|
Article Courtesy of News
Channel 8
By
Shannon Behnken
Published July 8, 2025
|
WATCH VIDEO |
|
TAMPA — It’s been one year since fireworks ignited a massive fire that destroyed
the clubhouse and pool area in the Wilson Preserve community in Riverview. But
as the community celebrates another Fourth of July holiday, frustrated residents
say the damaged pool area remains, and they’re demanding answers.
|
On July 4, 2024, Hillsborough County Fire
Rescue responded to a fire caused by mishandled fireworks.
The flames quickly engulfed the small community clubhouse
and adjacent pool area.
Sylvia Johnson, who lives in the neighborhood, said
residents expected repairs to begin promptly, but a year
later, the damage remains untouched, and weathered yellow
caution tape is tied around a metal fence to keep people out
of the area.
Johnson, a longtime homeowner in the neighborhood, says the
lack of action is hurting property values.
“It’s really frustrating and we’ve been told by our realtor
… that our property values are decreasing,” Johnson said.
“And this in part because people drive by here and first of
all, you don’t have a pool, and second of all, what you do
have is an eyesore.”
|
|
|
Johnson says Folio Association Management, the company handling the
neighborhood’s homeowner’s association, has not communicated clear plans or
timelines for reconstruction.
“They don’t have any updates. All they can tell us is that they’re still working
on proposals and will get with residents as soon as they meet with the Board of
Directors and come up with something,” Johnson said. “We don’t know what the
actual cost is, what insurance is paying, or what our deductible is. We don’t
know any of those things.”
With summer temperatures soaring and the pool still unusable, frustration is
mounting. Johnson tells Consumer Investigator Shannon Behnken she hopes this
story serves as both a cautionary tale about fireworks safety and spurs her HOA
to move forward to develop a plan for repairs.
Attempts to reach Folio Association Management and the HOA representative for
comment were unsuccessful. Johnson says some residents are now circulating a
petition and are prepared to take legal action if progress isn’t made soon.
|
