For many condo properties—even those of recent vintage—existing telecommunications infrastructure may fall woefully short of that found in the average private home. But with the unique complications that arise when updating a condominium development, how do managers and boards go about bringing the latest services to demanding unit owners? Should condo dwellers be left to their own devices when it comes to obtaining the latest TV and datacom services? Or would top properties bundle such services with ever-increasing condo fees? And, if so, which provider to choose?

“We have quite a number of properties where the HOA buys a service package for all the residents—either the TV services or the data services or both,” says Mike Weston, director of marketing and communications for Verizon Enhanced Communities, the company’s condo division. “In bulk, there are significant discounts, so that’s another reason, obviously, why property owners buy in bulk—because they can aggregate their buying and get a better price for the services than the individual units can get for themselves.”

Since the 2005 introduction of FiOS, Verizon’s popular fiber-optic Internet/telephone/TV bundle, many New England-area condo properties have adopted the service—either by bulk-purchase or on a unit-by-unit basis. And while Verizon has yet to expand FiOS service to some portions of the Northeast, the company’s high brand recognition and early marketplace entry have made it a top choice for many properties within the current service area. “Plus, we deploy in each of our deployments an in-home wireless network,” says Weston. “It’s a way to buy services and differentiate your property in the marketplace.”

Yet, despite such claims, and the accompanying provider incentives, many properties, including those managed by the Boston-based Copley Group, have chosen to avoid bundling services—thereby keeping condo fees lower and leaving choices up to unit owners themselves. “I don’t think the boards of trustees of our condominiums feel it is their bailiwick to go out and get involved in something like that,” says Michael Phillips, the company’s chief operating officer. “The boards innately feel it’s not their position to tilt the playing field in one direction or another.”

Yet for those condo boards who do feel the pull of a potential telecom upgrade—without a major blow to the bottom line—a TV/datacom bulk-buy from fiber-optic providers like Verizon or AT&T may be just the ticket.

In such instances, say experts, a full site survey is often job one. (In fact, in many cases, providers will conduct such a survey if even a single unit owner purchases their service.) In the case of Verizon, Weston says a survey team will inspect the property, identify any potential complications, and create a workable plan for bringing FiOS service to every single unit—even though the initial installation may be for only one unit owner. And while each property is different, Weston says many common denominators exist when planning a condo install. “We’ve been doing this now on a focused basis for about five years. It’s not impossible to come across a configuration we can’t solve for, but it’s very rare.”

Hands Off the Hazardous

Occasionally, however, such conditions do exist—particularly with older properties—and, in those cases, new installations, on any scale, would range in severity from cost-prohibitive to nearly impossible. “The thing I would say that causes the biggest challenges is hazardous materials. We definitely will not do anything that will disturb any type of asbestos.” In such cases, says Weston, hazmat teams would be called in—at the expense of a condo property—before installation was even considered. “If asbestos is found, or suspected,” says Weston, “we simply don’t start. Otherwise, we’ll try to identify any [less serious] potential issues, and then we’ll try to think of remedies around that.”

After site surveys are completed—when the fiber and equipment installation actually begins—Weston says service providers like Verizon prefer to wire the totality of a condo structure, thereby easing future installations. “Generally, we’re going to attempt to do the entire building—we are actually bringing fiber all the way to each of the living units,” he says. “In large part, we will bypass all of the existing infrastructure entirely, and it’s a great way for older properties to get an upgrade without having to pay for it themselves.”

Yet property managers do have rights regarding such “upgrades,” says Andrew Fortin, vice president of government & public affairs for the Community Associations Institute (CAI). Despite the wishes of providers, condo boards are under no obligation to allow cable providers to pull fiber or coax throughout the entire building—just because one or two unit owners have agreed to purchase the service. “The cable companies [sometimes] want to compel condo associations to allow them to install cables within the common areas of the association,” Fortin says. “You can’t compel an association to allow a private company to come in and install cable in a common area, because they would be taking ownership—even though it’s a quarter of a square inch along the roofline in the hallway or whatever.”

In cases where circumstances—or condo boards themselves—may prohibit a property-wide fiber installation, cable/data providers like Verizon will, at minimum, work to insure there is a clear pathway available from a property’s telecom equipment rooms to the individual units such that additional residents could easily order service at a future date. “That doesn’t necessarily mean the fiber to the individual units is in place, but it at least means the pathway is in place,” says Weston. “It’s kind of academic as far as what it means to the unit owners or the property manager.”

Dishing Up Service

One issue that is hardly academic—in fact, it may present the most problematic question board members face in the area of telecom upgrading—is the question of whether to allow popular satellite providers like DirecTV or Dish Network onto a condo property. With a combined subscribership of nearly 35 million users, these two services are among the most popular options for home television service—far outranking the subscriber totals for the nation’s fiber-optic providers. Yet, for some condo dwellers, the popularity of such services seems easily outweighed by the unsightly nature of the equipment involved, sometimes causing heated debate among condo boards. Condo bylaws may be inflexible on the issue, yet satellite advocates are often vocal. As such, many property managers have been left with few good options.

“We’re constantly dealing with unit owners who want those satellite dishes on the side of the building, which generally the board of trustees does not like,” says Phillips. “In past years, on a couple of occasions, the question has come up as to whether we should put a master satellite dish that would service all the units and then people could subscribe to DirecTV or whomever, but they would just use a common dish.” In fact, says Phillips, some unscrupulous unit owners have gone so far as to illegally install satellite dishes in common areas—an obvious violation of condo documents. “We’ve discovered on occasion that somebody has installed one on our roof without permission. And, of course, the concern there is the potential for damaging the roof, in addition to the aesthetics. In those situations,” he notes, “we’ve had to figure out who put it up there and have them remove it.”

Yet, according to CAI’s Fortin, there are still legitimate ways for some condo dwellers to access satellite services—even on properties that may expressly forbid them. “What it’s come down to,” Fortin explains, “is that the association has to allow antennas or satellite dishes of a certain size, if the person has exclusive use and access to the area where it’s going to be installed. If I have a balcony, I can put it up on my balcony. I’m the only one who uses my balcony, even though it may be owned by the association. So if I want to put it there, I can.”

A good rule of thumb for all telecom upgrades? “If you don’t own it, you can’t put something on it,” says Fortin. “And if you sort of own it, you can.”

So it seems installing the latest and greatest in telecom technology might be a tricky proposition at best. But as tomorrow’s technology advances, there will be a call by more and more condo developments to go with the times and join the digital revolution.

Matthew Worley is a freelance writer and a frequent contributor to New England Condominium.