Maintenance and Repairs

November 3, 2023 Published by Toronto and Area Chapter - By Lisa Kay

Common Area Refurbishment Refresher

From the Fall 2023 issue of CCI Toronto Condovoice Magazine.

A General Path to Condo Refurbishment

Having been in the condominium common area refurbishment business for over 12 years, I see a fair number of boards (and even managers) get stuck on how to proceed with this monumental and expensive task. This is understandable, after all it is not often, if ever, that one would be involved in a construction project of this nature, so it’s hard to become comfortable and familiar with this undertaking.

I thought I would provide a general path on the process and what to consider when navigating this undertaking. Of course, there is more than one way to cook an egg, but this is a good starting point for an efficient plan of action.

Steps to Refurbishing Your Condo:

1. Determine when you are due for a refurbishment and the timeline for execution. I would recommend starting the process between 6 months to a year before you want to start construction and ensure that you are committed to it.
2. Review your Reserve Fund Study (RFS) to see what items are listed for replacement and the associated budgets. Are there any other items that need replacing, or that you want to replace, that aren’t accounted for? Understanding that the RFS is a guideline and can be modified within reason, speak to your engineer to discuss if modifications can and should be made. I would recommend that the minimum you refurbish at one time is carpet, wallcovering, and paint so that the benefit of a new full design can be realized. Replacing only one of these items by itself will make the others look even older than they are and will force you to match the new item to old finishes and colours.
3. Figure out which way you will undertake a refurbishment. There are 2 ways. First is to hire a designer and tender the project (design/bid/build). Second is to hire a general contractor who will design and construct your project (design/build). See below for a table outlining the pros and cons of each method. 
4. Select the Designer or the General Contractor (Design/Builder) you wish to work with (depending on the method you have chosen in #3). Do your research to find the appropriate candidates. It might be a good idea to source your candidate from different places i.e. one recommended by your PM, one from a Board member, one from an industry source such as CCI (Condo Voice). Prepare a general outline/ Request For Proposals (RFP) for the designer or General Contractor to outline your project and general expectations. I would recommend keeping the number of candidates to three. Understand that whether it’s a general contractor or designer you are looking for, a great deal of work can go into preparing a proposal/ presentation for your building. Having 5+ candidates will reduce the probability of being selected for the job and may discourage the best candidate from bidding at all. It’s also a great deal of work for the board and property manager to review so many candidates. Once you have your chosen qualified candidates, set up interviews to ensure that there is chemistry with them as you will be working with them for some time.
5. Budgeting. At around this time you may want to ask your Designer or General Contractor to provide you with a budget for the areas you are looking at refurbishing. It’s possible, for a number of reasons, that your Reserve Fund budgets are a bit out of line – more often lower than they should be. Getting updated budgets will give you a more current guideline of what you can expect to spend for at least a new basic design.
6. Developing the Design. When you have chosen the company, you wish to work with, the next step is developing the design for the areas to be refurbished. The biggest advice CONDOVOICE FALL 2023 CV 15 here… let the professionals do what you hired them to do! Which is to understand your requirements and tastes, review your building, then work with you to provide appropriate design(s) with materials that are durable enough for your multi-residential common spaces. Work with them and their suggestions. Seeing 75 carpet samples is frustrating, expensive, time consuming and not an effective way to get the best cohesive design for anyone. Take your designers’ advice seriously as they have done this many times. The motto here should be “please the most and offend the least” within your budget. Remember you are designing your buildings’ common areas not your personal suite.
7. Price Out the Designs: Make sure the designs/materials chosen work within your budget. You may even want to consider a contingency on the project for unforseen site conditions.
8. Get Your Owners’ Opinions. It’s good practice for boards to provide a high level of communication to their owners on large undertakings, but especially a common area refurbishment. Most people can and will likely want to express their likes and dislikes on colour and design. Provide a couple of acceptable design options for your owners to view and comment on. Although it’s ultimately the board’s decision, it’s good to have community feedback. Consider having a town hall meeting so that owners can ask questions about the design, process, and how it will affect them. Get them excited about the project!
9. COMMUNICATE!! Once you are ready to start the project ensure communication with your owners is regular and thorough, so they know what to expect each week. Give residents enough time to prepare for the construction on their f loor and if necessary, inform the property manager if they need any accommodations. An informed resident is happier than an uninformed one. Have regular communications/meetings with your team (property manager, designer, general contractor, superintendent) to ensure overall project awareness.
10. Know there will be bumps along the way. If you have ever undertaken any kind of construction project, you know that it doesn’t always go exactly as planned. There are unforseen site conditions, potential supply chain issues that crop up unexpectedly, materials that arrive defective, owners with newfound allergies. The list, especially in a multi-residential buildings, is endless. It’s how you resolve the issues that matter. Having a good working relationship with the team responsible for undertaking this project will promote the best foundation to resolve any issues that arise.

Every building is different and there may be good reasons to add to or deviate from this procedure but a general direction on how to proceed will get you to a positive result.

Lisa Kay
KayCondo GC Inc.