Petra Homes is considered a freehold townhouse development which means you own the home and are fully responsible for the maintenance of the interior, exterior, windows, doors, roof, driveway, and all property belonging to that unit. This community does have property in common which is managed by 3 members of the Homeowners’ Association.

Petra Homeowners’ Association receives yearly fees from each household (owner), as stipulated in the Co-tenancy Agreement, at the end of the Association’s fiscal year. (April 30). The fees cover the maintenance and repair of the common areas, including street snow removal in the winter (usually before 6 am), weekly lawn maintenance in the summer, common area property taxes, insurance, fire hydrant maintenance, etc. In addition, a reserve fund is managed for future repairs. The fees have averaged around $75 per month over the last 6 years. The 2020-2021 fees have been set at $900 per year.

The Petra Homeowners Association has no payments in arrears and the reserve is fully funded in accordance with the Reserve Study schedule prepared by an independent Engineering Firm.

There have never been any special assessments levied nor are there any Special Assessments in progress.

The operation of your Homeowners Association is governed by a three-person committee. The elected committee members are individuals that volunteer their time and expertise managing the daily functions of the Association.

The committe is responsible for:

• This three-member committee is responsible for the management of the common elements such as the street, the curbs, the park, the property fences, the gardens, the fire hydrant, visitors parking, signage, etc.

• The appearance maintenance and repair of the neighborhood’s common areas, (the street, visitor parking, green spaces at either end and along the back, curbing, etc.), snow removal, lawn care, the common gardens as well as any required maintenance and repairs,

• The only exception to this private/common arrangement is the cutting and fertilizing of private lawns to achieve a uniform look and avoid every home requiring a lawnmower and storage.

• The Association’s Financial management, which includes overseeing the annual operations budget, the homeowners reserve fund and the required liability insurance policies, and

• Maintaining members’ compliance with the established covenants and bylaws of the Association.

Absolutely!!! Petra Homeowners Association is proud to be pet-friendly, and we welcome four-legged family members as part of the community. It is of course, important that these pets don’t create an unpleasant environment for any other homeowners. Unfortunately, pet disputes are in the top three condominium and homeowner association complaints nationally, so to avoid unnecessary disputes; rules have been established which owners and tenants must follow to ensure their furry friends continue to be a welcome addition to the neighborhood.

Cats

Cats are highly effective stealth hunters and as such, are one of the biggest threats to songbirds and small animals. It is why the Homeowners’ Association has voted to enact a rule that mandates homeowners with cats that are permitted outdoors, to fit them with collars and bells. This is not foolproof but a small step to protect our threatened songbirds.

Dogs

Petra's common park is for the families and we want to ensure family and children have a clean, healthy place to play and as such dogs are not permitted in the park.

Nobody wants to see, smell or accidentally step in a “gift” your dog left on the property.

Dog owners are expected to pick up waste on their property daily. Many of the uints have right of way access behind your home and it has to be free and clear. We also have Lawn maintenance crews and will not mow the grass or do maintenance if pet excrement is present.

City of Ottawa Bylaw

By-laws are fully covered under the City’s Animal Care and Control (By-law No. 2003-77).

These are just a few highlights.

Dogs must be on a leash at all times unless on private property or in a designated off-leash park.

• Every owner of a dog shall immediately remove any feces left by the dog in the City, including on private property.

• The limits on the number of dogs and cats, over 20 weeks of age, per household within the City of Ottawa are as follows: three dogs in all areas of the City, five cats in areas not zoned agricultural, where both dogs and cats are kept, a total of five animals, with a maximum of three dogs.

The good news is the units are built with a double firewall between homes that adds additional noise dampening between units. The bad news is that they are not like a single-family home. Regular living is not a problem but be a respectful neighbour. A good neighbourly thing to do would be to arrange with your neighbours a time to test the stereo to see where the volume becomes a problem.

In a townhome development on a private street, you see your neighbours a lot. It is a beautiful community, be a good neighbour.

It means the street is co-owned by the twenty-two homeowners on Petra Private and not the City of Ottawa. Details of this legal co-ownership are contained in the Co-Tenancy Agreement, which forms part of each owner’s deed. This is hardly unique in Ottawa which has over 400 private streets; it is a bit less common in Kanata with about 10 in total.

The one most people would know in Kanata, is the Kanata Rockeries, an extremely exclusive set of multi-million dollar homes.

There are six designated Visitor Parking spots. They are reserved exclusively for visitors; owners and tenants are prohibited from using them to ensure availability to our guests.

Enforcement maximizes the likelihood of spots being available for your guests when they arrive. (There are a few exceptions, please see next question)

Overnight guest vehicles must be registered by the person being visited. It can be done via email or the online portal on the Petrahomes.ca website.

Please be kind to your guest as the onus is on you to register their vehicle in order to avoid a ticket being issued.

Petra Private is also designated as a fire route by the City of Ottawa and signs are posted to make people aware. There is absolutely no on-street parking. Again the onus is on you to inform your guests that there is no on street parking.

Parking Bylaws are enforced to ensure that our guests have a place to park when they come to visit.

The quick answer is no however there are exceptions that are made, they just need to be pre-arranged with the committee.

One request that will be rejected is it is more convenient to park in visitors parking than juggling residents’ cars between the driveway and the garage. These spots are for visitors and if 22 residents, most of which have 2 cars, were allowed to use the spots for their convenience, the community would not have space for our visitors.

A few quick examples of perfectly valid short-term requests are:

• you need a spot to park as the movers are moving you in

• you are expecting a large delivery and they need your driveway clear

• you are moving into the community and need a few days to get your garage organised in order to get your second car into it after the move

• you are getting your ducts cleaned and the contractor needs to be in the driveway

• you are resurfacing or replacing your driveway

There are probably a number of others the community have not thought of, but reasonable requests from the community will not be rejected.

2 Cars - Yes, 3 Cars - No. The units all have single car attached garages and can units accommodate one car inside with a second in the driveway. These units cannot accommodate 3 vehicle so if you have a third vehicle you will have to arrange parking offsite both during the day and over night. Visitor’s Parking is not an option. There is no street parking on Petra Private as it is a designated fire route.

No. Adding a 2nd driveway is not allowed under Section 109 of the city Bylaws. In 2019, the committee met with the Kanata Development Information Officer in the Building Codes Services Branch, Planning, Infrastructure, and Economic Development Department and who confirmed that a second driveway could not be installed.

https://ottawa.ca/en/part-4-parking-queuing-and-loading-provisions-sections-100-114

There is no on street parking. Petra Private has been designated as a fire route by the city of Ottawa. Signs are posted stating this at the entrance and on the fence at the end of the street. The street is narrower than a regulation City Street and the reason the city designates most private streets as fire routes is to ensure emergency vehicles have unimpeded access. Tickets are never a pleasant thing but they are also 100% avoidable. Please be kind to your guests and let them know there is no on street parking.

Typically moving vehicles are transport trucks and of course they will not fit into the driveways. Out of necessity they will be parked on the streets. We simply ask you to be a good neighbour and let your immediate neighbours know in advance so that they might park their cars in a way they can use their vehicles while the truck is blocking their driveways

Yes, parking in Visitor Parking during these rare occasions is acceptable.

Garbage Day is Tuesday, unless there is a statutory holiday on the Monday, in which case it is Wednesday. For the garbage schedule and to set an email reminder for yourself, go to:

https://ottawa.ca/en/garbage-and-recycling/garbage#garbage-and-recycling-collection-calendar

Since this is a very windy street and to respect your neighbours, please ensure garbage and recycling is properly and securely packed before putting it out to the curb.

You can reach out to the committee through our email address at:

petra.home.owners@gmail.com

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