Dear Owners & Residents,

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. This year has been a busy year for Tank Tower, the committee who work hard to represent all owner members of the Body Corporate, and with support from SMG as our Body Corporate manager and the Caretaker, Aurora. 

Roles & Responsibilities

Over the last few years we have seen strong sales in Tank Tower, new owners and residents. Living in a Community Title scheme can be confusing, especially for new owners or tenants who have not previously owned or lived in an apartment complex, so the following information helps to clarify who does what in Tank Tower.

Body Corporate

Every owner in Tank Tower Community Titles Schedule is automatically a member of the Body Corporate, with shared responsibility for the following:

• Administer the common property and the Body Corporate assets for the benefit of the Owners

• Maintain common property

• Enforce the community management statement (CMS) by-laws

• Carry out other functions given to the Body Corporate under legislation, such as keeping records about its operations, meetings and owners

Committee

The Committee is made up of volunteer Owners/Representatives from the Body Corporate, and is the executive arm of the Body Corporate. Tank Tower has a very active Committee, with most members engaged on topics several times per week, chairperson and treasurer to approve invoices, and chairperson who manages online presence at TankTower.com.au and FaceBook.

The Committee has the duty of putting into effect the lawful decisions of the Body Corporate with the following duties:

• Attending all the committee meetings each year. These meetings are called as required and are usually three – four times a year, depending on the size of the scheme

• Reading and understanding the meeting notices prior to attending the meeting

• Attending to any task they have agreed to perform

• Decision making within the scope of committee responsibility

Strata/Body Corporate Manager (filled by Strata Management Group)

Body Corporate Manger is engaged to:

• Receive requests related to decision making to be put to the committee or the Body Corporate

• Administrative tasks to assist the Committee in the day to day operation of the Body Corporate in compliance with the applicable legislation

• Issuing and collection of levies, Payment of approved invoices, Providing draft budgets

• Assisting with calling and minuting meetings, Implementing motions and Committee directives

• Providing general guidance on relevant legislative matters to the Committee

• The Body Corporate Manager facilitates a number of meetings each year as directed by the Committee, including an annual general meeting, a budget meeting, and committee meetings and formalising committee votes

Building Manager (filled by Aurora)

The Building Manager’s role and services are specified in the caretaking agreement between the Building Manager and the Body Corporate. The Building Manager is responsible for coordinating the maintenance and repair of the common areas, with duties such as maintaining the pool, cleaning lobby walls, floors and lifts, changing light bulbs, overseeing refuse collection and cleaning of bins.

The Building Manager oversees on site contractors who are there on behalf of the Body Corporate, and assist the Committee with upholding the by-laws by advising them when there are issues, including overstays in visitors parking, for the Committee to address.  All residents can access the by-laws from the Resources page on TankTower.com.au 

In Tank Tower, the Building Manager also has a Letting Manager agreement, acting as an onsite rental agent.

• The Building Manager must direct owners to the Body Corporate manager for requests that need to be put to the Body Corporate. 

• Owners can access the Building manager and Letting agreements from the Owners page on TankTower.com.au 

Additional sources of information:

• https://www.qld.gov.au/law/housing-and-neighbours/body-corporate/roles

• https://www.stratamg.com.au/the-role-of-the-committee

2023 Major Work - Street Image

The 2023 AGM was held on 28th February, where the body corporate voted in support of paint repairs to the street facing podium levels and pool area.

Below are some images showing the initial condition of the paint, progress to completion.

One of the considerations of painting the lower tower a darker colour was to emphasise "River Reaches", the stainless steal sculptural artwork collaboration between Southbank Institute of TAFE as an initiative of Brisbane City Council and Tony Dempsey Architect.

This year the chairperson continued relentless pursuing of Brisbane City Council to repair damaged poles and bollards located outside the front of the property. A new contact within council has been established and the chairperson is confident that future damage will be addressed quickly.

The cafe owner addressed cleaning of the umbrellas, and secured a new tenant. "Sushi in the city" opens in 2024 following a significant renovations, involving demolitions, new flooring, custom built counters and cabinetry, and fresh paint.

2023 Major Work - Pool Walls

At the 2023 AGM the Body Corporate also improved paint repairs to the pool area walls. Below are some images showing the initial condition of the paint, progress to completion. Since addressing failed paintwork, reports of water ingress to gym and co-located lots has not reoccurred.

2023 Major Work - Other repairs

Through this year the committee received a concern related to mould in a Lot, located in a higher level of the tower. Through investigation it was identified that a paint bubble, caused by paint membrane failure collecting water and causing paint to expand as a bubble, had occurred on the side of the building. The caretaker obtained quotes, which were within committee expenditure limit, subsequently approved and repaired.

2024 Major Work - Paint Proposal

The main tower was last painted over 10 years ago, with paint life of 10 years, multiple patch repairs completed over that time and additional bubbling observed, the committee has considered options and obtained quotes for major paint project proposed for 2024.

The benefits of proper paint maintenance extend far beyond aesthetics. A high-quality coat acts as a weatherproof barrier, shielding against the harsh elements year-round. Quality paint surface not only protects the building's structural integrity but also prevents costly repairs associated with moisture damage and mould. 

Taking into account energy considerations, the committee discussed an opportunity to improve energy efficiency, through the use of a lighter colour. Through consultation and research, the use of white on larger surfaces will help to reduce the building thermal footprint, reduce the visibility of render patching and simplify future oaint colour matching.

The paint proposal being put to all owners at the 2024 AGM is to paint all surfaces requiring access via ropes, focused on large surface areas, and with the intent of lifting the presentation of the building with a multi-tonal approach.

• Main tower side walls - White

• Main tower rear wall - White

• Main tower site recesses - Grey

• Main tower front - Grey

• Main tower balcony edges (Rear) - Grey

The image below shows additional paint bubbles identified on the exterior surfaces that need to be addressed, and are within the scope of the proposed paint repairs for 2024.

Images above and below show current condition of major surface areas, patch repairs conducted over the last ten years.

The image below shows aspects of the paint proposal provided to reputable companies, who have now quoted and will be discussed at the coming budget meeting, with a view to putting the proposal to all owners at the upcoming 2024 AGM.

2024 Major Work - Penthouse Balcony Overflows

While considering the major paint project for 2024, the committee has identified an opportunity to address an infrequent re-occurring water ingress issue impacting penthouses.

During heavy rain, especially during storm events, significant quantities of water can fall onto the penthouse balcony which is surrounded by wall and unable to drain. This water can enter the penthouse lot, and drain though to the lots below.

The image above shows an example of the overflow drain locations, and the image below shows the current overflow sizes (10mm at best) compared to the sub-penthouses, located on the Level 5 podium, where overflows were increased to 40mm during prior waterproofing works. The proposal for consideration at the 2024 AGM will increase overflow sizes for penthouses to also be 40mm. This modification will significantly improve drainage capacity, ensuring water efficiently flows away even during periods of intense rainfall.

2024 Major Work - Fire Safety

This year it was identified that some of the fire related services are in need of maintenance. The committee has received quotes, to significant value, for the rewiring of the pressurisation system. The committee reviewed options and identified that repairs could be completed, still compliant, with significant cost savings within the committee expenditure limit subject to budget approval at the 2024 AGM.

2024 Major Work - Lift repairs

 A malfunction of a lift necessitates prompt repair of the primary drive unit. This has been an ongoing issue, with progress summarised below... 

• KONE, the current lift provider, conducted a repair which then subsequently failed

• KONE identified that the drive system requires replacement

• OTIS, the original manufacturer, have obsoleted the current system

• Due to obsolescence, quotes to replace were required

• The building manager, Aurora, have obtained two quotes:

  • KONE - 12 week lead time, requires both lifts to be done at over $250,000

  • OTIS - 4 week lead time, can repair a single lift at a time, at approx $30,000

Both of the quotes exceed the committee expenditure limit, requiring a motion to be put to all owners requiring either EGM or AGM.  While an EGM was considered, the AGM is schedule for the end of February, process and timing requirements for sending voting papers via post will provide minimal time benefit.

Due to potential emergency situation that could arise should the remaining lift fail, on the last working day prior to Christmas, the committee voted on options. The outcome of this vote will be discussed at the upcoming budget meeting.

Below is an image of the drive unit that has failed, been repaired and then subsequently failed.

Reminders

Postage & Email

This year we have seen an increase in the number of owners who are receiving correspondence via slow traditional post delivery service, increasing your Body Corporate costs and delaying your updates on important topics.  The committee would like to encourage owners accept all correspondence via email, and asks owners to ensure the SMG email addresses are added to your contact lists to ensure emails are not set to Junk/Spam folders. 

Parking

Renting car spaces to non-residents is against the building by-laws, is against the Brisbane City Council town planning approval, and could result in the building being rezoned as a commercial building with considerable impact to the rates council charges owners.  The caretaker, Aurora, is responsible for notifying the committee of any by-law breaches including observations where parking lots are rented to non-residents.  Owners and residents can also assist with reporting observations through TankTower.com.au website.

Lot Changes & Bylaws

The by-laws outline changes to Lots that require approval of the Body Corporate, so it is encouraged that if you are considering improvements to your Lot, undertaking renovations, installing air-conditioning, or altering your floors (for example) then review the by-laws and contact SMG so a request can be put to the committee for consideration.

Throwing items over balcony

By-laws also outline that throwing items, including dirty water and cigarette butts, over the balcony is not permitted as there are safety hazard and potential legal consequences of throwing objects from balconies.

To the future

The committee aims to maintain levies, during these difficult times of inflation, appropriately balanced with meeting the maintenance and long term needs of Tank Tower and we invest our personal time to ensure that the Body Corporate is not taken advantage of, driving toward the best service and product for appropriate fee.

As we see in the new year I am excited about the evolution to our local area, we live and own within a fantastic location and global city which will host the 2032 Olympics. Almost daily I walk, like many residents, over the Kurilpa Bridge at our doorstep to enjoy GOMA, Museums, Southbank, etc or the other direction to my corporate office where I have a full time position with an international company.

Historically some owners have frequently contacted me personally to discuss matters, and as I have now held the voluntary position of chairperson for over 10 years, I am encouraging all owners to understand the roles and responsibilities of all the contributors. I want to ensure that if, in a future where I am no longer the chairperson, that all parties clearly understand their role, exceed associated expectations or redirect to the responsible party.

If you have questions or suggestions, please submit them using the TankTower.com.au Contact page or email me chairperson@tanktower.com.au

Phill Jones – Chairperson to the Body Corporate, Tank Tower