Walk the complete route in daylight, after dark and, where practical, during a busy entry period: street, vehicle credential, gate, ramp, parking levels, storage and bicycle areas, pedestrian door, elevator or stairs, building interior and exit route.
Direct answer
The short answer
A useful Vancouver strata parkade security audit follows every route into and through the garage—not only the vehicle gate. It reviews tailgating exposure, credentials, pedestrian doors, elevators and stairs, lighting, camera evidence, storage areas, outage behaviour and administrator procedures. The final report should rank immediate risks, short-term corrections and planned upgrades instead of simply recommending more cameras.
Seven parkade security layers
A strong gate does not protect the building if an uncontrolled pedestrian door leads directly to an elevator. A good camera does not repair an access database containing years of unknown remotes.
| Layer | What to inspect | Useful evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicle boundary | Gate condition, sequence, tailgating window and visibility | Observed sequence and documented faults |
| Vehicle credentials | Remotes, fobs, UHF, mobile or plate permissions | Current inventory with unknown credentials removed |
| Pedestrian transition | Lobby, stair, elevator, storage and bicycle-room doors | Doors latch and permissions match the route |
| CCTV evidence | Entry, exit, gate and pedestrian routes | Tested day/night playback and export |
| Lighting and sightlines | Ramps, corners, vestibules, stairs and doors | Useful visibility without severe glare |
| Resilience | Power, internet, batteries and manual operation | Documented offline behaviour and contacts |
| Administration | Accounts, incident workflow, contractors and maintenance | Named administrators and revocation process |
Review the gate and tailgating window
A UHF tag, remote or licence plate can authenticate a vehicle credential. It does not prove that only one vehicle passed through the opening.
- Where the driver presents the credential
- Whether UHF reads only the intended lane and approach
- Whether each remote or tag has a unique managed record
- How long the opening remains available
- How a second vehicle could follow
- Visibility for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists
- Visitor, contractor and responder access
- Gate faults or timing that leave the opening unsecured
Trace every pedestrian route into the building
Follow paths from a stall to elevator lobbies, stairwells, storage lockers, bicycle rooms, loading areas and exterior exits. Confirm doors close and latch, credentials reach only intended areas and mechanical override functions are documented.
Where configured, door-held and door-forced events should reach someone authorized to respond. Do not change egress, fire, elevator or gate-safety behaviour based only on a security recommendation.
Audit credentials and administration
Ask management for active fob, remote, UHF and mobile counts; the unit or person responsible for each; lost, contractor and unreturned credentials; access groups and schedules; former administrator accounts; and the move-in, move-out and replacement process.
- Remove shared or unknown ‘master’ credentials
- Disable former resident and contractor access
- Use named administrator accounts
- Document a lost-fob response
- Check door names and system clocks before relying on logs
Test whether CCTV captures the required evidence
Do not promise licence-plate recognition from a general overview camera. Test live view, playback, time and export at night with real headlights and travel speed.
| Camera purpose | Question it should answer |
|---|---|
| Lane overview | What happened around the gate and which direction did a vehicle move? |
| Identification | Is useful face detail available at the intended point? |
| Vehicle context | What make, colour and direction are visible? |
| Dedicated plate capture | Is the plate readable under actual speed, angle and headlights? |
| Pedestrian route | Who moved between parkade and controlled building door? |
| Storage entrance | Who entered or exited around the reported time? |
Document power, internet and emergency behaviour
Record what the gate does during power failure, which local credentials work without internet, what batteries or UPS support, who receives equipment alerts, how authorized manual access is obtained and which work belongs to the gate, elevator, electrical, locksmith or security contractor.
Deliver a prioritized audit report
Council should receive an annotated route map, photographs, credential and account findings, gate/access/CCTV observations, day and night image samples, a risk register, other-trade items, repair/improve/replace options, reuse assumptions and a retesting schedule.
| Rating | Example | Response |
|---|---|---|
| Immediate safety | Damaged moving gate or blocked egress | Make safe and call the appropriate contractor |
| High exposure | Uncontrolled building route or unknown credentials | Prioritized corrective scope |
| Medium weakness | Shared admin account, poor light or slow revocation | Scheduled correction |
| Capital-plan item | Unsupported controller or limited platform | Budgeted migration |
Frequently asked questions
Questions property teams ask
Can cameras alone stop parkade break-ins?+
No. Cameras can support deterrence and evidence, but vehicle access, pedestrian doors, credentials, lighting, resident procedures and response all matter.
Will UHF prevent tailgating?+
No. UHF identifies an approved vehicle credential; gate timing, lane design, behaviour and detection determine tailgating exposure.
Should a resident confront a vehicle or person who tailgates?+
No. Procedures should prioritize personal safety. When safe, avoid granting unknown entry, note the time and location and report the event to management or police as appropriate.
Can one fob operate the gate, lobby and elevator?+
Often, when technologies and databases are compatible. Each opening or floor should still receive only its approved permission.
Will a normal CCTV camera read every licence plate?+
No. Reliable plate capture is a separate design task involving distance, angle, speed, shutter, infrared exposure and night testing.
Sources & further reading
Primary references
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