Q. The new board president of our condominium association instituted a procedural rule that unit owners may not contact board members directly and must contact the managing agent for association-related requests. I contacted the managing agent and formally requested copies of board meeting minutes, but the management company only replied they would forward my request to the board, and neither the manager nor the board have provided the requested meeting minutes. What is my next step?
A. Section 19 of the Condominium Act requires a condominium association to make available to unit owners for inspection, and copies upon request, meeting minutes of the association and the board for the immediately preceding seven years. Section 19(b) grants the association 10 business days to provide the requested records, otherwise, the association’s failure to respond in a timely manner is deemed a denial.
Section 19(b) also states that if unit owners are forced to file a lawsuit to compel the association to provide records they are entitled to inspect and receive copies of, then the unit owners are entitled to recover reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs from the association for the lawsuit. Thus, the next steps are to send a demand in writing to the managing agent and the board reiterating the requested records be supplied within the statutory time period from the date of the original written request, and if that follow-up demand is ignored, file a lawsuit to force compliance with section 19.
Q. Our self-managed condominium association has an intercom system in the lobby, but there is also an intercom component in each unit for unit owners to let in their guests. Our board of directors states that owners are responsible for repairing their non-working electronic component in their unit. Shouldn’t the association be responsible for repairing the component because the intercom system is a common element?
A. The answer depends entirely on the language contained in the condominium declaration and by-laws. Most commonly, components within the boundaries of a unit are a unit owner’s responsibility to maintain, repair and replace. The situation is similar to plumbing fixtures located within a unit, which are a unit owner’s responsibility even though the building’s common element plumbing system brings water to all units.
Q. Our board of directors is looking to change internet and cable television providers. Is unit owner approval or input required for that decision since internet choice is not a common element?
A. Section 18.4(a) of the Condominium Act grants a board of directors the authority to provide for the operation, care, upkeep, maintenance, replacement and improvement of the common elements. The word “operation” is uniformly interpreted as administering the common elements, meaning the board is granted the authority to make decisions regarding the administration of the association, including entering into contracts for goods and services.
Specifically, Section 18.4(o) of the Condominium Act states that a condominium board may contract for cable television or bulk high-speed internet on behalf of all the units for bulk service on an equal cost per unit basis.
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