Article Courtesy of The Sun
Sentinel
By Lisa J. Huriash
Published August 26, 2007
Tamarac -- Almost two
years after Hurricane Wilma slammed Broward County, a lawsuit has been
filed against the original contractors hired to repair Southgate Gardens
condos. Residents said the contractor performed shoddy work, forcing them
to hire a second contractor who needed to start repairs all over again.
The lawsuit was filed last month against First State Development in
Margate, the former contractor; and Phoenix Management Services in
Lauderdale Lakes, the former property managers. The lawsuit seeks an
unspecified amount of damages for residents who have lost the use of their
homes "for an extraordinary and unreasonable amount of time."
It also names the Southgate Gardens Condominium Association as a defendant
"for not ... researching ... the most ... competent and capable
roofing or general contractors available."
Three residents who made up the condo board and had approved the contracts
were voted out of their positions in November. They could not be reached
for comment. The board is named in the suit because plaintiffs hope to
collect the association's insurance money to help pay for repairs.
The suit lists one resident as the plaintiff, but attorney Joe Mitchell
said he is seeking class-action status for the lawsuit.
David Perry, the contractor for First State Development, said he was close
to finishing the work despite delays in receiving proper city permits and
construction materials when his company was fired.
"At some point in time, residents would have been in their apartments
if they had left everything alone," Perry said. "Everyone would
have been back home by February or April. Everyone thinks you can do a
$2-3 million project in a matter of days and it's not that way."
Kerry Frydman, a property manager for Phoenix Management Services who was
once in charge of Southgate Gardens, said he could not comment on pending
litigation.
Residents of the 108 condos have been unable to return to their units,
built in 1987 as rental apartments and converted to condos a few years
ago. Interior damage from Wilma includes holes in the ceilings, wet
carpets and mold in kitchens.
Repairs have been slow. First State was hired to start the work a month
after Wilma, in November 2005. A year later, the work still wasn't
completed: mold was being painted over instead of removed, and the units
were not dry inside, although First State had been paid $1.4 million,
according to the suit.
First State was fired in December after residents complained items in
their homes, including washers, dryers and refrigerators, had been stolen.
Early this year, the Environmental Protection Agency halted repairs
because the company allegedly did not remove asbestos properly, according
to the suit, although work has since resumed.
As repairs dragged, the condo's board of directors hired an Orlando-based
law firm to battle their insurance company for money. That attorney
recommended the hiring of R & K Contracting Inc. in Fort Lauderdale to
start the reconstruction process all over again. That firm started work in
February.
The estimated price tag at the time: Another $10.2 million to restart
construction, including work on the roof, plumbing and electrical systems.
Stephen Smith, vice president of R & K Contracting, said vandals even
stole copper wiring out of the units, and it needs to be replaced. And
mold needs to be removed by "soda-blasting" the units with
baking soda to eliminate the toxins. Because of the asbestos problems, the
cost will go up, Smith said.
"Every unit needs to be gutted and reconstructed, new installation,
new fixtures, new finishes," he said. "It's a really ugly
situation all the way around. You have to pick up the pieces someone else
left."
He said he couldn't estimate when work would be complete, but delays are
inevitable without payment.
Perry denies there was asbestos and said he couldn't have painted over
mold because he had painted only the parts where workers replaced the
drywall. He said it would have been the responsibility of residents to
complete the interior painting.
Guitree Basdeo is the resident named as the plaintiff. Because of
refinancing, she still owes $95,000 on the condo mortgage and a $319
monthly condo maintenance fee even though she hasn't lived in her home
since the storm.
Immediately after Wilma, she and her 11-year-old daughter moved into a
Federal Emergency Management Agency trailer in Margate until the
government ended its assistance program in April. Since then, she has been
renting a room from a friend in a two-bedroom Tamarac house for $600 a
month.
The bills are mounting, she said, and so is her debt. And she has no idea
when she'll be able to go back to her condo again.
"It's horrific not knowing where you are going to sleep, not knowing
when you're going to come home," Basdeo said. "There are no more
tears left."
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