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Article
Condominium Government and the Right to Live in the City
Canadian Journal of Law and Society
  • Douglas C. Harris, Allard School of Law at the University of British Columbia
Faculty Author Type
Current Faculty [Douglas C. Harris]
Document Type
Working Paper
Publication Date
12-1-2019
Subjects
  • property,
  • condominium,
  • cities,
  • government,
  • land,
  • gentrification
Abstract

Condominium is an architecture of land ownership that produces separate, privately owned units within multi-unit developments. Condominium also constructs a form of private, democratic government, described as a fourth order of government, that acts beneath federal and provincial governments, and alongside municipal government, to govern owners and their property. This article considers a conflict between residential-unit owners and a commercial-unit owner within a condominium development in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Drawing from material produced in litigation, the article situates the dispute within its property and urban contexts to argue that condominium government requires attention, and not just for its impact on owners, or even residents within, but also because cities must now account for, work alongside, and, in some circumstances, contend with these rapidly proliferating sites of government that are helping to shape who has the right to live in the city.

Comments

This article has been published in a revised form in the Canadian Journal of Law and Society / Revue Canadienne Droit et Société, Volume 34, no. 3, pp. 371-392. https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2019.34. This version is free to view and download for private research and study only. Not for re-distribution, re-sale or use in derivative works. © CJLS/RCDS.

Citation Information
Douglas C Harris, "Condominium Government and the Right to Live in the City" ([forthcoming in 2019]) 34:3 CJLS 371.