Make Your Building Work For You 6 (The End)

Under Family Category: Family Fun, Hobby and Leisure, Family Environment

Continued From Make Your Building Work For You 5

10. You Can Help Others, Too
At Christmas, you could have a collection box on the front desk for a nominated charity. Ask a charity, such as The Smith Family or the Salvation Army, to bring in a clothing bin for two weeks, then post notices that it’s coming so residents can have a big clear-out of their apartments for a good cause. You could even organise a garage sale for residents, dropping notes about the date set and the place - whether in the forecourt of your garage, or just in front of the building - and agree that everyone donates 10 per cent of their takings to charity.

11. Create Community
There’s always a delicate balance in apartment blocks. Some people choose to live in them for the anonymity and privacy they afford. Others would like them to be an extension of their social lives. Bearing this in mind, think about whether you’d like the place to be more of a community. Those who don’t want to be can always choose not to take part, or opt out. Some blocks, these days, are self-contained hives of social activities, others just have the occasional get-together. One block holds annual art meetings to which all residents are invited, so they can all help choose which paintings to rent from an art foundation to adorn their corridors.

Other blocks have enjoyed great success with a couple of functions every year. One regularly organises a BYO Christmas drinks get-together in their gym - it can always be a difficult decision whether using body corporate funds for alcohol is technically permitted, or a wise use of precious resources. Another organises bookings at restaurants a couple of evenings during the year, with a set-price menu advertised on the noticeboard.

Ray is the chair of an EC of a very sociable building. Regularly, he organises exotic trips exclusively for residents. One year they went on a bicycle trip to Vietnam and Cambodia. Another year they went on safari to Africa.

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