Article Courtesy of The
By Luis F. Perez
Published August 24, 2007
It may be called Eden,
but many say the Boca Raton condo project is nothing but trouble.
Now the developer who failed to complete the luxury condos has a new plan:
a community for seniors.
That's if the Boca Raton City Council grants Ceebraid-Signal Corp. another
two years to finish the four-building project plagued by a swirl of
lawsuits and liens. The project was scheduled to have been completed three
years ago, and it's the third time Ceebraid has asked for a permit
extension.
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Eyesore
At the Eden site, three building skeletons have not seen a full
construction crew for months. One person who lives in the completed
building compares the experience to living in Beirut |
Ceebraid
promises that this time it has "imminent financial
restructuring" and will be working with "another experienced and
substantial developer," city records show. Meanwhile, the developer
is trying to buy back the units it sold and has returned money to those
who put down deposits.
"It's such a nightmare," said Steve Platzek, a lawyer hired by
condo owners.
It's not clear what Ceebraid means by "senior residences" or how
many of the current owners would want to stay. The most recent data from
the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser's Office show 27 people closed on
their units in Building A, the only completed building. Some are living in
there.
In 2003, Ceebraid billed the project at 300 W. Palmetto Park Road as a
204-unit luxury, resort-style condominium on the 8.5-acre site where a
250-unit apartment complex once stood. The one-, two- and three-bedroom
units ranged from about 800 to 2,000 square feet and were priced from the
low $200,000s up to about $450,000.
Ceebraid promised an 8,000-square-foot clubhouse with fitness center,
meeting facilities, basketball and racquetball courts and a billiards
room. A pool, concierge service, a business center, 24-hour security and a
climate-controlled wine storage area in each building were all part of the
plan.
One five-story building stands today next to three hulking, gray building
skeletons that haven't seen a full construction crew in months. One
resident said it's like living in Beirut. Piles of concrete block and roof
tiles sit next to a fence along Palmetto Park Road. On Thursday, no
construction workers could be seen on the site.
Adam Schlesinger, vice president of Ceebraid in West Palm Beach, declined
to comment Thursday.
But he has said publicly that problems with the construction company,
three hurricanes and skyrocketing building prices all slowed the project.
Now he faces a slumping real estate market.
Platzek said Schlesinger has offered to buy back the units at the prices
he sold them for in 2002 and 2003 plus 1 percent of the sale price for
closing costs.
"That's not fair market value," Platzek said.
He said the unit owners couldn't find a similar unit in east Boca Raton
for what they paid back then. Some owners have made improvements on their
property as well, including one who put $80,000 into his condo, Platzek
said.
Ceebraid's track record includes delays at another Boca Raton project, the
Bacara, and with the redevelopment of the Brazilian Court Hotel in Palm
Beach. Town of Palm Beach officials threatened to fine the developer for
continued delays. Those projects are now done.
In a move last year that enraged buyers, Ceebraid spent nearly $100
million to buy the Holiday Isle resort in Islamorada with plans to turn it
into a luxury condo-hotel while Eden languished.
Jackie Badome, an agent at Nestler Poletto Sotheby's International Realty,
had her Eden deposit returned earlier this year. She was glad to have it.
"They put my life on hold for a very long time," she said.
She wondered why anyone would want to stick with Eden. As a real estate
agent, she said it made sense for owners to sell their units back to the
developer. Those condos are "unsaleable," she said.
Eden's troubles have spawned more than 1,600 postings on one Web-based
discussion board, one of which prompted a police investigation. City
officials asked police to question an engineer hired by the contractor to
inspect the construction work.
Hector Vergara, who oversees the buildings' structures as they go up, told
police he and his wife, Olga, purchased an Eden unit more than three years
ago. He denied any special treatment but acknowledged the purchase
"appears to be and possibly is against the board of engineers
ethics."
Olga Vergara said she's a real estate agent and put money down on a unit.
That money has since been returned, she said. Hector Vergara couldn't be
reached for comment despite two phone messages left at a number provided
by his wife. Police cleared him this month.
John Rimes, a prosecutor with the Florida Board of Professional Engineers,
said there's nothing in the state law or the board's ethics guidelines
that addresses inspectors having a financial stake in a project that
they're overseeing.
Boca Raton officials just want to see the Eden finished.
"The city would like to see the project completed as
advertised," said Mayor Steven Abrams.
To become a 55-and-over community, Eden would need at least one person
over age 55 living in 80 percent of the condos, said Gary Poliakoff, a
Fort Lauderdale lawyer who teaches condo law at Nova Southeastern
University.
The City Council is scheduled to take up the permit extension request at a
Sept. 11 meeting.
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