Commerce

With  the  growth of Unit and Apartment lifestyle options now a reality, especially in New Farm, we’d like to identify and discuss some of the mechanisms and procedures that have become the bane of the many organizations that have set themselves up to administer the current State Legislation.

A State Authority called The Office of the Commissioner for Body Corporate and Community Management is responsible for the creation, adoption and implementation of the extremely diverse policies facing the parties who chose to own/rent.

The Legislation is extremely intense and diverse.

The Authority is now associated with the State Department of Justice and Attorney General, which for the moment will be seen to be a better link that it had in the past. The website is  www.bccm.qld.gov.au

Many Industry Organizations have been established to assist the parties in the administration and implementation of the Legislation, most coming under the all embracing banner of BODY CORPORATE MANAGEMENT SERVICES.   (Over 90 no. such Organizations are listed in the Brisbane Yellow pages)

We spoke to the Body Corporate Manager of a small New Farm Apartment Block, seeking some commentary on some of the more fundamental policies and priorities of his BC Committee, in the way their Block is administered.

We have assembled it in a WE DO & WE DON’T format, and we’ll add to the listing over the next few weeks. As well, we will be seeking the inputs of some Industry Organizations to assist us all, in keeping up with some of the very, very complex issues covered by this Legislation.

WE DO:

1. Rely upon a Committee appointed BC Manager to oversee the day to day administration of the relevant CTS, and the implementation of the appropriate Legislation. (The original BC Managers were sacked in 2005.)

2. Convene regular BC Meetings and prepare quality Minutes for distribution.

3. Ensure a good working relationship with the BC Manager.

4. Insist to Owners that a “value adding” policy will be pursued at all times on matters of maintenance and upgrade.

5. Encourage inputs from all Owners, absent or otherwise.

WE DON’T:

1. Think that anybody other than Owners should be in charge of our Building.

2. Ignore the importance of Workplace Health & Safety issues for all work on the Building.

3. Waiver from the issues included within our internal Code of Behaviour Document issued to all Occupiers of the Building.

4. Tolerate anything else other than a firm and professional commitment from the appointed BC Managers.

Feedback is encouraged from site Visitors.

Commerce

Convenor and Editor - Chris Derrick

We had a photographer stand in the middle of the Park and take a couple of shots to areas to the North, South, East & West of where he was standing.

Apart from the beautiful greenery such shots produce, it is clear that this area has undergone some very radical changes in recent times. The Park is flanked by some beautiful and stately homes, but increasingly, the form of construction of the New Farm buildings in which we choose to live, is changing. The skyline is different. Traffic flows are different. Our social habits are now different.

We’ve included here an extract from the 2006 Census results, specifically relating to New Farm. In the category, DWELLING CHARACTERISTICS, we see some incredible divergence of outcomes to this area, compared to the national statistics. The most telling item is that 72% of habitable dwellings in New Farm are of the type “Flat, Unit or Apartment”, compared with only the 14% of habitable dwellings nationally.

From what we have seen for ourselves in the area since the Census, one might suggest that this figure would now be even higher.

Still, it all adds to the ever increasing delights that New Farm continues to provide for, not only for its residents, but for all of the many, many visitors.

New Farm Park is a beautiful and diverse facility, ranking a very close No.2 in Brisbane, in a readers choice exercise carried out by the Council last year.

newfarmpark.com.au will continue to provide an update on many related matters via this page. We have forged important link with the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) and related Body Corporate experts, who will keep us all informed on the many issues confronting us as “dwellers” in general. Other related issues will be developed on matters specific to New Farm on our regular Site updates.