For residents, a garage restoration isn't about concrete — it's about where they park tonight. Get the phasing and communication right and the project is a minor inconvenience. Get it wrong and the board hears about it every day. Here is how phased work is organised in an occupied building.
- Phasing splits the garage into work zones so most of it stays in use.
- A phasing drawing and draft resident notices should exist before the contractor mobilises.
- There must always be an access route — and fire routes and life-safety access stay open.
- Most complaints come from surprises, not from the work itself.
How phasing works
Rather than closing a whole level, the garage is divided into zones — usually by bay or by area — that are closed, repaired and reopened in sequence. Residents parked in the active zone are relocated, temporarily, to other stalls or levels.
Phasing does cost more than a full closure: crews remobilise in each zone, and cars move more than once. For an occupied condominium, it's usually the right trade-off — and the board should see it priced clearly in the tender.
What should exist before day one
A phasing drawing
A plan of the garage showing each zone, the order they close in, and the expected dates. Management can share it, residents can find their stall on it, and everyone works from the same picture.
Draft resident notices
We prepare draft notices for management to send — what's happening, when, where to park instead, and who to contact. Notices go out before each phase, not after it starts.
Access and safety plan
Ramps are sequenced so there is always a way in and out. Fire routes, life-safety access and accessible parking are maintained throughout.
Residents forgive noise. They don't forgive surprises.
During the work
- Night and weekend work on tight sites moves the most disruptive tasks to quieter hours.
- One reachable supervisor gives management a single person to call.
- Clear signage and hoarding separate work zones from residents and their cars.
- Regular updates to the board and manager keep the schedule visible.
Mistakes that lead to complaints
- Notices that arrive late — or not at all — for each new phase.
- Relocation stalls that aren't ready when a zone closes.
- Losing the access route when a ramp is taken out of service without an alternative.
- No single point of contact, so questions bounce between contractor, manager and board.
- Overrunning a phase without telling anyone — residents plan around dates.
