本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛YOUR INVESTMENT IS AT RISK AND THE FINANCIAL VIABILITY OF THE CONDOMINIUM CORPORATION IS IN JEOPARDY. YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION IS IMPERATIVE.
October 30, 2017
Dear Westlake Tower 2 Unit Owner,
We are writing to you today collectively as a group of concerned Unit Owners and Residences about the events that have taken place in our building from July/17 to now.
Please read this letter carefully, respond to this email to let us know that you have received it by indicating your unit number. We urge all owners to attend the AGM on Nov. 9th at 6.30pm in person. Not Proxy. We need all Owners at this meeting to vote in person for a board that will act in good faith on behalf of owners. Please take the time to also read the CBC articles noted in the closing of this communication. They provide the basis for our request for you to attend the Nov. 9th meeting.
At this meeting you will have a chance to learn more about the events outlined in this letter and the opportunity to vote for your new Board of Directors.
Summary of the events:
1. Termination of First Service Residential Property Management (FSR)
Three of the five Board of Directors: Sam (Shahab) Roozbahani, Marko (Maher) Hafez and Mian Aziz formed a quorum (majority) on the board and without the knowledge or input of the other two Board members, Mark Huang and Shaun McGrath, they acted on their own and terminated FirstService Property Management and replaced them with iCare Property Management. With some due diligence, the following was brought to our attention:
a. iCare is not a recognized Condominium Property Management company in Ontario;
b. Their website says “Manages over 400 separate suites” icarepropertymanagement.com which coincidentally we have over 400 suites. This raises the question, are we their only client? What experience do they have? What is their track record? What designations and experience do their Property Managers have? Do they have backup staff to cover vacations and other leave of absences? Do they have staff that are available 24/7? What is their track with emergencies? Have they had experience with critical emergencies that can develop in a Village the size of ours? We use the term Village because we share amenities, P1 parking, courtyard, retail stores in our commercial units, BBQ, etc. with Towers 1 & 3 and soon Tower 4. Managing four (4) towers requires coordinated efforts to maintain our shared facilitates and to ensure we receive quality level of service. With iCare in place, the sharing of security across buildings, superintendents, cleaning staff, etc. cannot happen and we lose this benefit that we have come to expect but maybe not always known this was the case. There are complex issues that can only be managed effectively if we have one property management company in the complex. There are also economies of scale in acting jointly.
The three named Board Members are aware that fact but decided to act unilaterally despite the dissent of the other two members of their board and other members on the Shared Condo Committee.
2. Conduct of Business
The same three Board Members Sam, Marko and Mian have failed to act honestly and in good faith on the behalf of all Owners. The hasty transition of property management has enabled these Members to take control of the AGM process to ensure their re-election and allow them to continue with their agenda against the best interest of the Corporation and the Owners. As a result, we are now paying for two property management companies during the three months of transition. If these actions continue the Corporation may need to commence legal action against all the Board Members to recover substantial financial losses and protect the interest of the Corporation. This will increase costs by creating legal costs and increases in future insurance costs. These costs will be borne by the unit owners in the form of increases of condominium fees.
3. Requisition Meeting to Remove Board Members Sam, Marko and Mian
A group of Owners were unsuccessful in the petition to have an Owner Requisition Meeting to remove the 3 board members. They managed to get the meeting date of Monday, September 25th arranged but did not have quorum (minimum of 109 votes either in person or by proxy). They were unsuccessful in their endeavor to remove the board members because iCare oversaw the process and failed to notify all Owners in a timely manner. The three Board Members named above incurred costs for the Owners by retaining the services of the Corporation lawyer and minute taker for their sole benefit at that meeting.
4. Critical Emergencies:
1. Massive Power Failure Sunday, Oct 15th 3:30 pm. There was no iCare assistance. No one from iCare to reach, responding or returning emails during this black-out. No one helping us to remain calm or assure us things are under control;
2. Major Flood Saturday, Oct. 21 at 5:30 am. Tenants in one unit were responsible for water overflow of at least 3 hours in duration which affected over 10 floors and multiple units. Emergency responders were on the scene but iCare was nowhere to be found for days.
FSR acted immediately to respond to ALL 2 of our crisis, put people at ease, made calls and had restoration units and staff arrived to do clean-up.
5. Re-Election
In the recent AGM package that you should have received by mail, Marko and Mian are asking to be re-elected and are promising to lower maintenance fees. Their actions in the last 12 months may result in two lawsuits, liens and potentially a Special Assessment of the property which will raise the unit owner condominium fees substantially and potentially disrupt the process of obtaining Clearance Certificates that will disrupt purchase and sales and mortgage transactions for the unit owners.
6. Our Investment
Owners have a lot at stake with their investment. There is a total of 434 units in the tower with an annual budget of $2.36 million dollars and a reserve fund of $477, 000. Daily we hear on the news that we should not give out confidential information to callers or emails who we do not know. Giving out bank account numbers, signatures etc should only given to a trusted and known person(s) or company. It is improper for iCare to request such confidential information through a portal. The actions of these Board Members brings into question their motives and agenda.
7. AGM
By now you should have received a hard copy of the AGM package by regular post. It was sent out on October 20th, 2017. Please note in the Agenda where it references “the following interested persons of their intention to be a candidate in the election” includes only two candidates running for the board. The same two directors whose term has expired and now seeking re-election. However, it does not list the names of individuals who also submitted their application to run for the board. Their names were excluded from AGM Agenda in the package mailed – 1. Karen Calder and 2. Yinan (Helen) Liu. Those excluded candidates are now concerned that they have no option but to nominate themselves from the floor during AGM on November 9th and after the fact that Proxy’s have been submitted. This is why WE ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGING YOU TO ATTEND THE AGM IN PERSON in order for your vote to count and voice to be heard.
The same three Board Members approved the package and omitted to name all the competing candidates.
8. Major Dispute with the developer (Onni)
Onni has failed to provide audited financial statements to account to the three Corporations for the $25,000 to $35,000/month that the three Corporations pay to Onni subject to an Agreement called the “Four-Way Agreement”. This Agreement governs the commercial properties and the costs of maintaining the common areas and commercial space in the courtyard, P1 and P2 levels. The three Corporations manage this Agreement through a Three-way Committee consisting of a Board Member from each of the three Corporations. The three Corporations through the Shared Committee and with the assistance of FSR have been in negotiations for the last 12 months for the release of information so that they may account to Owners on how this money is spent by Onni. They believe that Onni has not been accurate and fully transparent in the administration and allocation of these costs. They have refused to provide any information and have threatened to commence another lawsuit and place liens on all the units in the complex if we do not pay exorbitant sums for electrical bills that have neither been substantiated or budgeted for by the three Corporations. The three Board Members named above have failed to attend any of the meetings or acknowledge the position of our Corporation in this looming crisis. They have exposed the Owners to possible liens and another lawsuit involving Onni.
Our main goal here is simply to have a fair and democratic election process, to have our building managed by an experienced, registered and reputable company with a qualified Property Manager as well as having a Board of Directors that act with respect and in good faith on behalf of all Owners as well as with each other. We trust you agree.
It is critical you educate yourself on what can happen when you do not get involved in your condo and do not attend a crucial meeting like the Annual General Meeting. Following are links to CBC articles that will show you why we are concerned:
1. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/questionable-proxies-shut-down-charles-street-condo-election-sources-say-1.4118643 and;
2. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/condo-owners-resign-toronto-1.4131732.
Thank you for your time in reading this letter and taking an active role in your home. Again, to ensure your voice is heard, it is imperative that we have ALL UNIT OWNERS at this meeting on November 9th and vote in person. Please, reply to this email with your unit number and confirm your attendance.
Thank you
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