We Survived the Ice Storm - furnace filters soon!

Thankfully, Haven condos was not effected too much by the storm, no power loss anyway. The ice, while troublesome for many, offered a photographic opportunity. The building signs look nice:

Furnace filters:

I have found a source for our furnace filters in Bolton and will be talking with them as soon as they open after the Holidays. I will let you know how it goes and how we can order from them - information I have so far seems to indicate they typically deal with the corporation and not individual units, but as I said, I will get more exact data soon.

Happy Holidays!

Tax Bills are arriving

This is both good news and bad of course. The bad news is that we have tax bills to pay around Christmas time! LOL
It is good that we are getting the bills though, because as you know taxes started being our responsibility as soon as we moved in and so the amount has been collecting over that time until the City got its act together and issued our bills. You need to pay the bill you just received and then ensure you start saving for the ongoing amounts. If you look at your assessment for 2014 and multiply that by the city tax rate of 0.00939605 you will know how much to save each month for next years taxes.
Arguably, this is better than some new places where you do not get a bill for a year or more and then have to try to pay that back tax and your regular taxes all at once.

Water -HOT water issue now

The water is off in the building today due to an emergency that needs repair. TAG expects it to be back on by 5pm. Building management is sorry for the inconvenience and last minute notice but it could not be helped. It may be turned back on a lot sooner if possible

UPDATE! 5:30pm. You may find getting HOT water a problem. It is rectified but we all need to run the taps in all units to flush out the cold. Let 'er rip until the hot starts coming, but we all need to do it together, it will take far too long for single units.

On another note, this blog has surpassed 10,000 views! Hopefully many or most were from owners and residents. A new haven web site from the management company will likely be up soon so this may be the end of the blog.

Elections and Board Members

As many of you know the owners met on Wednesday the 13th at the Turnover meeting where we took over management of our building, along with the current building management team TAG.

Elections were held for the three Board positions. The first election was for owners occupying their units, followed by votes for the two remaining Board members by all eligible voters.

The elections results, and your new Board of Directors are:

Barry Lewis - elected to the three year term
Ryan Ahonen - elected to the two year term
Jeff Pearce  -elected to the one year term.

The three members elected among themselves to fill the following roles:

President - Barry
Treasurer - Ryan
Secretary - Jeff

These are all important positions and need us all, the Board members and the Owners, to act together in our collective best interests and according to the Condominium Act of Ontario 1998 and the Condominium Corporation Declaration and By-Laws.

An initial Board meeting will be held in the next few days with TAG management to begin the process of managing our building as owners.

Bulletin Board

You will notice that the Bulleting Board is up in the Parking lobby for resident and owner use.

Haven Board of Directors

Folks, this Wednesday at 7pm at Tansley Woods community center in Rooms 1&2, we will be given a chance to vote for our new Board of Directors. Three positions are open at this inaugural event and once completed we will begin to direct our own affairs.

Please either attend or send in your proxy as we MUST have a minimum of 25% of owners and/or mortgagees in order to have a quorum. If anyone needs a ride please feel free to let me know and I will see what can be done to get you there. As well, if you have misplaced the proxy form I am sure we can get you a new copy. There is only one per unit.

As you know, I am running for a position on the Board and will appreciate your vote. As well, three other owners are running  remember, there are only a total of three board positions at this time. Personally, I hope the new Board begins to initiate plans to have at least 5 Board members in total to more properly represent all of us. That would mean we will vote for three members next year again since one of the three elected this year will only have a 1 year term and will need to run again in 2014.

The others running include: Ryan Ahonen, Jeff Pierce and Gautam Patel.


NOTICES

On another related note, please do not post any form of notices or signs in the common areas. It is against the corporations policies. TAG will be instigating a bulletin board for us in the parking area lobby and that is the place for any election, parking or whatever notices you might have. (I erroneously received a cease and desist notice from TAG about notices that another person had posted which is how I learned of this policy).

Remember, Wednesday night is YOUR time to have a say and help begin our new journey as a community.

Wallpaper!

The hallways are finally getting finished. That is pretty good timing as far as I am concerned given that most of the 4th floor has only been in a couple of months.

Paper looks really nice, you can see some shots here:

(Photos courtesy R. Black 2013)

I imagine the carpeting will follow shortly. The place is certainly on track to being finished by Christmas as promised.

New plants, driveway finishing

The place is really starting to come together outside. The fence is going up and will look really nice I think. Far better than the chain link that was there. Fencepost holes are dug all along the back now so the fence should also be done all the way around in a few more days.

New plants have been added to the back entranceway as you can see in this picture:

 

The back entrance is finally getting fixed up as well which should be nice. Curbs are ready to be installed and the sidewalk across the drive will be paved as well. Not sure when they will fix the remaining sidewalk all along Sutton but hopefully soon.

 

I am away for the next 9 days so hopefully will have lots to report on when I return.

Furnace Filters

My neighbor has been asking TAG and the builder who looks after filters. So far it looks like we own the furnace and so will be responsible for maintenance and filters.

She also tried to find filters, as did we. unfortunately, they are an odd size 15x28x1 and regular stores do not seem to carry them. If anyone finds a source please let us know as I am sure many of us would like to replace the current ones now the building is getting a little more settled and the dust is settling.

Hot Water - UPDATE

The last few days the water has only been warm and not hot. Made for not very nice baths. This is now fixed and so everyone should be  back to getting hot water.

So please be careful if you have gotten used to sticking your hand under waiting for it to warm up as you might get scalded. Not sure if they have also fixed the time needed to run the water until it finally gets hot. Will check tonight and tomorrow and let you know.

Well, as you all likely know by now they have fixed the hot water situation. Now it gets hot enough and also gets hot fast. Thanks goodness, I am sure many of us were getting tired turning on the shower and walking away while we waited for it to get hot.

Fencing

It is finally getting a little busier around the building after what seems like a hiatus the last few weeks.

I talked with the fencing contractor yesterday and it seems we will be getting the same fencing we have surrounding the 1st floor balconies, all around the perimeter of the yard area as well. Nice! They hope to start putting it up along the houses starting at Upper Middle and working all the way back and around to Sutton. The chain link section at Sutton was left deliberately to allow for easier sightlines as we drive out onto Sutton.

I think we will see the fencing along the west side (where the houses are and the road that ends at our fence line) done by the end of this week weather permitting.

As an aside, I notice that the back doors finally close and lock properly. Now, if we can get the childish graffiti in the elevators to stop that would be nice.

Lamp Posts??? (update - and new trees and shrubs) further update

In case anyone was wondering, it appears we are getting four more light standards: 3 in the back entrance (where it is much needed I think) and 1 more at the Upper Middle end of our driveway. You can see the large square holes that were dug this past week. The one in the corner where our entranceway turns into the back of the building will be especially useful I think.

NEW NOTE: I may be wrong here. The holes look far too large for lampposts and in talking with folks around perhaps they are dug for other purposes. I will update when I see or hear more.

NEWER NOTE: definitely lamp posts, they have placed the iron bars in for the cement post.

This should be helpful especially during the winter  months when it gets dark sooner.

Now, if we can get the builder to put up a concrete post in front of that gas pipe on the corner, it would be really good. I am afraid someone barreling around the corner in the winter could easily swerve to miss a car coming the other way and crash right into the gas fittings.

This is looking towards the corner, the far red protects the corner laneway hole.


Also noted that they are putting in new trees and shrubs along the back. Will look nice shortly.
You can see them on the truck in the middle-left of the picture

Introduction to Managemnt group meeting

Our management group, TAG, held an introduction meeting in the amenity room on the 10th October. While I was to able to attend as I was travelling, my wife and sisters did and made some notes for me. If anyone else has items they can add, feel free to comment please.

 There will be an official Turnover meeting on November 13th 7pm at Tansley Woods Community Center, 1996 Itabashi Way. It is really  important as many of us as possible attend this meeting as this is where we "take over" the building by electing our own Board. Information packets should arrive soon detailing this and the process for becoming a Board member.

We will have, in accordance with our Condo Rules, 3 Board members. They will serve 1, 2 and 3 year terms so there is always an annual rotation of the Board. I am not sure how each of the initial three members will be assigned to the 1,2 or three year term.

TAG mentioned that Haven plans to have all work completed within the next 90 days, so by year end. I am sure this is good news to us all and especially to those on the first floor who have yet to see their balcony areas finished. It will be nice to see all the halls carpeted for instance and should help cut down on noise.

One item of note was parking. All outdoor parking is Visitor parking and is not for Residents. This was highlighted with the knowledge we all knew coming in (even though we didn't like it - I for one have tried to buy an additional spot since the day I first signed to buy my unit) there is only 1 spot per unit. TAG will begin  monitoring all parking and after a grace period Burlington Police will ticket any cars parked illegally. While it would be nice to have more parking there just isn't the space  - the City determines how many Visitor spots a building must have, not the Builder.

There is a bicycle share program on the honour system so that will be a nice addition, for those who want to cycle through the paths or even Bronte Park. Please remember as we start to use these facilities, the cost will be borne by us all, so we need to take care of what we have.

Procedures for parking, moving bicycle use Amenity room use will be created I believe by the newly elected Board shortly after (I would hope) their election.

So, this is what I have at this time, remember to book the 13th in your calendars as it is important to support our building and have your say.

Unit pictures

Since I have been asked, here are a couple of pictures of our unit. We love the hardwood floors, a tawny port color. Painting is ongoing as we speak and cleaning up all our pacing boxes will likely take another year, LOL (we did downsize from a large house)

The pictures are off my phone so not the best. Our entrance hallway is very nice:

And we have started painting. (It is a little hard to see)

We are thinking of some sort of ceiling design in the living room. We like this sort of thing:

And my wife loves her kitchen:

 

Tell us what you are doing and share some pictures.

Grass is coming?

Looks like the exterior is getting more finished each week. With topsoil going in (see below), grass should be next. The sprinkler system has been all put in and the electrical elements are set, so the grass can remain green all next summer with proper watering.

I am sure the first floor folks will be happy to see their "yards" finished as well. The posts are all in and Haven has started filling in the gravel and topsoil there too. Perhaps this week will start to see it leveled and the stones laid. It is nice to see the Upper Middle pavement area get cleaned up as well, it is starting to look like a finished building.

Now, if we can get those lights in the garage entrance to actually turn off during the day and not waste electricity...

Meet the Mgmt Team

I have been away the last week so am happy to see that the new management team is arranging a get together on the 10th. Unfortunately for me, I am travelling that day also so will not be able to meet you all. I guess it does mean our party room will be ready though<S>.

My wife and sisters will fill me in on the Board process and I will tell you now I plan to ask to be  a representative on the board when elections take place. I believe it is important to be proactive and help ensure we all enjoy a well run building. Hopefully you will all agree and perhaps when the time comes, vote for me (wow, shameless plug already, what can I say<g>)

I will be adding to the picture update tomorrow as I see the fencing is finally going in around the first floor units and I am sure all those in the units will be  glad they can finally start using their  outside space. Some the units are going to enjoy quite a large exterior from what I can see.

When I came in last night around midnight though the exterior door was propped open and the inside door still does not close properly so anyone could enter. Please, we all need to take the time to make our building safe by making sure we close the doors. We can still push TAG and Haven to get the doors fixed so they close properly but in the meantime lets make sure ourselves.

Tiles in roof lobby and new management team

As you can see below, the roof lobby is being tiled and (I hope) we will soon be able to use it.

We also have a new management team on board as you all know. TAG Management (our contact is Pamela Larmand -pamela@tag-solutions.ca ). The builder is still responsible for any of our 30 day and 1 year warranty issues so we still talk to Haven for those. TAG is responsible now for the common elements of the building, elevators, garbage rooms etc. They have a cleaner on site as of last weekend and new garbage bins and recycling bins are being introduced. Let's all be a little proactive and keep those rooms neat ourselves shall we? If you are unsure of something Pamela has pledged to help sort it out for us so give her an email. I have already passed on to both haven and TAG the need to start locking our doors each evening, they will work on fixing the back entrance so it closes properly and locks.

As for the Party room, I had hoped we could have a Introductory Gathering to get to know one another but the party room will not be available for another month or two. I will investigate using the roof top weather permitting sometime early October since most of us are in now.

Outside finishing

Finally, folks on the first floor can see some light at the end of the tunnel. As you can see here, the retaining walls on Sutton is going in, meaning those on the back and side of the building should maybe be able to use their porch area sometime in the next few weeks.

Also, those on the driveway will see an end to the piles of dirt and gravel outside their doors. Everyone else will be glad to see the end of the driveway mess as well I am sure. We are definitely getting there.

I expect we should start seeing hallways being finished with carpet and wallpaper.

Finally, I think we all need to start thinking security and making sure all the external doors are closed after 5pm so we use our keys to enter. Let's be proactive here. I am following up with building management to ensure the back door closes properly as it does stick and does not shut by itself.

The building is Registered!

I got an email today from Mary indicating that Haven is formally registered. This is great news for us as we can now officially "own" our condos and close fully. As I understand it, Haven will be contacting our lawyers to schedule closings beginning October 1st. No more rent, just mortgage<S>

Also, work on the roof top is also progressing well with the lobby area starting to be tiled, the grass is all in and...drum roll please, we have  small putting green! Too cool. My wife and I can't wait to get up there and BBQ and maybe I can practice my short game<S>. On that note of course, I am not sure yet when BBQs will be in place so I will let you all know as soon as I can find out. I'll post some pictures tomorrow.

Here are some pictures of the roof. Taken tonight so the door is locked but I will update tomorrow.

 The concrete underlay is being put down (above) so tiles will follow.

Garden area is looking nice.

Roof top garden progressing

For those still watching this blog, the roof top garden is coming along great. The grass arrived this morning - you can see the big crane that lifted it up to the roof and the grass (the long bags) waiting for installation. It will be going in the spaces that are not tiled as you can see in the forefront and back right of the picture.

With three BBQ areas it is going to be great.

We are in!

Finally, we moved in Thursday - took a while for the movers as expected but we were all in by around 5pm. Big sigh.

We have been offline since last wednesday, Cogeco finally arrived early this morning (Monday) and hooked us all up - whole home PVR, Internet ad telephone. It is the first time in over 20 years that I have been offline for 4 whole days. I didn't even open my laptop. (Ok, I did get business emails on my smartphone<S>)

However, my home office is now set up and my machines are working so I can get to work again.

We had Ikea installers here all day today doing a wall of cabinets in the master bedroom so we can finally put things away. Still waiting for our closet organizer folks to install the custom stuff, so coats and bedroom suits and shirts etc are still in boxes.

We have really enjoyed the last three evenings on the balcony looking at absolutely fantastic sunsets - almost like being welcomed by nature<S>.

Met our direct neighbours Stephanie and Sura, who move in later. Can't wait to have a get together for everyone to meet each other.

Tired from all the running around so pictures later.  Let me know how your move went and how you are doing...

PDI Day! Finally...

Almost couldn't sleep last night<S> We are now hours away from seeing our finished unit and we move in tomorrow! Whooot!

Cannot wait.

Big Sigh

Our PDI was scheduled for tomorrow (Friday), a week later than most from what I've heard. We move in next week. Now it is delayed until the day before we move, really disappointing as of course we are dying to see what it looks like. Oh well, these things happen I guess. Something about back orders.

My sister's move went well the other day so one of the three of us are in, with two more to come over the next few weeks. Must say, it appears nice and quiet according to my sister and the balconies will be fantastic after a year of being stuck in a place without one.

Fourth floor moves

My wife and I got our own call to schedule the PDI. So exciting, we cannot wait - next Friday

The fourth floor is starting to look finished with balconies starting to go up on the north end (our end) and in the inside of the north end. Moves should be also starting this week I imagine.  We are only 2 weeks away now.

You can see them going in below:

Roof Top Delight

In my recent tour, Alex showed me the progress on the roof. It looks fantastic! You can see below that the deck is shaping up as they install insulation and tiles. The pleasing "brick road" will be offset with imitation grass and on the far edge (north side of the building) by two circular areas of lighter concrete tiles. On the right hand side (Sutton) will be a BBQ area with pergola while farther west will be a circular area for quiet contemplation or reading perhaps.

Of course the inside is progressing as well with third floor folks starting to move in and work continuing for those of us on the fourth floor.

This is our main bathroom starting to look more finished.

The laundry "room" is a little small in our unit but the tiles look nice.

And other units are also coming along nicely

And "someone's" kitchen has been delivered.

and their bathroom is tiled.

Finally, others have flooring in and are getting closer to be finished

It is all looking fantastic and I cannot wait to get moved in.

Third floor moves in

This week the third floor owners begin moving in. We are getting closer and closer - my own move in date (first half of the fourth floor) is only 4 weeks away. Yeeeahhh!

You can see the third floor balconies going in which are needed prior to move in dates. This is a picture from the Sutton street driveway looking at the north side of the building.

Visit with Owners

We went up to take a look at the building on the weekend and had enough luck to meet two of the current residents. On the first floor a lovely lady and her friend were admiring the outside when we chanced by so we struck up a conversation. She was gracious enough to allow us in to see her place. Wow! Very nice fit and finish. She indicated it was very quiet. Lots of light. We had a great conversation with them and enjoyed the visit very much. Thanks! (You know who you are.)

As we exited her place one of the new owners on the second floor happened onto her balcony and of course we had to say hi. She has closed but not moved in as she is redoing the floors with hardwood. She indicated she was really happy to be finally in. So, we have met two of our new neighbors already and we don't move in for a little under 5 weeks.

On that, my wife has calculated all the potential closings and PDI dates based on those that have occurred so far in case you are interested. More to come on that shortly.

Getting closer and closer

The building is progressing really well. I noticed today that unit 311 looked like it was getting carpeted as I was checking the outside of the building - the doors were open as they were on my unit but I didn't see any action there. So they are moving right along. We have only 6.5 weeks till we move in meaning only 4.5 weeks until the place is ready for our PDI.

They continue to add balconies as you can see now with some on Sutton,

As well as on Upper Middle and in fact all around the building.

Latest Visit and hot water issues

I see there was a comment on hot water  a little earlier. I asked Alex about that and he indicated this is likely due to the fact the building is hardly in use by owners yet so because the water runs through risers from garage to 4th floor, it has a lot of distance to cover to get hot water flowing. With only a few units using it, it needs to travel to get hot into the unit. As the building fills with owners, this will end because the water will pretty much always be flowing throughout the building so will always be hot.

I have pictures to come shortly from todays visit. Even a couple of pictures of other folks units as requested. Look for the gorgeous balcony railings. They are putting about 3 to 5  day in on the second floor. Black with glass.

Well, here they are. Latest pictures.

Balconies:

"Someone" asked for pictures of their unit on the fourth floor. It is coming along nicely: This is the entrance:

 

This is the main bath entrance just off the inside door:

And the main room, walls are all in and ready for next phase:

For the rest of us, the main stairways up and down are very bright with all the windows:

and this is really nice, the builder has put power into the wiring closet so our cable modems and maybe wifi can be hidden away (look just below all the wires):

Can't wait as my unit gets closer and closer to completion. More to follow as time permits over the next few days and weeks

Moving Continues

I did get an email giving me a unit number to check but...the builder is too busy this week to let me in so I am trying for a visit for next week. Disappointing I know but I'd rather they made sure all of you get in on time than take time away for me to update the blog.

They are doing some work on the second floor balconies but from the looks of it most of you will have to wait a while to enjoy them, whether first floor or second.

The flowers (and weeds) look pretty on the north side of the building though. Hope no ones allergic.

Moving in week

Well some folks are moving in this week and should already be putting their condos into order.

Can anyone tell us how your move went? Did you get in ok? Is everything working?

What about closing costs? Do we pay those at this interim closing date and any idea how much they are?

Please, share what you can to help those of us patiently waiting our turn

NEW May 31 (check out comments under the previous post from one of the owners doing their PDI)
Thanks Sharleen for the comments. If you have pictures you want to share, by all means email them to me at barrylewis@hotmail.com

NEW JUNE 1 - Some comments are being made about the ceiling colour. I took a look at some of my pictures to see if I could tell anything about the ceilings. I wonder if it is because it's a big difference in look between the white walls and the textured ceiling? Or is it just that the paint used (typically not a great paint since builders know we all will paint our own colors) is not good enough to cover the textured ceilings. On flat ceilings I don't see much difference, (but those of you who are moving in will know better). The middle picture is likely off on white balance due to the light bulb.

Moving in Update

On Monday owners begin to move into the condo. It becomes home. Very exciting!

The driveway is paved,

and security is all ready for us,

the front hall looks fabulous!

Some of you have done your PDI (and haven't shared with us<S>). The builder uses this to stop trades from entering unless escorted because the owner has finished their inspection so obviously the builder wants nothing to change.

Their units are ready and appliances and everything are all in

 

Storage lockers are all ready for occupancy on the first floor.

Other units are being completed.

The elevators are ready, just need that final inspection. This one is covered to protect it from movers. I'll be getting out on the PH level, thank you. LOL

My unit on the fourth floor still has a way to go,

but my tub is in! Looking forward to a nice whirlpool soak.

Those who look out onto Upper Middle can look forward to some great views!
Maybe my wife and I can visit one sunny day for a glass of wine, lol

Finally, the garage is ready. Numbers were being painted on Friday.

So, welcome to all those moving in. Let us know your experiences. Anyone moving in Monday or Tuesday and want to, let me know and perhaps we can get moving day pictures of the first folks in?
(Remember, you can click on the pictures to see them in more detail.)