Passionate about the community

By Sunny Liu

John Kakos has been living in Docklands for two years and has devoted most of his spare time to managing three owners corporations and creating a sense of community.

Mr Kakos is the chairman of three owners corporations (OCs) in NewQuay, including the Boyd, Palladio and Sant’ Elia.

He said he got involved in the OCs when he noticed the absence of a strong community bond.

“Some of the previous committees were quite exclusive and were not open to community involvement. So I wanted to change that to make it more inclusive and promote a sense of community, which was missing in many of the apartment buildings in Docklands,” he said.

“Docklands has a sense of community that can grow with more involvement. A lot of residents see each other but don’t speak to each other because they haven’t had a chance to meet.”

“We have organised some community events such as the Christmas barbecue that brought the residents together,” he said.

Mr Kakos said he was especially passionate about improving the security for the residents in the three buildings.

“There has been an increase in crimes in Docklands. Fortunately it hasn’t affected NewQuay as much as other areas in Docklands, but we still need to remain vigilant,” he said.

Mr Kakos visited Docklands frequently before he decided to move from the suburbs to this city precinct. He said he was attracted to the vibrant but also peaceful living environment.

“Docklands’ lifestyle is so vibrant that there are always things to do and places to visit. It also has a good balance of residents and visitors,” he said.

“I work in the CBD but I spend a lot of time in Docklands because I think it’s important to support local businesses and get to know the people.”

Mr Kakos is a public servant and his career background has supported his involvement in the OCs.

“Because a lot of things in Docklands are still developing, I need to devote my time to the residents so they can get a better understanding of how the developments can affect them,” he said.

He has to juggle a full-time job and his chairman responsibilities at three OCs.

“It does take a lot of time and energy to manage three owners’ corporations. But it is also a very rewarding experience to work with the residents.”

Mr Kakos also said having multiple OCs in one residential building could become complex and communications among different OCs could be improved.

“It has been a challenge to work with five different owners’ corporations in the three buildings,” he said.

“Sometimes there is dispute among different owners’ corporations. But I think as long as we work together for the residents, a lot of the issues can be resolved.”