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Article
Courtesy of Florida Politics
By Jesse Scheckner
Published March 4, 2024
Condo owners along
Florida’s coast may soon be able to tap state dollars to strengthen their
properties against seasonal storms, per legislation House lawmakers just
approved.
The bill (HB
1029) authorizes the creation of the My Safe Florida
Condominium Program, a pilot program that would provide condo associations
within 15 miles of the shoreline with hurricane-mitigation inspections and
guidance on roof- and entryway-improving grants.
The program is an
offshoot of My Safe Florida Home,
a 17-year-old home-hardening grant program lawmakers resurrected in 2022 and
have since apportioned $433 million for roof-, door- and window-improving
projects.
On Thursday, the House
voted 116-0 for the bill. It will now be sent to the Senate.
Under the condo program,
for every $1 an association spends on an upgrade, the state would spend $2.
The state would also cover up to half the cost of roof-related projects and
up to $1,500 per unit for doors and windows.
Grants would be capped at
$175,000 per association. Lawmakers agreed Wednesday night to
set aside $30 million for the
program in the next state budget if the Legislature passes HB 1029 or its
Senate analog (SB
1366) by St. Petersburg Republican Sen.
Nick DiCeglie.
Parkland Democratic Rep.
Christine Hunschofsky, who
sponsored the measure with Miami Republican Rep. Vicki Lopez, said the bill
is the result of a town hall she, Lopez and Fleming Island Republican Sen.
Jennifer Bradleyheld in her district last year.
“We had over 150 people
show up (and participate for) over two hours — lots of questions, lots of
discussion,” she said. “We are at our best when we have policy that is
coming from the concerns we’ve heard back home from the people we
represent.”
Lopez said the aim of the
bill is twofold: to enhance the safety of condos through inspection and
mitigation efforts and, as a result, reduce their insurance premiums.
Hunschofsky and Lopez
received plaudits from their fellow Representatives, several of whom
recounted the difficulties their condo-domiciled constituents have faced.
“What
you gals are doing,” said Lighthouse Point Republican
Rep. Chip LaMarca,
“is very important.”
Hollywood Democratic Rep. Marie Woodson
said seniors in her district are at risk of being priced
out of their homes because of high insurance rates and
new reserve fund
requirements.
“I’m
sure a lot of them are watching right now, and they are
grateful and thankful for the hard work that you have
done in order to bring some relief to them,” she said.
“This bill is so needed.”
HB
1029 and SB 1366, which awaits a Senate floor vote after
clearing two committees with unanimous support, are part
of a wave of legislation lawmakers filed following the
June 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers South
building in Surfside that killed 98 people.
Others include a measure Lopez is backing with
Bradley to broaden
condo board oversight and accountability and a controversial
proposal by Miami Springs Republican Sen. Bryan
Ávila and North Fort Myers Republican Rep. Spencer
Roach that would allow the owners of locally
designated historic structures to demolish and replace
them with bigger, denser buildings that meet modern
safety strictures.
Roach
temporarily postponed consideration of his bill on the
House floor Thursday.
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