Miami condo owners — shocked with $21 million special assessment — vote out president
José Rincones sat on a crowded couch in his Brickell condominium’s wine and cigar room, a space where a November breeze swept in from the balcony to cool the hundred owners gathered Saturday. Rincones was one of many who had flown in from out of town — his a 1,600-mile journey from Venezuela — for this event.
At 9 a.m., Rincones voted to oust his condominium’s president who approved a $21 million special assessment without the majority of the building’s blessing.
“We have to review everything that has been done, of course, and see in what time we can make [the changes], not necessarily in a year, if we can go about making some of the changes we agree on, the most critical,” Rincones said in Spanish. “Well, that’s basic, how they say, ‘Common sense’ in English.”
The election, which ended the two-year reign of condo board president Jacob Kassell, promised a fresh start for owners at 1060 Brickell, on the main artery of Miami’s financial district at 1060 Brickell Ave. The two towers have 605 residences.
In recent months, Kassell’s actions have proven too much for owners like Rincones.
Kassell eliminated electronic voting — once a saving grace for the majority foreign investors in the building — rushed in a $21 million special assessment, and tried to postpone board elections until December.
Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation sent two volunteers to oversee the election. The agency oversees condo associations, and the volunteers sat throughout the five-hour meeting to ensure proper protocol was followed with the voting process.
By 2 p.m., condo owner and resident Dorinda Spahr was voted in with 192 votes — with 115 votes the minimum needed — as the president-elect. Pablo Lignarolo and David Treiger were also voted in as part of the three-member board.
Kassell received zero votes.
“We won the election, but we still need ownership,” Spahr said to owners at the end of the election, urging participation in meetings and votes in the months ahead.
The first task for Spahr and her fellow board members would be the $21 million special assessment. Kassell failed to hold a vote to approve the multi-million dollar special assessment for the 16-year-old building in November.
While large assessments are permissible under state law, boards must hold a special meeting to approve any project “exceeding 115% of assessments for the preceding calendar year,” according to Florida statute. At 1060 Brickell, condo rules require 50% of owners to approve any project over $50,000 or “exceeding 115% of assessments for the preceding calendar year.”
While a vote by owners is required by Florida statute, the board refused to allow this to happen. Kassell and another board member — the majority of the board — approved the assessment in a virtual meeting where residents were muted.
Instead, owners got hit with assessments that averaged $40,000 to $50,000, depending on the size of the residence. Kassell set a deadline for January for a quarter of each owner’s assessment, with the rest paid over nine quarterly payments.
“This mock election will be thrown out come Monday,” Kassell told the Miami Herald. He declined to answer questions, citing the association’s law firm and representative Halpern Rodriguez.
Marc Halpern, a senior and founding partner of the Coral Gables-based Halpern Rodriguez law firm, did not respond to a request for comment.
Financial pressures after Surfside collapse
The election at 1060 Brickell follows a series of owners pushing back at associations raising monthly condo assessment fees, requesting special assessments and setting expectations for reserve contributions come January.
The increases have come after the collapse of the Champlain Towers South, which killed 98 people in June 2021. The building collapsed after owners had delayed structural repairs and a $15 million special assessment for the 39-year-old condo at the time of the disaster.
In an attempt to protect lives, the state established new laws forcing owners to address structural issues and build reserves for future renovations and projects.
The problem is the process, not the price of the special assessment, said Diego Navia, who lives at 1060 Brickell. More accountability and guardrails need to be established, Navia said, for board members.
“There needs to be more timely enforcement,” he said. “The laws passed were a great step forward.”
Over the next few days, the newly elected board plans to fight for recognition from Kassell and clarity behind the $21 million demanded special assessment. Spahr said they just needed time to plan.
“We understand owners want answers. This was the first step today. This was the most important step today The rest of it,” Spahr said, “is a little unknown territory.”
An earlier version of this story stated a condo association must approve a special assessment over 115% of assessments of the preceding year and gain 50% of owner approval for any project, according to state statute State statute says a board must hold a special meeting of the unit owners to consider an assessment exceeding 115% of assessments for the preceding fiscal year, but does not set a threshold for how many unit owners must approve the assessment. The 50% threshold applied exclusively to 1060 Brickell as stated in its declaration of condominium documents.
This story was originally published December 1, 2024 at 11:00 AM.
