Your condo's gym and pool may not be opening tomorrow, here's why

Ontario is moving into Step 3 of the reopening plan tomorrow, allowing the use of indoor sports and recreational fitness facilities. And although many Toronto condo residents are itching to get back to using their building’s currently shuttered gym or pool, those amenities may not necessarily reopen right away.

Some condo buildings across the city have already announced their plans to reopen shared facilities, while others have yet to say if or when they’ll be opening up. And as it turns out, they have every right to keep these amenities closed indefinitely if they so choose.

That’s because the Condominium Act, enacted back in 1998, gives condo management autonomy over deciding whether to open up their amenities to tenants. This means individual condo buildings can choose whether or not to join in on the reopening of their gym or pool under Step 3.

The Condo Authority of Ontario confirmed to Daily Hive that they will be releasing a Step 3 roadmap on their website in the coming days.

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As many condo owners became aware of during the pandemic, there is no discount or refund on condo fees even if the building’s amenities are closed. In fact, the Condominium Act has a provision addressing this that states an owner is not exempt from paying condo fees even if “the declaration, bylaws, or rules restrict the owner from using the common elements or part of them.”

But with the maintenance and upkeep of the shared facilities not costing nearly as much as they normally would since they’ve been closed, it makes sense that condo buildings would be spending less than they’re taking in. Well, the Condo Act has a clause for that too. It says that any surplus needs to be spent on future common expenses or paid into the reserve fund — a fund set aside for major repairs and replacements of common elements.

So while not being able to use the amenities in your condo building can be frustrating, the building is within its rights to keep them closed.