STORY BY LESLIE LAKE AND JOE HENDRICKS
BRADENTON BEACH – City Attorney Erica Augello has revised for second reading a city ordinance that pertains to state-mandated milestone inspections for condominium buildings that have three or more habitable stories and have reached the age of 25 or 30 years.
The city ordinance presented on first reading during the March 5 city commission meeting did not reference “habitable” building stories. The revised ordinance included in the March 19 city commission meeting packet now includes the word “habitable” and brings the city ordinance in line with state law that regulates milestone inspections.
According to the state law enacted in 2024 and amended in 2025, “An owner or owners of a building that is three habitable stories or more in height as determined by the Florida Building Code, and that is subject in whole or in part to the condominium or cooperative form of ownership as a residential condominium under chapter 718, or a residential cooperative under chapter 719, must have a milestone inspection performed by Dec. 31 of the year in which the building reaches 30 years of age, based on the date the certificate of occupancy for the building was issued, and every 10 years thereafter.”
Many three-story condo buildings in Bradenton Beach feature two habitable floors located above a non-habitable ground-level parking area. The Sun is not aware of any condo buildings in Bradenton Beach that feature three habitable floors, but some may exist. The city charter and the city’s land development codes limit total building height to the equivalent of three stories.
The revised city ordinance to be presented on March 19 now reads as follows: “A condominium association, as defined by Chapter 718, Florida Statutes, and a cooperative association, as defined by Chapter 719, Florida Statutes, must have a milestone inspection performed for each building that is three habitable stories or more in height by Dec. 31 of the year in which the building reaches 25 years of age, based on the date the certificate of occupancy for the building was issued, and every 10 years thereafter.”
The city ordinance presented on March 5 did not reference habitable stories and it read as follows: “A condominium association and a cooperative association must have a milestone inspection performed for each building that is three stories or more in height by Dec. 31 of the year in which the building reaches 30 years of age, or 25 years if the building is located within three miles of the coastline, based on the date the certificate of occupancy for the building was issued, and every 10 years thereafter.”
The revised city ordinance now references habitable stories. The revised ordinance no longer references buildings located within three miles of the coastline or buildings that reach the age of 30 years.
CITY CLARIFICATION
When contacted by The Sun, Bradenton Beach Building Official Rob Perry, on March 11, confirmed that Florida Statute 533.899 references habitable stories. He said the state’s milestone inspection regulations pertain to condominium buildings with three or more stories of habitable space. He said parking and storage areas are not considered habitable space according to the Florida Building Code.
When asked why the city ordinance presented on March 5 did not reference habitable stories, Perry said there was some “confusion” due to an amendment to the state law in 2025.
The milestone inspection laws first enacted by the Florida Legislature and the governor in 2024 did not reference habitable stories. The state statute amended in 2025 includes the word “habitable” and requires milestone inspections for condo and co-op buildings that have three or more habitable stories.
The amended state law allows local governments in coastal areas to shorten the local inspection requirement from 30 years to 25 years.
According to the 2025 state statute, “The local enforcement agency may determine that local circumstances, including environmental conditions such as proximity to saltwater, require that a milestone inspection must be performed by Dec. 31 of the year in which the building reaches 25 years of age.”
The revised city ordinance to be presented on March 19 references buildings that have reached the age of 25 years.
INSPECTIONS
According to Florida Statute 553.899, “Milestone inspection means a structural inspection of a building, including an inspection of load-bearing elements and the primary structural members and primary structural systems, by an architect licensed under chapter 481 or an engineer licensed under chapter 471 authorized to practice in this state for the purposes of attesting to the life safety and adequacy of the structural components of the building and, to the extent reasonably possible, determining the general structural condition of the building as it affects the safety of such building, including a determination of any necessary maintenance, repair or replacement of any structural component of the building.”
CITY REGISTRATION
Sec. 26-132 of the revised city ordinance includes a registration process for certain condominium and cooperatively owned buildings in Bradenton Beach.
The revised city ordinance says, “In order to determine the inventory of structures in the enforcement area, all existing commercial and residential buildings operating as cooperatives or condominiums that are subject to the milestone inspection provisions of 553.899, Florida Statute, as amended, shall register with the Building and Planning Department by July 1, 2026.”
The registration process set forth in the city ordinance would require condo and cooperatively owned buildings that subject to the state’s milestone provisions to be identified as three habitable stories tall or higher, or be identified as less than three habitable stories tall.
According to the Florida Statute, only condo buildings and cooperatively owned buildings with three or more habitable stories are subject to the state’s milestone inspection provisions.
The final adoption of City Ordinance 26-566 will bring the city into compliance with a state law that requires local governments to adopt an ordinance regarding milestone condominium inspections and inspection-related repairs.
The state laws pertaining to milestone inspections also address condominium association reserve funds and additional structural repair-related financial responsibilities.
