Townhouse and condo row snow removal: sort out whose snow it is, then book the rest

Three kinds of townhouse, three answers

A freehold townhouse sits on its own lot, and the household arranges its own clearing, often with the neighbours. A condo townhouse is a unit in a condominium corporation, and the declaration decides who clears what. A third type sits between them: a freehold parcel tied to a common elements condominium. The Condominium Authority of Ontario describes it as having no units, only common elements, such as shared roads, attached to the tied parcels.

A shared road of either kind is a common element, so the section 90 default below applies unless the declaration says otherwise. Your driveway may or may not fall under the same clause.

What the Condominium Act says about maintenance

Section 90 of the Condominium Act sets the default: the corporation maintains the common elements and each owner maintains the unit. Section 91 lets the declaration change that, including by making each owner maintain the common elements reserved for that owner’s exclusive use.

On a row, the driveway and front walk may be exclusive-use areas, and that clause decides whether the corporation’s crew clears them.

When the corporation’s crew already does part of the job

Where the corporation’s contractor clears the lanes, check who covers each door: the steps, the walk, the driveway stub, and the windrow the City plow leaves where the row meets a public street.

Under section 92, if the declaration puts the maintenance on the owner and it is left undone for a reasonable time, the corporation may do it and add the cost to that owner’s common expenses. Under section 58, the board may make reasonable rules on the use of the common elements, which can limit where an outside crew parks or piles snow.

Snow storage on a narrow lot

The Use and Care of Roads By-law prohibits pushing or shovelling snow and ice onto the City’s right of way, including streets, sidewalks, pathways and parks. The City’s SNOW KNOWledge brochure makes it an offence for a contractor to dump snow on private property other than the client’s. Piling one unit’s snow on common ground is a question for the corporation, so ask before the crew does it.

When the banks fill, the snow is loaded and taken away; the City says private operators cannot use its snow disposal facilities. Snow hauling is priced separately.

Pricing a row of units

HomeStars lists Ottawa driveways at $40–$150 a visit and $300–$1,800+ a season. Two rates matter on a row:

• Shared rate. Where two units share one strip of pavement, one Kanata and Stittsville firm charges $370 a season per household for a shared single, against $495, if both attached neighbours sign. See shared driveways.
• Group rate. The same firm takes $20 off per client for 4 or more new clients in urban Kanata or Stittsville, and removes it if the group shrinks below that size.

A board pricing the whole site is likely to be quoted commercial work: HomeStars lists lots and entrances at $150–$300+ a visit and plowing at $75–$150 an hour, and notes that some Ottawa companies specialize in condos.

What the quote should list

The quote should name the areas by unit number: driveways, walks, steps, lanes. It should state the dates, trigger depth, return trips after the City plow, salt, hauling, and whether the price is per unit, shared or group. More clauses on the seasonal contract page.

Ontario’s contract-rights page lists snow removal among services over $50 that need a written contract. If a written estimate is part of the contract, the final price cannot run more than 10% above it unless you sign a change. A contract signed in your home carries a cooling-off period, and the page gives 10 days from receiving the written agreement to cancel.

Who you are dealing with

Ottawa Snow Desk passes your request to one independent local snow removal company. That company calls you back, prices the part of the row that is yours to clear, and does the work under its own contract.