A Sydney-based expert has warned apartment dwellers in the Armidale area to be extra vigilant in common areas and not touch surfaces claiming there is current confusion about strata cleaning issues.
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Strata law expert Amanda Farmer said body corporates of unit blocks still had no idea which contractors could and couldn't attend sites for work such as cleaning and that the situation was now 'critical' given many cleaners are currently stretched to capacity.
"There is still no clarity around the type of cleaning that can be carried out and how much it involves high touchpoints like lift buttons and door handles as well as waste disposal," she said.
"Given Armidale is in lockdown and high alert, that means residents need to be extra vigilant to avoid the types of apartment COVID-19 breakouts that have occurred in Sydney."
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Wendy Kelly, the strata managing agent at Professionals Real Estate in Armidale, told the Express on Tuesday that there were no high-rise apartment towers in Armidale and laws had not changed for the body corporates in her portfolio.
"The requirements and regulations are being updated daily, and I encourage people to keep an eye on the relevant government websites," said Ms Kelly.
"At this point in time, our residential strata don't require QR codes, and it is business as usual in terms of cleaning common areas - there is currently no requirement to increase this.
"We don't have the high-rise apartments like they have in the city where you have common air-conditioning and large communal areas.
"You would expect those styles of apartments would have regular cleaners, but we just have small complexes here that don't have that style of regular cleaning. There are only a few complexes that are more than one storey, and it is a pretty general arrangement."
Unless it is an absolute emergency, tradespeople are not to attend sites during lockdown Ms Kelly said.
"If there is something like a sewer choke or a loss of power, then the tradespeople attending would need to adhere to the mask-wearing and social distancing requirements," she said.
Strata management is a specialist area of property management involving the day-to-day operation and management of a jointly owned property and comprises multiple units, common areas, and shared facilities.
The Professionals agency is one of the most active body corporate managers in the Armidale region. Ms Kelly does not manage the tenancy arrangements within the building, and this can be managed by multiple real estate agencies.
"It is being left up to the building managers, strata managers, and residents to decide what's best for their community and do the best they can," Ms Farmer said.
"Most of them have absolutely no qualifications to be able to make these health and safety decisions."
Ms Farmer said it is advised when entering common areas to touch as few surfaces as possible, wear masks, and move quickly, given many dwellers would not be aware of how frequently or thoroughly their common area would be cleaned.
"For larger apartment dwelling blocks, a deep clean may be occurring once a week, but in smaller unit blocks, cleaning may only be taking place once every two weeks," she said.
Click here to see the current COVID-19 restrictions and guidelines.
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