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Tag: Holmes Beach building collapse

Building recertification talks resume

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – A familiar topic is coming back to the agenda for a future city commission work session.

The 2022 Florida state legislative session came to a close without anything passing the House or Senate on strengthening the recertification process and other safety measures for condominium buildings. With more and more building issues being identified in Holmes Beach, commissioners are bringing back the idea of creating a local recertification process for some residential buildings.

Commissioner Terry Schaefer brought the subject up in his comments following a March 22 work session, saying he wants to reconsider local safety measures for multi-family structures since city leaders now know that no new regulations are coming from the state.

Mayor Judy Titsworth said she’s already got city attorney Erica Augello researching to see what other communities are doing so Holmes Beach commissioners can have a productive discussion on the subject at a future work session.

Though Holmes Beach thankfully hasn’t had a disaster when it comes to aging buildings falling apart, it has come fairly close in recent weeks. On March 18, Holmes Beach Building Official Neal Schwartz, West Manatee Fire Rescue Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski, HBPD Chief Bill Tokajer and city Code Compliance Supervisor James Thomas all responded to 2809 Avenue E, where tenants were evacuated due to issues at the three-unit property.
Some of the issues noted in a code compliance report include exterior stairs missing risers, a sagging outdoor second-floor porch that was not entirely connected to the home, damaged windows, missing exterior siding, mold and other structural issues. The officials present declared the property unsafe and removed the inhabitants.

Texts to code compliance officers from property owner Shawn Kaleta indicate that the building is being scheduled for demolition and messages from attorney Louis Najmy to Tokajer state the property was not rented to the people who were staying there. Code compliance officers also received messages from some of the tenants that they were renting the property from Kaleta and paying him $900 per month including utilities as payment using the mobile payment service Venmo.

In mid-July 2021, one of the two Fountain Head condominium buildings had to be temporarily evacuated due to a structural issue with some of the balconies. Earlier that month, a balcony collapsed on a single-family home, though that incident is believed by city leaders to be due to a lack of maintenance at the property.

Commissioners said they don’t want to wait until a disaster strikes before enacting regulations to at least recertify and make sure multi-family buildings are safe for occupants. In November 2021, Schwartz gave a presentation to commissioners on potential recertification regulations that Titsworth said will be a part of future discussions on building safety.

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City warns property owners to inspect structures

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Featured, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – After a balcony fell off a building and residents were evacuated at a nearby condo due to balcony problems, city leaders are warning property owners to be on the alert for structural issues that could cause personal injury or death.

The Sun made a public records request for the identity of the builders and other construction information on the single-family residence and the Fountain Head condominium on Sixth Avenue, which also has a sister building, but city staff delivered only permit records for pools and air conditioning units, which are available on the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s website.

Building Official Neal Schwartz said he was surprised that there were no other records on the properties, and that since he came to the city two years ago, he’s focused on keeping complete and accurate records in the building department. With the addition of an electronic method of submitting and approving documents for permits, Schwartz said the process of maintaining records has become easier and less susceptible to loss, unlike documents that were submitted on paper and stored either in paper files or on microfiche in the past.

After the condo at 3400 Sixth Ave. was found to have potential structural issues with the balconies on the back of the building, the owners of the units in the sister building were warned of potential issues. Now the city’s building department and code compliance staff are also sending letters of warning to owners of structures similar to the home at 4106 Sixth Ave., where a rear balcony collapsed in late June.

In the letter to property owners, Schwartz said the city is detailing the issues found at the home and suggesting that the work originally performed on the balconies of the damaged structure was likely performed by the same contractor as the other matching structures on Fifth and Sixth Avenues. The letter goes on to warn property owners of the potential for issues with the balconies and to encourage them to be alert to any problems.

The affected properties are 4105 Fifth Ave., 4107 Fifth Ave., 4104 Sixth Ave., 4108 Sixth Ave. and 4110 Sixth Ave.

Schwartz said that the property owner at 4106 Sixth Ave., Virginia Stewart, according to Manatee County Property Appraiser records, has voluntarily evacuated the property and her insurance company has engaged a structural engineer who inspected all of the balconies on the home and reported that the damage was most likely caused by lack of maintenance. The report also states that all of the balconies on that home, which was built in 2002, are unsafe and need to be replaced before the property can be cleared for occupation. Schwartz said the process is underway and permits have been issued for the repairs.

Schwartz said the letters to property owners were not sent out immediately due to the finding that the collapsed balcony was primarily caused by lack of maintenance rather than a problem with the initial construction.

Related coverage

 

Building evacuated due to structural issues

 

Island building owners warned to investigate structural issues

 

Balcony collapses in Holmes Beach