Research Proposal – Jie Su

To: Dr. Erika Paterson, Professor of ENGL 301
From: Jie Su, Student of ENGL 301
Date: June 19, 2020
Subject: Proposal for Increasing the Number of Participants of the Annual General Meeting in Monet Community

Introduction

The Monet community is a strata community developed by Pacific Concord in the center of Richmond. This development consists of a 16-story high rise building with a 6-story midrise building for a total of 142 residential suites. There is a total of 326 households in these two buildings. The number of voters with council voting rights varies every year, and there were143 people who have the right to vote last year. Every November, a general strata meeting is held to elect the new year’s Strata Council Committee, before which notices will be posted 20 days prior. The members of Strata Council selected last year were seven people, holding council meetings regularly to determine the strata decisions. A strata manager will be assigned to charge of daily affairs for strata daily management. The number of residents participating in election meetings is decreasing every year. According to the report of the past two years, only 1 or 2 residents would participate in the council meetings.

Statement of Problem

Last year’s strata general meeting, there were 14 eligible voters in attendance and 16 represented by proxy for a total of 30 votes represented. In the case where the total number of residents who have the right to vote is 143, meaning that the participation rate is about 20% (30/143). This low participation rate will cause two problems: 

1. Residents are not clear about the managers of this community; that is, residents do not know who is doing the management on behalf of them for their community, meaning that the desire for community participation will gradually weaken. 
2. If self-management awareness is weakening, people will be less involved in important meetings and activities in the community, community participation and integration will reduce accordingly in turn.

Proposed Solution

For two reasons, one is to avoid conflicts with work and meet the needs of most people; the other is to make some shy people feel relaxed. The council meeting can be held by electronic means As another alternative option, so long as all council members and other participants can communicate with each other.

Besides, we have an existed platform for residents to see the council minutes of the council meetings, but this platform does not have a function for everyone to communicate as a forum platform. If we can have a forum feature, we can group everyone, and people here can share their opinions or even complaints. Mutual exchanges on social platforms can promote residents’ integration into the community.

Scope 

To dig into the reason why the resident participation rate is decreasing in order to come up with solutions, I plan to pursue seven areas of inquiry:

1. Why are residents unwilling to participate in the election meeting?
2. Whether the time or the announcement brochure have an impact on the resident participation rate?
3. The role of Strata Manager’s responsibilities have an impact on the integration and participation rate of residents to the community?
4. What role should the Strata Council Committee play in the process of resident participation in the community?
5. The effect of the use of social media or platform application to increase the integration of residents’ communities
6. How acceptable is an online meeting?
7. How to meet the needs of the vast majority of people when deciding the time of the meeting?

Methods

My primary data sources are surveys for Monet residents and interviews with the strata manager and the committee members. During the survey process, we will explore the reasons why residents are reluctant to participate in the community meeting. The secondary sources will involve the Manual of Strata Management Regulation from the B.C. Government. At the same time, some relevant reports from Monet Management Committee will be added for subsequent supplements.

My Qualifications

I have lived in the Monet community for three years, knowing the community exceptionally well. Also, My relationship with my neighbors is very great. It provides a reliable prerequisite for subsequent questionnaire surveys. Secondly, with participating in residents’ election meetings every year, I have a specific understanding of the causes of problems, which gives me the first insight into the problem. Finally, my community keeps records of community minutes every year, and I can access these files, which provides me with convenience to understand the nature of the problem.

Conclusion

The participation and sense of integration of residents in their community management is an essential process for a community to maintain unity and friendliness, and it is undoubtedly vital. Based on the above question, I believe that specific methods can be quickly drawn to improve the current situation. But before that, I hope to get your approval because I need your authorization to issue and collect some surveys.

References

Homeowner’s Manual, 2018, https://www.concordpacific.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/MONET-HOMEOWNER-GUIDE,March, 2018.