A condominium board is getting pushback from unit owners after the board approved a $21 million special assessment in November.
Some unit owners at 1060 Brickell Avenue say there's a lack of transparency on behalf of the board of directors at this 16-year-old building.
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“In the last six months, things have really escalated," said unit owner Evan Cohen.
An attorney representing the condo association says owners were given opportunities to tour damaged areas and view the scope of repairs before the assessment was finalized.
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"Engineering firms have come in and done the inspections and the board is following those recommendations," said attorney Marc Halpern.
Unit owner Evan Cohen says he read the inspection report and doesn't believe it warrants $21 million in repairs right now.
"The report actually doesn't use any of the same terms that the board used, critical, life-threatening. None of these terms are even used in the report. The report says things according to several engineers in our building that are normal wear and tear for a building that is 15-16 years old now," Cohen said.
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Condo resident Marthin Chan feels the process has been rushed and pushed through without unit owner approval.
"During the holidays, everything is at the last minute. They are pushing a lot of repairs really fast," Chan said.
The 1060 Brickell condo owners say they have to pay anywhere from $30,000 to $110,000 per unit.
Aside from the assessment, there’s a discrepancy surrounding a new board election. The condo owners who spoke to NBC6 say an election was held Saturday appointing a new board, however, the attorney representing the association says it was not an election.
"I believe there is an annual meeting and election of directors currently scheduled for the 21st of this month, it was rescheduled. It was originally scheduled to take place this Saturday but was postponed until the 21st I believe," Halpern said.
"Two days before the election we got an email saying the election is being cancelled. Another person withdrew without any support. So we went ahead with the state board and we had the election anyway," Cohen said.
NBC6 reached out to the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation to see who they recognize as the board and if in fact there was an election on Saturday. We are waiting for a response.
