Who owns this condo and is paying the mortgage? The homeowner insurance papers are in your name or his?

I'd forget about the bar top and make him close up the wall without doing anything. Start saving up to get a genuine (and good) general contractor if you still want it in a couple of years. Hopefully, by then, the craziness with home reno pros will have subsided. And maybe you'll have changed your mind and won't want it.

Good grief. Have him put the dang wall back up. That's crazy.

Your condo board allows for alterations of walls without prior approval or notification by an unlicensed tradesman? Lucky you. Or unlucky you, since all the other residents in your shared building can have any idiot with a saw hacking into walls and ripping out wires they find to be inconvenient.

As per Hallett on all counts. There are MANY condo situations, where these MUST remain.Leave it alone.

Is your dad approved by the board to do these reno's ?? If not? The insurance liability will not be worth whatever you believe you are saving, or HE believes you are saving.

I will spare you the details of the fire that "burned" my sister, and nine other owners out of their homes. Her neighbor and the brother in a home Joe reno of the kitchen. One spark from a blow torch on the plumbing. .........................and a two year nightmare ensued. I will SPARE you.

Kick your dad OUT right now - unless you have the signed approval for him.........and the work he is doing. You are headed down a dangerous path. It's not just "your home" . It's everyone else's home as well.

If Dad digs his heels in and demands to do it, go to the condo board explain your stubborn Dad and that you need them to carry your message without involving you. Ask them to send someone to your place and say, "We've heard what sounds like construction in here, what's up?" At which point you'll look at your Dad with great innocence.

I am not sure if it would be wise to get the condo board involved with this... That might open up a whole other can of worms, plus it could backfire and her Dad finds out it was her who blew the whistle. Just in general, though - I don’t think the condo board needs that much information regarding the OP’s issues with her renegade Dad. I really think the OP just needs to put her foot down. It’s time.

Does anyone think those posts could be load bearing, risking the condos above falling down? eta: Notice she says he wants to cut the 'poles' out!!!

Regardless of what the condo board says, a person without a license as an electrician is not allowed to do any electrical work, unless that person is the owner, and I assume your dad is not the owner (you are). .And maybe not even an owner can in your jurisdiction.

He thinks he can cut the pole and the other 2 metal bars without damaging the wires.

Dad isn't here to explain the details of what his full plan is but, yes, he can cut the 'metal pole' (also known as conduit or EMT, electrical metallic tubing) with a tubing cutter and not damage the wires.

'2 metal bars' are called 'studs'.

Does he plan to move the junction box? To the left? Lower on the wall? Since he is saying that he can cut the EMT without damaging the wires, he has a broader plan than what has been detailed so far.

I think the bottom line is that it's a condo building, not a single-family house so you shouldn't be changing anything like this. If your father is used to doing work in single-family dwellings he's just not used to thinking this way. The condo board can give you a lot of trouble - it's not worth it. Tell him it's your house and you appreciate his help but he needs to patch the wall and find another way to do whatever it is you want to have done.

First off, Dad's taking control of your condo...."he is hell bent". Start now setting up the boundaries. Even if the intent is well meant, Dad has overstepped. Next thing he will ask for is his own set of keys.

This article address condo renovations in Chicago, but it really applies anywhere. Anything that happens inside your condo is your responsibility. You will learn sooner rather than later how unbending and unforgiving an HOA board can be (it all depends on their personalities).

Some of it is hysterical behavior, but most of it is for your and your neighbors' good.

You, my dear, may be in big trouble. Close up that wall now.

https://luxurychicagocondos.com/resources/blog/what-you-need-to-know-about-condo-renovation-rules/

Those wires may be access system controls. Do you have an intercom with a push button to open the building door lock in the lobby? They aren't your wires to mess with!

Where does your dad think he can run those wires? No place other than where they are now so I don't see any reason to continue thinking he can make it completely open. DO NOT let him touch the wires, box or conduit, they are not your property!

He needs to work around it. Will he pay any costs related to the problems he will cause when he screws it up? This is where you really need to cut the cord.

You need to be the one to speak up and tell your dad it's a bad idea. Dad may mean well but it's your place. Dad may end up burning the whole place down if he does not know what he is doing. You are an adult and you have a voice. Use it.

Your CC&R’s say what homeowners are allowed to do. Usually anything that is structural or will affect (in this case telephone wires)the building operation/fire hazard of the building, is not permitted. If this is something you want, you could ask the HOA what this box is and if they have been changed in any of the condos. If they have been changed, The HOA will have a company and an approved plan to do this.

How about a compromise? Those lines look like phone, door bell, even certain types of alarm systems. They are not be touched . The metal studs do not seem like they are support structures ( this needs to be confirmed - ask him how he is confirming that ). Then just remove the one. Leave the other and the wires alone and close it back up.

Let him know that this is all that can be done.

Good luck with your new home.

Its your place. If you do not want it done, you tell him no, do not do it, put it back the way it was. You need to establish boundaries or it will not stop here.

The smaller version Debbi Washburn mocked up might work....but if not approved in advance might still come back to bite you in a big way. What happens when a maintenance man turns up for some other reason and sees this modification? Even if your dad helped you with funding, if you're name is on the paperwork, you're liable.

Unless you want to stop and try to get it approved, stop all together. A pass through could be cool, but it's not that far to walk around that corner. If this was your idea and he jumped in to help, admit you didn't realize what's at stake. You mentioned an existing base....if that's something that is meaningful to your family maybe it could serve as a dining table of console table adjacent to the wall?

It's kind of your dad to want to help...perhaps you can enlist him to paint. Or to construct some freestanding piece of furniture if he has carpentry skills. Good luck!

You don't need our help convincing your father. You need to read the contract that you signed when you purchased the condo. Within those documents are the CC&Rs. There will be a statement that you cannot do any structural changes without the permission of the Board and usually states that the work must be done by a licensed and insured contractor.

PANIC is ensuing here where none may be needed. People who aren't used to DIY LOVE to assume these things can't work out and they can and do everyday. Wires can be moved, junction boxes can placed elsewhere. But bottom line to your ask--directing your dad to do things as you want them in your home is all on you.

I have never had experience with a condo reno that did not have to be approved before touching anything. In condos all kinds of stuff in the walls are connected to other units and sorry but Dad get out now .

I cannot speak for your unit, but we do a lot of work in condos. Around here, luckily, most of them don't really care what you do inside ( to a point! ) but they do require paperwork filled out with the license and insurance of the contractor doing the work. This is where you would get into some trouble unless of course your Dad is a licensed contractor.

I think it is time to just sit down and have a conversation with your Dad. This isn't about whether he can do this or not. Do you really even want this? All you are doing is opening a wall to look into a hallway? You mentioned a bar top? Where's the design plan , drawings? Do you really know what this is going to look like? Slow this down , get a plan and set the details and the end goal. If he does not agree, then kindly ask him to repair the wall and call it a day.

I feel for you - it's tough to fight with a contractor, especially when it is your Dad!

Opening that wall revealed zero surprises. The junction box had to be visible and accessible (by code) before anyone touched a tool. Most if not all of that bird's nest of single strand wires appears to have been taken out of service some time in the past and the two still sheathed wires aren't even in the conduit.

@ci_lantro Curious what, in the picture, leads you to believe these wires have been taken out of service? The wad on the right doesn't show any cut ends, if they are there, so we have to assume they are intact. How can you tell by looking whether they are in use or not?

toxcrusadr--looking at the second photo where it doesn't look like the bundle of wires go anywhere. They are coming up through the conduit, are bent downwards & it looks like most of the scramble is hanging in mid-air and not connected to anything. Only the striped red & white wires seem to make any connections.

I'm not 100% certain which is why I said 'it appears.'

Doesn't matter because the OP has ghosted us.