be contacting them in writing to voice your concerns and ask what has transpired. I’d urge you to do without using emotive language. If you get no response, or an unsatisfactory response, you would then have the option of issuing a challenge to the situation. You may also wish to put a motion to a general meeting to have the DVD access restored.
Putting all that to one side, I really think you aren’t looking at both sides of this. You refer to this situation as a distressing loss and degradation – but couldn’t it be argued that by making the theatre more accessible to streaming services, its value and appeal might actually be heightened? Is it possible that a large number of owners and occupiers in your building would welcome this change and may not use DVDs? As painful as it may be for you to hear this, you may actually be in the minority here. Living in strata comes with a number of harsh realities, and here is one of them: sometimes, you don’t get what you want…and you have to suck that up. In other words, and to paraphrase from a very critically acclaimed film: ‘Forget it…it’s Chinatown’.
Chris Irons
Strata Solve
E: chris@stratasolve.com.au
P: 0419 805 898
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