Callingwood Court was built in the mid-1970s so it is approaching its 50th anniversary. 50 years also happens to be about the expected lifespan of the siding on our buildings. This issue was addressed in our last Reserve Fund Study done in 2015. Reserve fund studies must be based on the cost of replacing the siding with the same style of siding. Any other style would count as a capital improvement, not a capital replacement, and reserve fund studies do not consider the cost of capital improvements. Therefore the 2015 Reserve Fund Study estimated the cost of replacing stucco siding with stucco, aluminum siding with aluminum, and wood and brick trim with wood and brick. That cost was estimated by the study to be $7.5 million or $57,000 for each of our 131 units.
Last year your Board of Directors decided that residing Callingwood Court in the original style wasn't the best option. Not only would that be one of the most expensive options but the original style is quite dated. As mentioned, a style different from the original style counts as a capital improvement and, under Callingwood Court's bylaws, capital improvements must be approved by 75% of the owners. That presents the Board with a challenge. If we were to present the owners with several residing options it is very unlikely that 75% of the owners would agree on any one of them. So your Board of Directors commissioned an architectural firm to conduct a study of our siding and to propose an attractive residing option that would offer the best value to the owners.
The residing report from the architects is included in this AGM package. In summary, the report proposes to reside Callingwood Court with a siding called hardie board, a cementitious material that is attractive, very durable, and available in a wide range of colours. This option is estimated to cost $4 million or $30,000 per unit. We currently have $1.4 million in our reserve fund and are building up the reserve fund at a rate of about $1 million every three years. If the residing project is spread out over three years then we might expect to begin the residing project in six years or 2025 without a special assessment and without condo fees exceeding $400 per month. (They are currently $373 per month.)