Good Neighbour Policy

Introduction

Everyone who comes to live at City Quay has a right to enjoy their apartment in a peaceful and stress-free atmosphere. Achieving this will at times require patient and skilful negotiations between neighbours. For some people City Quay is their permanent home and they have invested much if not all of their ﬁnancial and emotional resources in settling here; while others are here only on a temporary basis some for as short a period as six months. Expectations from both groups can vary considerably. This policy will ﬁrstly make clear that the Lease which everyone has agreed to abide by contains elements that we have a right to expect will be adhered to at all times by all people on site.

Purpose

This policy document attempts to set out some guidelines to help residents deal with difficult issues around relationships with neighbours brought about by the close living involved in apartment dwelling. It is based on an assumption that most people are reasonable and considerate and are open to moderating their behaviour in order not to inconvenience unnecessarily their neighbours. However there is a small minority for whom this approach will not work and this policy will outline the steps that ought to be taken to try and achieve an appropriate attitude to communal living. Firstly the policy will make clear the responsibilities under the lease whose compliance with is the responsibility of everyone living here.

Duties and Responsibilities: Residents

Every leaseholder is bound by the Lease, which contains Covenants that are laid down for the harmonious co-existence of all who live on the estate. Those that refer to forms of behaviour are found in Schedule 8 Parts 1 & 2 and leaseholders are responsible for breaches caused by their tenants.
Part 1 #24 makes it clear that no-one can attach any satellite dish or other similar telecommunication transmission or reception apparatus to the building.
Part 2 #1 states that the ﬂat is for the use of a single household and that no business can be carried on from the premises – this precludes the use of an apartment as a serviced apartment for a weekend or mid-week let. Short-term lets are the cause of most of the anti-social behaviour in apartments across the city. They are not permitted at City Quay.
Part 2 #2-6 refer to parking and vehicles on the estate. To enforce these Covenants the Management Company has contracted with Parking Ticketing Ltd to ensure compliance within the lease. The Covenants state that no vehicle over 3 tons in gross laden weight might be parked anywhere on the estate and that all vehicles must use only the marked bays. No vehicle repair or maintenance can take place on site. No trailers, caravans or boats are allowed. No vehicles can be abandoned or neglected on site.
Part 2 #7 prohibits residents from using their ﬂat for any illegal, immoral or improper purpose which might cause nuisance, damage, annoyance or inconvenience to their neighbours – under this Covenant drugs for example are not permitted.
Part 2 #10 clearly states that no resident is allowed to cause annoyance to their neighbours by making noise that is audible outside their ﬂat between the hours of 11.00pm and 9.00am.
Part 2 #11 allows pets to be kept only with the express permission of the Management Company. Residents who receive permission must ensure that they do not allow the grounds of the estate to be fouled by their pets.
It is the responsibility of every resident both to maintain high standards of communal living and at the same time to ensure that other people do the same. The throwing of cigarette ends from balconies and apartment windows onto the surrounding grassed areas is objectionable and unacceptable. The use of foul language and aggressive behaviour is unnecessary and unwelcome. The disposing of rubbish around the site and especially at the entrances to the estate causes upset and frustration to many and is highly anti-social, as is the refusal of some people to deposit their domestic rubbish in the bins provided. The slamming of internal doors or allowing doors to slam shut within the ﬂat can cause serious upset to residents above and below and should be carefully guarded against.
The waterfowl are our neighbours too and we should not be feeding them bread as it damages their health and significantly reduces the water quality.

What can you do?

Many residents regularly ask what they should do when they are faced with non-compliance with the lease. The following ideas are a suggestion only and are designed to help people navigate this often stressful and difficult area.

If appropriate speak face to face with the person responsible and explain the difficulty they are causing. In many cases this will be enough to resolve the issue.
However if the nuisance persists then you can see the on-site Maintenance Team, or email contact@cityquay.com in confidence.
If the problem is a domestic dispute that is spilling over outside the ﬂat or noises from within are causing serious anxiety and you feel that the police ought to attend, or there is a party that is completely disrespectful of the neighbours in the block, then it is important to immediately call the police (0151 709 6010) and report the incident. However a response is only likely if there is a real and present danger of potential violence breaking out from neighbours who are desperate to get a night’s sleep and are in danger of taking the law into their own hands and this is communicated at the time of the call. You should always call 999 if it is a real emergency and urgent police attention is required.
If the police are to pursue any complaints they will usually be under a Section 5 Public Order offence or a Section 4/4a Threatening Behaviour offence and statements will be required from complainants if court proceedings are to be successful. If you are prepared to undertake this then when making the call to the police you should clearly express the alarm, distress and fear that the incident is causing you. If you are not prepared to give a statement then you can always log the incident with the police by calling 101. The use of this number can be very important in building up a case against an offending resident.
Where the problem is regular noise nuisance and after having asked the occupiers of the ﬂat to reduce their noise by lowering the volume of the music or TV and making sure that they are in breach of the 11.00pm lease condition, incidents should be logged by calling the police on 101 which will take note of your report and give you an incident number. These reports are seen on a daily basis by the police and as they build up they can be used as evidence in order that action might be taken against the person causing the anti-social behaviour. In reality there is little support from City Council officers who are overwhelmed with noise issues in the city centre. In persistent cases the keeping of an ASB diary is recommended. All incidents should be reported also to contact@cityquay.com or the Maintenance Team.
In the case of suspected drugs misuse a conﬁdential call to the Crimestoppers number should be made reporting the apartment. Three or more calls about the same property will enable the police to attend the ﬂat with a warrant from a Magistrate.
In some exceptional cases it will be necessary to use an Anti-Social Behaviour diary which can be obtained from the police or the Liverpool Anti-Social Behaviour Unit. All this information is treated in the strictest conﬁdence.
In more serious cases where dealing in drugs is suspected it will be important to work closely with the police and the Management Company.

Duties and Responsibilities: Managing Agent

City Quay Management (2001) Company Ltd takes very seriously our responsibility to uphold the lease and make sure that all residents enjoy their time at City Quay. It is in all our interests to promote peaceful co-existence and enhance community spirit among neighbours at City Quay. Our ﬁrst responsibility is to the lease and to see that it is upheld and to this end we have instructed our Managing Agent to pursue vigorously all breaches of the lease including through the courts should that be necessary.
The Managing Agent will remove all satellite dishes attached to the buildings.
The Managing Agent will pursue any apartment owner who is reported for short-term letting of the apartment.
The Managing Agent will assist in the removal of vehicles that are in breach of the lease. They will also make contact with any owners of vehicles that are not permitted on site in order to achieve compliance with the lease.
The Managing Agent and the Management Company (City Quay Management (2001) Company Ltd) have a role to play in the tackling of anti-social behaviour. They will offer support and guidance to residents aﬀected by the behaviour of others and at the same time work with statutory agencies to ensure a successful outcome. In the context of tenants who are causing problems the Managing Agent will make every eﬀort to contact the leaseholder so that they will bring pressure to bear on their tenants.
The Management Company will work to ensure that the roads and car-parks of the estate are well managed and that all aspects of the Traffic Management Policy are complied with.
The Site Manager will work closely with the Managing Agent and the residents to monitor any complaints of anti-social behaviour and will make sure residents are fully informed of this policy document and have the resources they need to tackle the issues that are aﬀecting them.
The Management Company reserves the right to negate permission or decline permission for those dogs caught fouling the grounds at City Quay.
The Management Company will not tolerate any threatening, aggressive behaviour or violence towards any resident or person employed on site and will prosecute those suspected of causing injury, offence or damage to persons or property.