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Article Courtesy of The Palm
Beach Post
By GRETEL SARMIENTO
Published March 24, 2008
BOCA RATON — A state agency that oversees
condominiums has alleged that Eden developer Boca East LLC has violated
state law.
The investigation is the latest twist in the Eden
condo-conversion project that promised four years ago to deliver
"spacious outdoor terraces provide panoramic views of the area's
breathtaking scenery." Living surrounded by piles of cement, dust and
board-covered windows has been a four-year-long torture, Eden unit owners
say. Until now their cry for help had been ignored.
The five-page letter, dated April 16, to the
developer from the Florida Department of Business and Professional
Regulation cites some of the violations residents have been complaining
about for years:
- Failure to schedule and hold an election to
permit non-developer unit owners to elect at least one-third of the
association's board. ZConducting a board meeting to adopt the budget
without a quorum of the board members present .
- Adopting a budget for 2007 without providing
copies of the proposed budget to the unit owners 14 days in advance of
the meeting at which the budget was considered.
Boca East has until April 30 to respond to the
allegations. A call to a company representative for comment was not
returned Thursday afternoon.
News of the state investigation offered little
relief to Bernard Seid and his wife, Sheila, who say they feel like
hostages.
"We've been trapped four years," Bernard
Seid said.
The Seids have spent $50,000 in storage and rental
for two winters. In 2004 they sold their Manhattan apartment and bought an
Eden unit at 300 West Palmetto Park Road for $430,000.
"I'm 70 now. I was supposed to retire."
Instead, he and his wife have been subject to "an emotional and
physical nightmare," he said.
One of the outcomes of the state investigation could
have Eden unit owners taking control of their condominium association,
which currently is controlled by the developer. If the residents gain
control it would be harder for Boca East to force them out - a move they
anticipate if the city approves the developer's latest plans to convert
the condos into an age-restricted rental facility.
Steven Platzek, an attorney representing some unit
owners, fears if the city approves the plan, Boca East's next step will be
to terminate the Eden association.
"It gets to be ugly and expensive and time
consuming," Platzek said.
Eden residents have pleaded with city officials to
help them deal with a developer they have described as "evil,"
"unfair" and "cold."
Yet city officials say residents' requests fall
outside their role as a government body. Any contract issues should be
worked out with the developer.
"That's a stupid excuse. The city is obligated
to protect their people. Period," said Jan Bergemann, who runs the
Cyber Citizens For Justice, a Florida non-profit group that has followed
the Eden case for years. "The city allowed this to get this way. It
gave new deadlines and more new deadlines."
Some owners have tried selling back their units to
Boca East with no luck. The Seids also considered selling back but never
heard from the developer. They are not surprised.
"Whatever
he says to you after four years, you can't believe it," Seid said.
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Boca project irritates unit owners
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