MIAMI - Residents in a Miami condo building were ordered out of their homes in the middle of the night after the city deemed their building unsafe.
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5050 CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION, INC., Miami |
“As can be expected, they’re upset that
they have to leave their belongings behind and that this is
happening all of a sudden,” said Karla Fortuny, Chief of
Staff and Communication for Commissioner Alex de la Portilla.
“It’s very, very sad and it’s very unfortunate, not only for
me, but there’s a lot of elderly people that live here,”
said resident Maria Lejandro Perez.
“My grandfather just comes in the house screaming that we
have to leave immediately,” said resident Mya Ncastanedo.
“If this building is demolished, there goes our property of
the house and all our memories from growing up here.”
One resident shared cellphone video that captured flooding
in the building’s parking garage. A neighbor also shared
video of him walking around the building and noticing
several problem areas.
The apartment building has 130 units. While residents were
upset, some were thankful for the city for putting them
somewhere to stay for the night. A total of 58 families have
been moved into a hotel so far, and 15 others will soon be
on their way to a hotel.
“It’s a series of unfortunate events,” resident Frank Garcia
said. “Luckily, we got the City of Miami trying to do as
much as they can. If you walk inside the building and take a
look, it’s pretty evident.”
The city said they will provide housing for the families
until the issues are fixed. It remains unknown how long that
will be.
“The city is giving them housing, lodging and will be paying
for it until the time that they can come back to their
home,” Fortuny said.
The building failed its 40-year recertification in July.
“The city had been working with the engineer for this
building for weeks now, and they had given specific
instructions on what to do in the building,” Fortuny said.
“Unfortunately, those instructions were not followed.”
Residents have pointed to building management as those to
blame for the unsafe living conditions.
7News has reached out to building management and the condo
association for comment, but neither organization has
replied.