MIAMI -- Residents in
Hialeah have shared their concerns about their living
conditions with CBS News Miami.
Residents at Venetian Gardens at Country Club of Miami met
with CBS News Miami to hear more about their frustrations
and concerns, where building after building appeared to be
in various states of disrepair.
Reporter Joe Gorchow asked, "Do you feel safe living here?"
"Not really," responded Alexandra Ferrales, who lives at one of the homes at Venetian Gardens.
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Venetian Gardens at Country Club of Miami. |
The "they" Ferrales is
referring to is the association leadership for the community
of 21 buildings.
CBS News Miami contacted the board president and property
manager multiple times about the open cases, needed repairs
and the community's current condition. They have yet to
respond."Look at this patchwork," said Ferrales, pointing to
more buildings that appear to be in disrepair. "Look at the
ceiling and the cracks in it. It's going to fall."
We see more evidence of disrepair at a neighbor's home. The
outside hides what's on the inside: a gaping hole in the
ceiling and containers underneath it to catch water.
In Ferrales' unit, she provided a video from a few years
back showing water flooding the kitchen after a bad storm.
Now, a plastered wooden board outside they installed keeps
it out.
"If you own these properties, at the end of the day, this is
your investment," Ferrales said. "You should care enough
about it. Something should have been done a long time ago."
Ferrales and other residents tell CBS News Miami they seek
greater clarity about why their association dues dollars
don't add up to faster repairs.
Additional HOA reform needed in Florida?
Help might be on the way soon.
"Our office sees hundreds, hundreds of these complaints,"
said Miami-Dade County State Attorney Katherine Fernandez
Rundle, speaking generally about homeowners' associations
and condo associations. "You have to start with teeth in the
law, right."
She says the current state statutes limit law enforcement
from addressing other concerns raised by homeowners
statewide, including investigating or ensuring transparency
in board elections and obtaining financial records.
"We really want to see alignment so that elections,
transparency, records, record keeping, failure to turn over
records, and all of these things will have built-in
consequences," Fernandez Rundle said.
In Tallahassee, lawmakers are working on it during this
legislative session.
"This year, we're going to focus on governance and
regulation," said Republican State Rep. Vicki Lopez. "We
heard a lot of complaints about not being able to access
records."
Lopez worked on condo association reform with State
Senators. Jason Pizzo and Jennifer Bradley.
Under the proposed bill, the Department of Business and
Professional Regulation will be granted jurisdiction to hold
bad actors accountable.
Gorchow asked Lopez if the proposed bill would give DBPR
authority to have those board members removed.
"Yes," answered Lopez. "If you can't act as a responsible
condo board member, DBPR will have the right and authority
to remove you. The bill does say all suspected criminal
activity to law enforcement. With any criminal charge, you
have to prove intention."
Current state statutes do not allow DBPR to remove board
members for violations. The current guidelines only provide
for fines for the association or offer legal opinions on
election issues.
The proposal would mandate that associations hold at least
four meetings annually. Board members must disclose
conflicts of interest, for example, hiring a company a
family member owns to maintain the grounds. Upload all
Association records online, and DBPR will audit those
websites annually, along with the meetings.
HOA dues irk some residents at complex
Meanwhile, back at Venetian Gardens, Ferrales says monthly
association dues are over $700.
Other unit owners who spoke to CBS News Miami told us the
same. If each unit owner paid on time, the Association would
collect around $2.4 million annually.
"To look like this, there's no explanation for why our money
is being mismanaged," Ferrales said
Again, the board president did not answer our questions
about the budget and fixing repairs, like Ferrales'
neighbor's bedroom ceiling, which collapsed to the floor.
Gorchow asked Ferrales if she felt she had good
accountability about how the money is used to fix the
visible damage spotted at the association.
"No," replied Ferrales. "Not at all."
The Association leadership at Venetian Gardens did not
respond to repeated attempts for comment.
A similar bill is on the table at the State House level to
enforce transparency and accountability in homeowners'
associations. Lopez says they will provide funding to
increase staff for DBPR to help keep associations
accountable and protect residents.