The reader described his story:

I am writing to you because I have a rather unusual problem with a neighbor and the Housing Cooperative. I live in a building on Staroszkolna Street. From the very beginning of the building’s existence, there had never been any problems with the neighbors. Unfortunately, the situation changed when the old neighbors moved out and subsequent people began renting the apartment in their place—each one worse than the last. But the latest tenant, who still lives there today, outdoes them all.

There have been problems for several years because the neighbor (editor’s note) really likes smoking. Since our balconies are right next to each other, everything drifts into my apartment, especially when it is warm. So I have a choice: either suffocate in a closed apartment or sit in cigarette smoke.
I have gone to the Housing Cooperative about this problem several times, but, as our beloved Housing Cooperative says, it throws up its hands because there is no regulation prohibiting smoking on a balcony. And here is the absurdity: I can invite twenty smokers onto my balcony and that is fine, but I cannot light a barbecue.

But cigarettes are nothing compared with what came next. The dear neighbor has turned his balcony into a utility room. There are pallets, toys, buckets, cigarette butts and countless odds and ends, and, best of all, pigeons have made their nest on the balcony.
For about a month and a half, I have been battling the Housing Cooperative because, as if the mess were not enough, I now also have excrement, dust and diseases to deal with. Everyone knows that pigeons carry diseases too.

The Housing Cooperative said that until the chicks fly away on their own, the nest cannot be disturbed, and I am supposed to live like this and pay a hefty rent while cleaning my balcony every day because those filthy creatures crap everywhere.

We asked two large housing organizations in Bolesławiec—SM “Bolesławianka” and TBS Bolesławiec—whether and how often residents contact them about problems with neighbors. We specifically asked about smoking on balconies, in stairwells or elevators, and about situations in which neglect of an apartment or balcony bothers neighbors. We also asked how both organizations resolve disputes between neighbors, whether the regulations of the Housing Cooperative and the Association contain provisions governing these issues, and, finally, whether mediation between neighbors is conducted.

Bolesławiec TBS, managed by Emil Zając, did not respond to the questions. The SM “Bolesławianka,” in turn, provided us with competent and comprehensive information.

Reports concerning problems with neighbors are received sporadically. Most often, residents contact the Housing Cooperative about matters such as:

  • disturbing the peace, including nighttime quiet, through loud conversations, music or other noises
  • neglect of balconies or apartments, such as disorder, hoarding or unpleasant odors
  • smoking cigarettes on balconies and in shared parts of the building, including stairwells and elevators

The Housing Cooperative takes informational and explanatory measures, although it does not have the authority to formally resolve disputes between residents.

In the event of a report:

  • we contact the person to whom the complaint relates
  • we remind residents of the rules of social coexistence and the provisions of the regulations
  • if necessary, we inform the reporting person about the possibility of contacting the appropriate services, such as the police or Municipal Guard, especially in cases of repeated violations of nighttime quiet

The House Rules Regulations in force throughout the Housing Cooperative contain provisions concerning:

  • the prohibition of smoking in shared parts of the building
  • the obligation to keep balconies and apartments in proper condition
  • observance of nighttime quiet, usually from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
  • the prohibition of activities that are a nuisance to neighbors

The current House Rules Regulations of the “Bolesławianka” Housing Cooperative are available on our website.

The Housing Cooperative does not conduct formal mediation between neighbors, but in individual cases, with the consent of the parties involved, we attempt to establish direct contact and clarify the dispute.