Surfside condo collapse

‘Mansions in the sky' planned for Surfside collapse site, victims feel ignored 

The Delmore, which is set to be completed in 2029, will include 4-5 bedroom mansions starting at $15 million. The announcement has stunned victims' families.

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A high-end 12-story residential building will soon rise on the former site of the Champlain Towers South condominium that collapsed in Surfside and claimed the lives of 98 people. NBC6’s Christian Colón reports

A high-end 12-story residential building will soon rise on the former site of the Champlain Towers South condominium that collapsed in Surfside and claimed the lives of 98 people. 

DAMAC International, a Dubai-based developer, announced on Tuesday that construction began for The Delmore, a project compromising of 37 "mansions in the sky."

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"It reflects the aspirations of ultra-luxury people to live on the waterfront in Surfside, which is part of the billionaire triangle of Miami," Jeffery Rossely, SVP of Development for DAMAC International, told NBC6 during an interview. 

The building, which is set to be completed in 2029, will include 4-5 bedroom mansions starting at $15 million. 

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According to the developers, residents will enjoy a meditation garden, sweeping water panoramas, and a suspended see-through swimming pool 125 feet in the air. 

Credit: BINYAN
Credit: BINYAN

However, Tuesday's announcement was tough for some of the victims' families who lost a loved one during the collapse nearly four years ago. 

"There is nothing to celebrate. Ninety-eight people were killed and we do not know why," said Martin Langesfeld, who lost his sister and brother-in-law. 

Langesfeld told NBC6 he feels ignored by the developer.

"They are allowing for the entire evidence behind me to be destroyed for another building to go up," he said. "We are not opposing this new development from going up, all we are asking is simply to find out why this building collapsed before allowing another one to go up."

A federal investigation into the collapse was delayed and is still pending. Its findings are set to become public in 2026. 

In response to the criticism, Rossely said his company has been in communication with the victims' families and the town of Surfside since the beginning. 

Rossely also said despite the federal investigation not being completed, the general consensus is the collapse was related to poor construction and maintenance of the building. 

"Very clearly there was a decision by the court that the site needed to be sold, because there was under insurance on the property, but there were people, survivors, with mortgages that they couldn't pay, so this is not just about the 98 people that died, it's also about those that survived to go on with their lives as well," Rossely said.

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