Article Courtesy of The Sun Sentinel By Elizabeth Baier Posted
March 26, 2006 The five-hour town hall meeting at the North Miami Beach Performing Arts Center drew nearly 200 condo owners from Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties who shared disillusionment and frustration with their condo boards. Sponsored by state reps. Julio Robaina, R-Miami, and Yolly Roberson, D-North Miami, the passionate discussion covered hurricane preparedness, insurance and proposed changes to state condo laws. Condo owners quickly lined up at two microphones and questioned the panelists. "A lot of people find themselves in a terrible situation," said Costas Stassis, 68, who lives in a Fort Lauderdale condo. "People should not be able to intimidate or threaten other people." Robaina and Roberson were accompanied by a 12-member panel that included Bill Raphan of the state Condo Ombudsman's Office; Alina Torres of the state Department of Financial Services, which regulates insurance companies; and Hank Carroll of the Department of Business & Professional Regulation, which regulates condos. Also participating were Mark Benson, former vice chairman of the state Advisory Council on Condominiums; and Jan Bergemann, president of Cyber Citizens for Justice, a grassroots organization for unit owners. Among condo owners' top frustrations were the lack of regulations and term limits for condo board members and delays receiving responses for complaints filed with the state Department of Business & Professional Regulation. The town hall meeting comes as legislators consider major changes to laws regulating homeowners and condo associations in the legislative session that began March 7. The most controversial proposals include limiting terms of board member to four years, making it illegal for directors and managers to "abuse" residents, banning associations from filing liens and foreclosures for amounts under $2,500, and making it less profitable for association attorneys to file liens and foreclosures for small amounts. "If you're a board member there needs to be accountability," Robaina said. "It's your money they're playing with." Robaina and Roberson told condo owners they should voice their concerns to the state's ombudsman and file complaints with their legislators' offices. Jan Bergemann, president of Cyber Citizens for Justice, agreed that condo owners should voice their concerns. "I don't always want to blame the boards. Some are well meaning. Some don't know better. Some are getting bad advice," Bergemann said. "Most of these owners are older here in Florida and most are afraid to speak up. We should not have this system." By 2010, nearly 40 percent of people living in Florida will belong to a condo or homeowners association, Robaina said. This disheartened Nico Minardos, who lives in the Southpoint Condominium Association in Fort Lauderdale and served on his board for two years. "Every association is crooked," Minardos said. "They have the power to appoint whoever they want. Nothing can be done to regulate them." Please
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