Two Bay Harbor Islands buildings evacuated one day apart. Inspections found ’defects’
Two apartment buildings in Bay Harbor Islands were evacuated within a day of each other this week after the town’s building official deemed the properties unsafe for occupancy.
After tenants of the Forum, at 1080 93rd St., were ordered out of their homes Wednesday, the town ordered a second building — at 1060 95th St. — shut down Thursday afternoon due to safety concerns, Town Manager Maria Lasday said.
The evacuations are the result of sweeping inspections the town launched of its older buildings following the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside.
“The primary concern of the Town of Bay Harbor Islands is the safety of its residents,” states a press release issued Thursday by the town’s government. “As part of our ongoing efforts to ensure the structural integrity of all buildings in the Town, we initiated a mandatory inspection of all buildings of a certain age and size.”
Inspections of both buildings found “significant structural defects,” according to the town. The four-story Forum building, which was built in 1965, has 24 units. The two-story building at 1060 95th St., built in 1948, has nine units. All tenants were ordered to leave.
The inspection report for the Forum, conducted by BCC Engineering and provided to the town Wednesday, found concrete spalling, cracks and exposed rebar in several areas of the building. The report found five structural deficiencies it says will require immediate attention, adding that the property owner must secure the concrete corridors with temporary shoring and limit access to the building until the shoring is installed.
Apart from the structural issues, the report also noted that the building’s fire pump was not operational, which it described as a “life safety deficiency” in need of immediate attention.
“Overall, the structure is in poor condition and presents an UNSAFE condition due to severe deterioration encountered at the exterior corridors” and stairs, the report found.
A visual inspection of the 95th Street building was conducted Thursday, but the accompanying report had not yet been provided to the city as of Thursday afternoon.
“The independent engineer on site verbally highlighted significant structural defects, and as a result the structure has been declared as unsafe by the Town of Bay Harbor Islands’ Chief Building Official,” the press release states. “The Town expects to receive a written inspection report very soon.”
The town said the buildings had been “repeatedly cited” for code violations.
Erick Pamblanco, the property manager for both buildings, said tenants were being given places to sleep by charitable groups or loved ones. He told the Miami Herald that both properties had serious structural issues that the building owner had neglected to fix.
“There’s some shoring that needs to be put in some of the common area catwalks to make sure the catwalks are not going to collapse,” he said of the Forum building.
In the sister building, he said, beams are rotting and temporary pumps have been installed on the roof to drain standing water.
“It’s structurally deficient,” Pamblanco said of the building on 95th Street.
The buildings are both owned by Bal Harbour Investments LLC. The registered agent for the company, Jordan Weinkle, did not respond to multiple requests for comment Thursday. Pamblanco, who said Weinkle is the owner, said he has not been able to reach his boss either in recent months. The buildings are in foreclosure, he said, and a court-appointed receiver is managing the properties.
“I’m relieved that finally somebody stepped in and made the decision to close the buildings down,” Pamblanco said. “Life safety is 100% my concern.”
This story was originally published September 2, 2021 at 2:41 PM.
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