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Vent Cleaning

The board recently discussed vent cleaning.  As it is a significant bill that we haven't budgeted for, we decided to wait until fall to make the decision at that time.  

 

In the meantime...

 

Please keep on eye on your dryer vents as spring and therefore nesting season has arrived.  If you do have a problems with your dryer vent, please contact Connelly.

Thank you,

Expresso Condo Board

Spring has Sprung!

The nice weather has begun and it is lighter much later, this could only mean Spring is here.  Winter can seem like it goes on and on and the condo seems impossible to keep clean.  Winter can take it's toll so we are focused on cleaning it up.  Like always we do a bit at a time based on other city Spring clean up initiatives   For example, we don't sweep out the parkade until the city completes the street sweeping.  Let the clean up begin.

1.  Rocky Mountain Landscaping - Will continue to service Expresso

You can expect the following Spring/Summer services (will post similar outline for Fall.Winter when the time comes): 

• Spring clean-up: leaf removal  weeding of flower beds, power raking, aerating, fertilizing, little removal, tree pruning, sweeping of all roadways, sidewalks and exterior parking stalls and general site clean-up.
• Litter detail: to be completed during the Spring clean-up
• Summer lawn maintenance (April-September): this includes weekly lawn maintenance services including mowing  trimming, edging of flowerbeds and plants  tree trimming as required, clearing of grass trimmings from sidewalks and weeding of flower beds, any other misc. maintenance related to these activities.

2.  Parking - frequent parking in unauthorized area in the alley next to the electrical poll: 

We have noticed a truck and SUV have been parking next to the electrical poll in the back alley.  Unfortunately this is not a parking spot and therefore not assigned to anyone in the building.  This area is not zoned to be a parking spot and it is unfair for people to take advantage of this area when others are following the rules by not parking there.  This is the final warning and the next time we notice a car there it will be towed at the owners expense.  

3.  Carpet cleaning - the carpets will be deep cleaned this Spring.  Carpet replacement will be factored into the next reserve fund study.  Once the study is complete the board will decide if we should replace them sooner.  

4.  Reserve fund study - is currently in progress by Clear Path.  The study will outline all the building maintenance needed over the next number of years and estimate the costs associated.  Once complete the board will review and do the proper financial planning needed to ensure the condo fees can cover the costs.  More to come.  It is required we have a reserve fund study completed every 5 years.

5.  Air compressor - PDS fire protection suggested we replace the air compressor, a component of our sprinkler system to ensure proper functionality.  This work will proceed.  We will also be using PDS to complete our fire inspections going forward.

6.  Last but not least - THANK YOU for your patience on the first floor ceiling repair, it was a treat to see if complete and they did a great job.  Can barely tell there was a huge gaping hole lol.

Thanks all for now folks, Happy Spring and be kind to your neighbors.

Expresso Board of Directors



Winter Update

Hello,

Here are some updates from the December board meeting.

1. Ceiling repairs on the 1st floor.  After speaking with multiple contractors there is no guarantee insulating the pipes in the ceiling will help decrease the temperature on the second floor.  The board has approved a quote from Guardian Condo Care to proceed to repair the roof on the first floor.  This work will commence very soon.  Thank you very much for your patience on this matter and apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused.
2. Once the repairs are complete on the first floor the hallway will be cleaned.  Winter does take a toll on the carpet.  More to come on the carpet replacement once the reserve fund study is complete (see #5).
3. To ensure our building meets all cities bylaws in terms of fire safety we are required to install a back flow device for our sprinkler system.  A quote from Fahrenheit 451 has been approved by the board and will commence soon. 
4. The board is pleased with the service Connelly & Company has provided and has renewed the contract with them for another three years ending February 2016.
5. It is time to have a full Reserve Fund Study done on our building.  Clear Path Engineering will assess the property in great detail and provide a report to determine when repairs will be needed to the building.  From there the board partners with Connelly to budget appropriately.  The details of the report will be released once it is complete.  This will take a few months, more to come.  For more information about what is reserve fund study is check out the Clear Path website. 
6. Next meeting is scheduled for February 12.  As always please send Connelly a note if you have any questions, concerns or comments.

Hope everyone is having a good winter!

Thank you,
Expresso Condo Board

Shoes in the hallways

It is winter and it is a mess outside.  We are all coming into the building with wet shoes. It is important to remember the hallways are common property and therefore shoes should not be left outside your unit door. 

This is also an issue when it comes to liability, if a resident, visitor and maintenance man trips and falls our building insurance becomes liable which you pay for as an owner.  It is also required by the fire department to have our hallways clear in case of an emergency evacuation. 

I have noticed a number of units with shoes outside the door in the hallway.  To avoid any potential issues we are asking you please bring them into your unit.

Thank you for your attention and understanding to keep our common property neat and safe for all residence and visitors.

Expresso Condo Board

Example: (not from our building)

Fall Update

Hello Expresso!

It's looking a lot like winter outside, fall was here and then it was gone.  The board has been meeting once a month and like usual there is nothing major going on but we wanted to fill you in on all the little things going on...here goes.

1. First and most importantly we have welcomed a new member to the board.  We are thrilled to have the extra help and support.
2. We continue to receive great service from Darynn, our property manager, and the folks at Connolly.  If you have ever been on a board before you will know this isn't always the case so a special thank you to Darynn on behalf of all the condo board and other Expresso owners.
3. The Recirc line in the ceiling of the first floor is repaired, we can all breathe a sigh of relief as we don't have to deal with the small leak anymore.  You are probably wondering what is taking so long to repair the holes in the roof.  This is our opportunity to look into insulating the pipes in the ceiling as they contribute to the higher temperature in the second floor hallway.  This isn't work that has to be done, it would be classified as a nice to have.  The board is waiting for a second quote, they will be considered against the budget and then we will proceed to insulate the pipes and then fix the ceiling or just fix the ceiling.  Once we decided I will post a note to the blog so you are informed.  Trust me, we all want the holes fixed so we appreciate your patience, especially those on the first floor!
4. Carpet and hallways - if you are anything like the board you will also be dying to have the carpets replaced and the hallway walls freshened up.  Carpet replacement is a major expense and therefore a line item in the Reserve Fund Study.  It is scheduled for 2015, this seems like a long time to us too.  We have the discussion on the table to figure out what to do, they are still being cleaned, yeah I know...it's hard to tell.  More to come.
5. Regular cleaning - if you are wondering when the cleaners are on site...they are here on Thursday's and Friday's.  I have asked Darynn to please ask them to spend a little additional time the next few weeks.  I know the third floor in the west hallway doesn't seem like it is getting the vacuum love it needs.  This is our only attack to have our common area look and feel clean till we figure out the carpet situation so bare with us.
6. Snow removal and the dreaded driveway - yup it is that time of year again, we pray that when we stop to open the garage door with our key that we are able to make it up.  We have asked Darynn to ensure the snow removal company salts really well and thoroughly remove the snow.  We will keep on this...another option is to have a bag of salt and a shovel at the door and all owners can throw a bit out in between the snow removers coming.  I will ask about this, I am pretty sure there used to be something like this set up.
7. Just another reminder to keep your windows closed when it is below 0 outside.  The cold air can freeze the pipes, if this happens we are all going to be sorry as it would be a huge expense to all owners.  Thank goodness we get chinooks, please us the warmers days to air out your unit.
8. Parking - just wanted to remind everyone to ensure your parking straight in your spots.  I have noticed cars parked at an angle and some not pulled in all the way.  Both of these cases can cause issue for others.  Thank you for being respectful.
9. Fire Alarm - the sprinklers went off due to a malfunctioning pump, f451 did an inspection our system on Friday and will be providing a list of deficiencies if there are anymore.  The  system did directly alert the fire department, which is the way it is designed to work.

Water Leak on First Floor

Hello Expresso!

As you are probably aware we had another water leak from the Recirc line on the 1st floor.  This has been a difficult situation for the board to deal with as we have been investigating what other work we could pursue when getting into the ceiling to fix the line. 

I want to let you know the board has committed to this issue and we are going to call a impromtu meeting to decide what we are going to do, we have all the information we need to make the decision and get it fixed ASAP.

Once we understand when and how the leak is going to actually be fixed I will post the information to the blog and put up a notice so you know the post has been made.

I want to appoloize to all the people on the 1st floor who have had to put up with the leaks, wet carpet and terrible appearance.  I can promise you we have been trying to figure out the best solution.  We have been investigating options to potentially insulate the piping in the ceiling to try to prevent some of that heat rising to the second floor. 

We had good intentions but now find ourselves faced with a pressing need to fix the leak and understand we have to proceed with the work to fix the Recirc line soon. 

Thank you for your patience and more to come.

Expresso Condo Board