Article
Courtesy of The Miami Herald
By Miami
Herald Editorial Board
Published March 26, 2016
Allegations of fraud by condominium associations in South
Florida is nothing new, but the latest case to come to light is shocking in
its scope.
And it reveals something else: That investigation into such abuses by local
authorities is too infrequent, and many condo residents are left frustrated
without the help of the agencies created to protect them.
Last week, el Nuevo
Herald reporters Brenda Medina and Enrique Flor, focused the
spotlight with their in-depth investigation into possible
fraud at The Beach Club condo complex in Fontainebleau Park
and other condos in South Florida.
The probe, conducted with the help of Univision 23,
uncovered numerous complaints filed by Beach Club residents
alleging disturbing irregularities in the administration of
their condo complex.
Among the most egregious discoveries is the forging of
signatures of up to 84 condo owners — many linked to an
election held last November to select Beach Club board
members. |
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Entrance of the The Beach Club at Fontainebleau Park,
a condominium community in dispute with its association.
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The reporters also found that the board awarded a
multimillion-dollar contract to a company for complex roof repairs without a
proper bidding process, as required by law. Get this: The companies that
were listed as offering competing bids were fictitious, el Nuevo’s
investigation found.
Days after the first installment was published, Miami-Dade police announced
that it is launching an investigation into the allegations of fraud at The
Beach Club, which is west of Miami International Airport.
This marks progress, because, in the past, authorities have ignored
complaints from several residents of the complex — that’s another one of the
series’ findings.
Now, the el Nuevo Herald investigation has laid groundwork for any official
probe.
The allegations leveled against The Beach Club association are detailed
among hundreds of complaints filed in 2015 by owners of condominiums in
Miami-Dade and Broward counties with the Department of Business Regulation
and Professional (DBPR), the state agency that oversees the condos in
Florida.
It’s not surprising. There are almost 1.6 million condos in the entire
state, 38 percent of them in Miami-Dade and Broward.
Authorities now need to get to the bottom of the alleged abuses and give the
residents of The Beach Club some answers as to if, and how, they were
defrauded, deceived and denied proper representation by their condo
association.
Especially troubling is the falsification of owners’ signatures, which
tilted the results of the board elections, a criminal offense.
Miami-Dade Commissioner Bruno Barreiro is calling for the creation of an
elite unit, including police departments, assigned to curb abuses by condo
associations. The series reveals that such a dedicated watchdog unit is
sorely needed.
But in the case of The Beach Club, both Miami-Dade police and state
prosecutors must take a strong stand and respond quickly to complaints of
irregularities that some residents say have fallen on deaf ears for years.
Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle can, and should,
impanel a grand jury to focus on condo-association abuses. And the state
should also exercise stricter supervision.
Most important, any wrongdoers unearthed should be prosecuted. Condo owners
should be assured of the integrity of the associations meant to represent
them.
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