There is a moment in every condominium saga when things become… surreal.
You start by emailing the board.
You document issues.
You cite the Condominium Act, 1998.
You cite the Human Rights Act.
Nothing happens.
So eventually you escalate the matter to your elected representative. In this case,
Catherine Fife.
The response we received was illuminating.
Below is the message from her constituency office, reproduced exactly.
📬 The Response
Good afternoon Claudia,
Thank you for following up with us. MPP Fife has been briefed and asked that we forward your concerns to her colleague MPP McKenney, Shadow Minister of Housing. MPP McKenney’s team is drafting a letter that MPP Fife intends to co-sign which will be sent to the appropriate ministry. I have not seen this draft so I am unsure which part of your story and report will be the focus of the letter. I will be sure to send a copy and any response we receive from the ministry to you and Joe.
Please feel free to follow up if you have any more questions or information you would like to share.
Kind regards,
J. N.
Constituency Assistant
Office of Catherine Fife MPP, Waterloo
🏢 Translation
Apparently our condominium issues have now reached the housing critic,
Catherine McKenney.
Their office is drafting a letter that will be sent to the ministry responsible for condominium regulation, the
Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing.
In other words, concerns raised by ordinary condo owners may now be travelling through Queen’s Park.
🤔 A Simple Question
If issues in a condominium escalate to the point where provincial legislators need to write letters to ministries…
perhaps the problem was not residents asking questions.
Perhaps the problem was a board that refused to listen in the first place.
🍿 Stay Tuned
We have not yet seen the draft letter referenced in the email.
But when it arrives, it will certainly be interesting to see what parts of this building’s governance story end up on the desk of the provincial housing ministry.
After all, condominium boards often like to remind owners that they operate within the framework of the Condominium Act.
It will be fascinating to see how that framework looks when examined a little closer by Queen’s Park.
