Whereas the BC Climate Leadership Plan has a stated goal of supporting vehicle charging development for zero emission vehicles to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and lack of access to electric vehicle EV charging is an impediment to EV uptake; And whereas a significant and growing proportion of British Columbia residents live in multifamily dwellings, most of which are stratified; And whereas requirements for approval by a strata corporation under the BC Strata Property Act for alteration of common property represent a significant barrier to installing and accessing means of charging in stratified buildings: Therefore be it resolved that the Province of British Columbia amend the BC Strata Property Act, before the end of 2018, such that strata councils and strata corporations must accommodate reasonable requests from residents, for the purpose of electric vehicle charging, to access existing or install new powered outlets andor electric vehicle charging infrastructure, where the assignment of associated costs are to be determined by the strata council andor the strata corporation.
Ministry of Municipal Affairs Housing Government is interested in enabling strata residents to access electric vehicle charging in strata properties. At the same time, it is important to recognize the unique nature of each property and the right of strata residents to govern themselves. A report by the Condominium Home Owners Association of BC highlights both the opportunities and the practical and site-specific challenges of installing electric vehicle charging in existing strata corporations. http:www.choa.bc.cawp-contentuploadsEVCS-Report.pdf Rather than setting the stage for further conflict over what constitutes a reasonable request, ministry staff are working with strata partners and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy to identify and remove regulatory barriers to strata corporation approval of installations. Strata property legislation is regularly reviewed and updated to ensure it is meeting the needs of strata corporations and owners.