Burst pipe at Miami Beach condo triggers more than flooding
MIAMI - Only one of four elevators is operational at the Burleigh House Condominium on Miami Beach after a pipe burst over the weekend, causing more than flooding on the third floor of the building.
"Of course, it was cascading the water to the elevators but now everything is dry, and everything is going to be back in order," said Andrea Romagna, a board member of the Burleigh House. "The company of the elevators is working and now there's one already working."
"This was no surprise for me because it's happened before," said Michelle Salem, who owns a condo there.
She has been very vocal about what she considers the "questionable way" of how things are fixed at the building located on Collins Avenue and 71st Street.
"Let me show you a video from last year, January 3rd, 2023, virtually one year ago, it's the same exact situation," said Salem using her phone to show a seemingly image of a flooding from last year.
She claims the same problem has not been properly fixed by real professionals because the building's board has been using internal personnel for maintenance.
"The company of the elevators is working, and now there's one already working, a remediation company is taking care of putting the third floor where all the damage was done," replied Romagna who considers that only a few unit owners complained.
Salem said her right to see the financial books when the problems occurred has been denied.
"We are experiencing very little transparency," she said.
Salem pointed to a condo safety bill requires that condominium associations to have sufficient reserves to pay for major repairs and conduct a study of the reserves every decade. It would also require condominium associations to provide inspection reports to owners, and if structural repairs are needed, work must begin within a year of the report.
Salem said she has paid $87,000 in four different special assessments for her two-bedroom unit and $60,000 for a one-bedroom unit.
"These are very big numbers, and we don't have real accountability where all the money has been spent," said Salem.
