SPRING NEWSLETTER WSCP No.171 CANTERBURY COMMONS June 2012 , ssue 1 INTRODUCING YOUR NEW PROPERTY MANAGER Inspirah Property Management would like to welcome Michael Royston to the team! Michael comes to Inspirah with an eclectic background in Property Management. He is looking forward to serving the residents of Canterbury Commons in his capacity as your Property Manager. Michael looks forward to putting his knowledge and experience to work throughout his portfolio. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Michael at mroyston@inspirah.com or 519-7672060. CHANGES TO THE COMMON ELEMENTS… CALL FIRST! Please be advised that owners cannot make changes to the common elements without the prior written permission of the Board of Directors. Please be sure to contact the Property Manager before proceeding with any type of change to the common elements to ensure compliance with provisions in the Declaration, the rules and any other existing Board policies. These changes may include but are not limited to the installation of satellite dishes, gardens, and fences. The board is currently reviewing the satellite dish policy, and therefore until further notice no satellite dishes of any kind are permitted within the condominium. Please understand that any alteration made to the common LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE REMINDERS Spring has sprung and with it comes a few reminders with regards to landscape maintenance. First, be sure to remove from the grass areas any lawn furniture, BBQ’s, children’s toys, garden hoses or other such items, as the lawn maintenance providers are not required to move personal items found in your backyard when they cut the grass. Canterbury’s day for landscape maintenance has been scheduled for Wednesday. Second, to further accommodate the landscape personnel be sure to remove any garbage especially pet feces, paper, cigarette butts and beer caps from the grass. Beer caps become dangerous projectiles when they go through a lawn mower and cigarette butts shred in a million pieces. elements without prior approval by the Board may potentially result in the corporation exercising its right to take unilateral action to “restore” or “remove” as the case may be. The cost of such restoration or removal will be the responsibility of the unit owner. SPRING NEWSLETTER WSCP No.171 PET ISSUES In surveying the grounds it appears that there is an excessive amount of dog feces in many exclusive use front and backyards. Please be advised owners are responsible to clean up after their pets. It is not the job of the landscape personnel or the condominium corporation. All pet owners are asked to take some time to make sure that there are no “land mines” on their front or backyards immediately, and to keep it clean at all times. If your dog wanders to the yards of other owners, as a courtesy please be sure to clean up neighbouring yards and the common area directly behind your unit as well. If there are dog feces anywhere on your exclusive use area it will not be maintained by the condominium corporation. Furthermore, if it is discovered that there is damage to your grass due to dog or cat urine, you will be financially responsible for the sod replacement and repair. Dog and cat owners are further reminded that their pets must be accompanied by a unit occupant and kept on a leash at all times when they are not in the unit. This means that you are not to simply let your dog out the front or back patio door to do “its business”, so that you are uncertain as to where it left its “deposit”, and then have the dog return to the unit. This applies to cats as well as dogs. Cat owners are asked not to let their felines wander aimlessly throughout the property at any time. Cats, just like dogs are not to be left unattended while outside. Please be advised that the Condominium will be required to repair any damaged lawn on the common elements. As a corporation these funds come directly out of the condominium and as a result all owners are paying for these repairs. If you are aware of any unit intentionally causing damage you are encouraged to contact the Property Manager and the unit responsible will be billed directly. Your co-operation in complying with the Corporation’s rules on pets would be greatly appreciated. KEEPING CANTERBURY LOOKING ITS BEST! Not only is garbage a concern, but so is the general level of cleanliness in and around one’s unit. It is hoped that all owners take pride in their community and will make an effort to keep Canterbury Commons looking its best for the enjoyment of your neighbours, visitors and potential purchasers. To that end, all residents are asked to make sure that their front and back yards are kept neat and tidy. Bicycles are to be stored in the garage or in the back patio area, not chained to front trees or on the front porch. Areas under the back decks and patios are not be used for the storage of broken furniture, old carpets, gardening pots and planters, or other such debris. FLYER REMOVAL All owners are reminded that it is their responsibility to make arrangements to ensure that the unit mailbox is emptied on a regular basis. If there will be no one at your unit over the summer months, kindly post a "Please no junk mail, newspapers or flyers" sign on your mailbox and tape it shut. Please be further reminded that the unit mailbox is a common element of the Corporation and is not to be removed. If it is, it will be replaced at the unit owner's expense. SPRING NEWSLETTER WSCP No.171 LANDLORDS ENSURING COMPLIANCE WITH THE CORPORATION'S RULES BY THEIR TENANTS All residents should be aware that there are rules that govern noise violations and behaviours which “disturb the comfort or quiet enjoyment of the Property by another owner”. To put it very succinctly, the playing of overly loud music anytime; the blaring of car stereos when driving through the complex; excessive drinking, shouting, screaming and use of profane language while outside; littering and vandalizing common element and personal property; and non-compliance with the City of Guelph’s guidelines regarding the proper sorting of garbage are all unacceptable behaviours and will not be tolerated. If incidents of this nature should occur involving your tenants, the Board of Directors and the Corporation will pursue whatever measures are available to them through the declaration, by-laws and rules and the Condominium Act, 1998 to assure compliance, which may include taking legal action to require the eviction of problem residents. Tenants should be aware that Canterbury Commons is not a university residence and is not to be treated as such! PARKING, PARKING, PARKING! PARKING REMINDER TO ALL OWNERS All owners are reminded that the numbered spots in front of the Units facing Colonial Drive are for the exclusive use of the owners in those units and are not visitor parking spaces. Please inform your visitors accordingly. Overnight on street parking commenced this year on May 1st and continues until November 1st. VEHICLE INFORMATION This is a reminder for all units who have not filled out a vehicle registration form to do so promptly. A visitor parking pass is reserved for each unit, however will not be released until this information has been received. Furthermore, in recognition of the fact that there is often a turnover or addition of residents in September, updated vehicle registration information will also be requested in the fall. A copy of this form as well as the parking policies for Canterbury is available on the Inspirah website at www.inspirah.com. If you are a landlord it is your responsibility to ensure that your tenants are aware of the parking policies and abide by them. SPRING NEWSLETTER WSCP No.171 GARBAGE PICK-UP REMINDERS Garbage day at Canterbury Commons is Friday. All residents are reminded that Guelph has very strict guidelines with regard to the disposal of garbage. Garbage is to be disposed of in transparent blue, green and clear bags. Black, dark green, orange, white and any other colour of opaque bags cannot be used and will be rejected. If you need clarification as to what goes into each colour bag, there is a sorting guide on the City of Guelph website at www.guelph.ca and on the Inspirah website at www.inspirah.com. Please do not put everything in clear bags hoping that it will be taken. Green and blue bags are collected every week and clear bags every other week. Also please do not put your clear bags out every week in hopes that it is a clear bag week. These lighter bags get blown all over the site when they are not collected. A clear bag collection calendar is also available on both websites. If your garbage should be refused by the City you are to take it back to your unit immediately and re-parcel it correctly. Refused garbage is not to remain at the curb until the following week. Not only will it not be taken again, but also it becomes unsightly and unhealthy when later broken into by animals if it contains food scraps. The City of Guelph bylaw requires that uncollected garbage is to be retrieved by the unit resident/owner by 7:00 p.m. on collection day. This means that if your garbage should not be taken, you are to return it to your garage or porch the same day! Please also be sure to retrieve your blue recycling bins or garbage cans after collection. LOOKING AHEAD TO THE SUMMER… The Board of Directors has created a policy whereby only outdoor furniture is permitted on the front porch or in the rear yards. This area is not to be used as storage as it will detract from the beauty of the community. In addition, all seasonal decorations must be removed within 4 weeks of the holiday ending. If these are not removed in a timely manner the Corporation will have them removed and bill the cost back to the unit owner. Furthermore please be advised that window air conditioners are not permitted, nor are residents allowed to sun bathe on the roof at any time!!!! The Corporation accepts no liability if tenants get injured while engaging in this prohibited activity. Landlords will be solely liable for the actions of their tenants. A copy of this newsletter, Parking policies, Vehicle registration form and Pre-Authorized payment withdrawal form are available on our website at www.inspirah.com. Check it out! Inspirah Property Management Ltd. 920 Edinburgh Road South, Guelph. ON N1G 5C5 Tel. (519) 767-2060 Fax (519) 767-2080 Michael Royston – Property Manager – Canterbury Commons