ORLANDO - Some owners at Dockside Condominiums in Orlando’s Conway neighborhood are finally returning to their homes after Hurricane Ian forced them out.
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Orlando condo owners fight against assessment. |
Access Residential Management sent FOX 35
an emailed statement Thursday. Michael Laster, senior vice
president of operations, said the board of directors had no
other choice but to approve the special assessment to cover
an insurance gap that is currently in litigation.
"We wanted to remind everyone that the damages caused by
Hurricane Ian were unavoidable and significant which is why
the special assessment was necessary," Laster said.
"Unfortunately, this is the second major loss from a
hurricane in the last four years at Dockside at Ventura."
A crowd of upset owners was at Wednesday’s board meeting
where the board of three unanimously approved the measure.
"I think the reality is, this was the best situation of all
the options," Laster told owners at the meeting.
Dockside Condominiums is one of Access’ nearly 200
communities across Florida and the Southeast. Leadership
said the company’s received $7 million for repairs so far.
Notice of the special assessment went out in early
September. Some owners organized a recall vote of the entire
board with hopes of stopping Wednesday’s meeting with more
than the required 50% plus 1 majority.
Florida law says the board must acknowledge the vote within
five full business days after being served. Elizabeth Leuven
served members Monday afternoon.
"[It’s] in the hands of God now," Leuven said. "I did
everything that I could. We all did everything that we
could."
Leuven said the two weeks following the receipt of the
assessment notice were hectic with owners working through
the night to collect signatures.
"We hit the ground running, and we kept running until we
looked at each other on Monday night and said, ‘Oh my God,’"
Leuven said.
Laster responded to the recall, saying it’s "presently under
legal review."
"The association counsel is diligently evaluating its
validity," Laster said. "The final determination will be
made during an upcoming board meeting in the coming days."
As of writing Thursday night, a notice of an upcoming board
meeting had not been sent to owners. Geoffrey Golub, an
attorney, said assessments are hard to avoid with owners
having few avenues for recourse. He said it’s a risk of
condominium ownership in Florida.
"The bottom line is you’re going to have to pay something if
there’s not enough insurance to cover it or if the insurance
keeps fighting you," Golub said. "You’re going to have to
pay the one coming up before you can worry about the rest of
them."
Laster said the special assessment would end if the insurer
paid up.
"We maintain a positive outlook, that Merlin Law Group, SFR
Services, and the team of experts representing Dockside at
Ventura will successfully recover the necessary funds to
repay the outstanding loan," Laster said. "This settlement
or judgment will lead to the discontinuation of the special
assessment that was recently passed by the board of
directors."
The first of 144 payments is due Oct. 1.