gamecat

Thanks for the thoughts, FF. Unfortunately, it's not a detached home or I would've freely modified the garage. The place is a condo and the garage is secured but shared. Making modifications to shared areas (even the parts of them that 'belong' to a specific unit and listed on the deed) is convoluted. Although after this episode, I don't think I'll get much resistance to putting in some heavy duty chain anchors/motorcycle tie downs (either into the concrete floor or walls.) That will do to secure the two or three bikes I use regularly. I might even get a little tuffshed for the front of my space, cut out holes for the anchors and sit the shed over the anchors. Lock both the shed and the bikes inside it.

The rest are going to go into my owners closet, which I can modify and reenforce. Probably with galvanized pipe and metal sheeting or chain link, since while the storage area is secured separately from the garage, the walls between the units closets are plywood. I'll have to cart my grandparents stuff we've been storing in there over to my folk's place which will annoy them but so it goes.

Having a door on the closet (and the shed too, I suppose) is nice as it affords an opportunity to have an alarm.

I think that's about the best I can do here, and it's not going to be too cheap.

What our complex really needs is a cheap DVR based security system, other sketchy stuff has been happening here lately, and we need to be able to bust people who damage common areas (we do have a few rented units and some of the tenants can be rather disrespectful of the shared property) but our owners routinely vote down the most necessary improvements. It's not an ideal situation. There's been a lot of begnign neglect over the last ten years or so when the building had really bad management. We're trying to correct it now, but a lot of the residents that were much more supportive of the place in the past are now way into their retirement, have dwindling savings, have been rocked by the financial crisis, etc. Others are just starting out and this is the first property they've owned. They don't have much to spare either. Others have multiple kids and won't have much to spare until at least one or two are out of the household.