Memorial park? As court weighs sale of Surfside property, debate starts over future of site

Even as search teams continue to sift for remains in the rubble of the Champlain Towers South, debate over the future of the beachfront site had already begun Wednesday in a MIami-Dade County courtroom.

Should it be a memorial or sold to developers to erect another condo — a deal that could help compensate victims of the tragedy?

A judge overseeing the growing number of civil lawsuits over the collapse heard from both sides on Wednesday. He was told that the property may be worth between $100 to $130 million, more than double the estimated insurance payout. But some victims also aren’t sure they want the property where so many friends and family members died turned into another gleaming luxury high-rise.

During a court hearing, a lawyer for several victims floated the idea that the site on the 8700 block of Collins Avenue could be bought by the government and turned into a memorial park to honor the victims of what could become the deadliest building failure in U.S. history.

“This site is not only hallowed ground for the family members that lost loved ones but it’s a place that can be a symbol of what we can’t allow our coastline buildings to become,” said lawyer Robert McKee, who represents survivor Steve Rosenthal.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Michael Hanzman called it an “interesting thought” but stressed it was too early.

“The job of my receiver is to marshal assets and get the highest and best use for those assets,” Hanzman said.

The 12-story Champlain Towers South condo building collapsed on June 24, killing at least 46 people and leaving scores more still missing in the rubble. A complicated search-and-rescue effort — which included the demolition of the upright portion of the building — remains underway.

Lawyers representing survivors and relatives of the dead and missing had already filed at least five civil lawsuits against the Champlain Towers South Condo Association and other parties linked to the building. A number of additional new filings were also announced on Wednesday.

But so far, a court-appointed receiver has only identified $48 million in possible insurance coverage, which the judge previously acknowledged was nowhere near enough to compensate victims. The receiver, Michael Goldberg, said during Wednesday’s hearing that his team is working on identifying other possible insurers, as well as other parties that might be liable — such as contractors who worked on the building in the past 10 years, and parties involved in construction on a nearby building.

During a court hearing on Wednesday, attended by many high-powered Miami civil firms now involved in the lawsuits, Goldberg said at least one real-estate broker has already reached out and said the property could go for more than $100 million.

“The market is strong now. I don’t want to miss an opportunity,” Hanzman said.

But Rosenthal, 72, a survivor of the partial building collapse in Surfside, wants to see the site of his former home turned into a permanent memorial in the likes of Ground Zero in Manhattan, honoring those of his neighbors and friends whose lives were lost.

When a representative from the White House called Rosenthal on Tuesday, “checking up on me,” Rosenthal said he took the opportunity to advocate for such a tribute.

“We really want to get the message out there that we really think that property should be bought by the feds or the state and turned into a memorial,” said Rosenthal, who lived in Unit 705 of the now-demolished building for two decades. “Kind of like a 9/11 memorial, or Oklahoma City memorial. I don’t know about a museum — make it a park kind of a thing.”

Another survivor, Moshe Candiotti, 67, was more cautious about the prospects of converting Champlain Towers South into a national memorial. His primary concern was that survivors should not be asked to agree to diminished monetary recovery in the name of a memorial.

“I don’t know,” Candiotti said. “If we have to take less of the value of the apartment to give that land. ... I think if the government buys the properties, it’s OK. But if it’s reduced to give up the property for making a memorial, I don’t think everybody will agree with that.”

The task of finding money to compensate victims figures to be complicated and take months or longer. At the urging of the judge, a group of lawyers representing victims agreed to work for free as part of a committee steering the class-action lawsuit. Law firms can still get paid through contingency fees with their clients, although several — like Colson Hicks Eidson, and Silva & Silva — said they would decline to do so.

“We will honor this pledge for our future clients,” Colson Hicks Eidson said in a statement. “The funds we recover will go to the children, grandchildren, spouses, parents and all the loved ones who deserve it without fee.”

Another lawyer, John Ruiz, went further and agreed to donate $1 million to victims. “No strings attached,” he said.

Judge Hanzman said he will hold weekly hearings to keep the case moving. Wednesday marked the first in-person hearing, inside a historic courtroom at the Miami-Dade civil courthouse downtown.

“This case is not business as usual,” Hanzman said. “Entire families have perished while in the comfort of their homes.”

Miami Herald staff writer Jay Weaver contributed to this report.

This story was originally published July 7, 2021 at 12:54 PM.