Article Courtesy of The Pelican

By Michael d’Oliveira

Published June 25, 2014

Pompano Beach – Missing and rusted window screws, mismatched doors and holes in their building are some of the problems that have the residents of the 27-story Renaissance 1 condominium angry and anxious.

Work stopped June 6 on a concrete restoration project for the building because the engineer left the project. “We cannot allow the job to go forward,” said Sandra King, public communications director for Pompano Beach. When a new engineer [with] approved plans comes in, work can begin again, King added.

Until then, the residents of Renaissance I, 1360 S. Ocean Blvd., will be left with holes in their building and hurricane windows improperly installed. A stucco project running the vertical length of the building has also received criticism. Orange markings are sprayed at equal points up and down. “It looks so unprofessional,” said one resident.

To fix the windows, which were not installed properly and could be vulnerable to hurricane force winds, the residents have been asked to pay about $3,500 each.

But after paying $2,000 last year for improvements that were later found to be done incorrectly, some residents are demanding the plans for the windows in writing.

“What are we paying for if there’s nothing on record?” asked resident Joseph Longobardo. “There’s nothing to say what you’re getting . . . it’s like throwing money at the ocean.”

Longobardo, who retired recently with 40 years experience as building contractor in the Northeast, organized a meeting with some of his fellow residents on Tuesday to start talking about the problem. “Right now, we’re divided and conquered.”

To fix the windows, moldings will have to be replaced, the concrete anchors taken off and new screws installed.

One former board member explained to his fellow residents the engineer, hired to inspect the windows, didn’t catch the problems.

Renaissance 1 has a long history of bad engineers and inspectors, said Emile Veksenfeld who has lived in the building for 14 years. Veksenfeld, who worked 15 years as a building inspector in Florida, said this was the third time glass railings had replaced in a period of three years – a problem he blames on engineers not doing their job correctly the first time. One inspector hired in 2005, he added, wasn’t even licensed.