Aizkraukle Property Manager Discusses Early Heating Start and Proposed Building Insurance
Andris Zābelis, board member of the building management company SIA Lauma A, explained in an interview how the heating season began in Aizkraukle, why bulky waste cannot be left at container sites, and how the insurance proposal is progressing. In a survey on insurance, 40% of respondents were in favour.
Andris Zābelis, a board member of SIA Lauma A, which manages apartment buildings in the town of Aizkraukle, Latvia, spoke to the local outlet Staburags about the start of the heating season, waste handling, insurance of shared property and building renovation. In his view, maintaining an apartment building is shared work that depends on both the manager's actions and residents' involvement.
Heating started earlier than elsewhere
Heat was connected to buildings from 28 September, and residents were warned by text message. Other municipalities, such as Jēkabpils and Līvāni, switched on heating on 1 October, which was a Thursday. Zābelis said that starting on a Monday allowed the system to be adjusted before the weekend, when call-outs usually increase. The company is currently one plumber short because its service area has grown, but he believes it is coping well overall. This year the company also prepared connection system designs itself, so apartment owners know what size of radiators suits their rooms.
Bulky waste
On average, six to ten tonnes of bulky waste are removed from the town's container sites every month. Residents can hand such waste to Vidusdaugavas SPAAO, a waste management operator, for a separate fee, but binding local regulations prohibit leaving it at container sites. Zābelis does not support a resident's proposal to allow this and share the costs, as he believes the volume of waste would grow sharply. When waste ends up in apartment building basements, its removal is paid from the building's funds.
Insurance and building representatives
The manager sent apartment owners an insurance broker's offer that includes an annual visual inspection of the building plus insurance. The cost would be 0.04 euros per square metre per month, or two euros for a 50-square-metre flat. Of 800 responses, 40% were in favour, 41% against, and 18% wanted an explanation. Buildings can sign a contract if at least 51% of owners vote in favour. The manager serves 3,500 apartments in total.
Half of Aizkraukle's apartment buildings have no building representative, who acts as an intermediary between owners and the manager. Zābelis noted that no building in the town has been renovated recently, as residents fear interest rates, energy prices and uncertainty.
