Subscribe for Daily Updates!
I have a question and im hoping some ideas can be generated.
In our co-op, a shareholder installed a surveillance camera over his door. It’s a large bulky item and was done overnight without any approval or notification from the board, managing agents or residents on the floor.
After reviewing the prop lease, house rules this is a violation of several provisions.
We have not reached out to our lawyer as she is on vacation, and this was just noticed today.
Any thoughts while we wait for our lawyer to return? Is this even legal in the sense that the common areas are private property and this person is video recording activity without notice to anyone?
There have been no burglaries or vandalism in the last 30 years; this is a new resident not familiar with co-op living, but im looking for other thoughts before we push back.
Thanks
I don't blame the person,especially while she is away. Maybe she should have installed it on the inside pointing toward the front door.
This is something I should have done a while back. I could've sworn on a couple of occasions something wasn't right when I came home.
If your neighbor (she? he? you mixed genders - perhaps intentionally?) is new to the building and to co-op living, I strongly suggest you not get the lawyer involved unless he/she refuses to remove the camera at the Board's request.
A friendly but formal letter informing the Shareholder of the violations, and requesting the camera be removed within 48 hours of his/her return, is probably sufficient - if it isn't, you can always turn to the lawyer for advice. But if it IS, your Shareholder will be much happier that he/she wasn't automatically treated like a felon by the governing body of your co-op.
My 2¢ - always be friendly first.
RLM makes an excellent point about diplomacy and friendliness. If the shareholder is away, however ("on his/her return"), the Board should absolutely and immediately drape or otherwise cover the camera in some way that doesn't hurt it (no painting over the lens) to protect the privacy of fellow shareholders. And let's face it -- if there are kids on that floor, that camera is just plain creepy.
Your prop mgr should send the SH a letter ASAAP saying the camera is in violation of the house rules and must be removed within 48 hours of the letter date. Put the letter under his door (in a sealed envelope) on the letter date and send it certified/return receipt. State on it: "Hand-delivered to Apt X and via Certified mail/return receipt".
The letter should also say if the camera is not removed as required, the apt corporation will have a qualified service remove it and the SH will be billed for all charges incurred for this service.
Our roof door is locked and residents are not allowed on the roof. We had a SH who went up the fire escape to the roof and installed a satellite dish for his apt. We sent him a letter stating the above which our attorney said we could do. He didn't remove the satellite dish so we had it removed, returned the equipment to him, and billed him for the removal service. He paid the charges and there was no further issue, but it's even more important that you have that camera removed to avoid problems for the coop with other residents.
The letter should be courteous but firm. Don't let this slide, and do it asap.
Many new SHs don't read the house rules. You should advise all new SHs that it's their responsibility to read and comply with them. We include the rules in all our sale/sublet packages, and all applicants are told to read them and required to initial each page. This way, they can't say they never got the rules or they didn't know what they are.
That camera needs to come down immediately. It's up to each shareholder to be familiar with the bylaws and other provisions of the propriety lease, and also to have enough common sense to know you don't record your neighbors' and their children's comings and goings without their permission or notification. You need to have them take that camera down immediately, in your presence, before one of the neighbors or a visitor files a lawsuit against both them and your co-op/condo.
Introduce yourself to other members of Board Talk! Log in below or register here.
Board Talk members who registered prior to March 9th, 2016 will need to reset their password.
Your Prop Lease (and probably your House Rules) should have provisions that no Shareholder or resident can place items in the common areas including but not limited to lobbies, hallways, stairways, etc. They don't own any portion of their space outside of their interior doors, so they are unilaterally infringing on the common space of the building.
The property manager should send them a letter while you await your lawyer alerting them that they are in violation and have x amount of days to remove it or you'll go to legal action, at their cost, naturally. Letter writing is step #1. Get everything in writing, and cite the specific paragraphs that they are in violation of.
Thank you for rating!
You have already rated this page, you can only rate it once!
Your rating has been changed, thanks for rating!
Board Talk members who registered prior to March 9th, 2016 will need to reset their password.