Page 6 - Kew News 2021-08 Final

Maintenance
Impact of STB case (parking lots)
In the month of March, 2 council members representing Kew Green Management Corporation attended a mediation hearing at the Strata Titles Board (STB) to address issues raised by two Sole Proprietors (SPs) on the topic of basement car parks and refundable deposits for renovation.
A settlement was reached between the two parties.
This case has been closed but the hearing has led to some discoveries in the basement car park which impacts all residents.
The STB pointed out that it is not legal under the BMSMA to allocate a car park lot to a specific unit. All subsidiary proprietors can park in any approved car park lot in the estate. This means that the 2017 bylaw requiring every resident to park their car only in the space below their unit is illegal and needs to be repealed or amended. This was done in the 2021 AGM in June.
Here is a summary of the outcome from this STB case and the relevant resolution passed in 2021 AGM in June:
1. Our bylaws on refundable deposits for renovation contained a forfeiture clause which is tantamount to a penalty or fine which is contrary to the Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act (BMSMA). This clause has been amended and passed in 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM).
2. There are a few cases of refundable deposits still being held by the MCST. These cases will be investigated and the deposits return to the SPs if it is within the regulations to do so.
3. The car park lot under unit 209 is unsafe due to its size and location and MCST needs to ensure it is no longer used for parking of cars.
4. A preliminary measurement of all car parks was taken and it was revealed that the dimensions of many car park lots in the estate are not consistent with the statutory requirements. In the 2021 AGM the Council had sought the general body’s approval for utilising the sinking fund to conduct a feasibility study to regularize all car park widths. However this resolution was defeated.
5. The larger width of the car park lots under units 211, 213, 215, 217 and 219 was questioned by the two SPs. The Council sought the general body’s approval to standardise the width of these 5 lots. The consensus was to leave these car park lots alone, as these car park lots are no longer exclusively used by these units. The resolution to standardise the width of these 5 lots was defeated.