Unsafe condominium complex evacuated in Jensen Beach due to structural insecurity
Evacuations due to long-term structural and environmental damage, as well as inadequate repairs at Villa del Sol Condominiums in Jensen Beach, have left several families homeless and homeowners facing significant financial distress.
- Unsafe condominium complex evacuated in Jensen Beach due to structural insecurity
- The condominiums are located at 11000 S. Ocean Drive on Hutchinson Island in southern St. Lucie County.
- The AB Plus report “identified structural damage” in three buildings “based on limited observations of accessible parts of the crawl spaces (approximately half of the crawl spaces were not accessible).”
- Numerous areas had cracks in the concrete beams wider than a quarter of an inch.
It has been a week since residents of three buildings at Villa Del Sol condominiums in Jensen Beach were told to leave their homes after they were declared unsafe.
Documents and videos released this week provide new insight into the structural problems in three of the Villa Del Sol condominium buildings that were evacuated last week.
The condominiums are located at 11000 S. Ocean Drive on Hutchinson Island in southern St. Lucie County.
Three three-story oceanfront structures were evacuated last week, and around 11 residents were “essentially displaced” after the buildings were deemed unsafe, said Flynn Fidgeon, communications manager for St. Lucie County.
AB Plus Engineering & Restoration of West Palm Beach was hired to conduct an inspection report, according to records released by St. Lucie County.
The state-mandated inspection was conducted on condominium buildings three stories or taller following the collapse of a condominium in June 2021 in Miami-Dade County, which killed nearly 100 people and left dozens more homeless.
The AB Plus report “identified structural damage” in three buildings “based on limited observations of accessible parts of the crawl spaces (approximately half of the crawl spaces were not accessible).”
After documents were prepared for the restoration work on the concrete beams and the work was underway, further excavation in the crawl spaces “exposed more extensive damage than initially observed,” the report states.
It also notes that “ongoing excavations revealed significant structural damage in critical elements (in several areas).”
Numerous areas had cracks in the concrete beams wider than a quarter of an inch.
Large chunks of concrete could be removed by hand or by striking them with a hammer; the rebar was disintegrating.
This did not happen overnight, not at all. This took time.
Buildings along the coast are classified as a “hostile environment” under Florida’s building code, due to the salty air and humidity, which can seep through capillary cracks in the foundations.
This causes the metal rebar to expand up to six times its size, eventually breaking the concrete.
Parts of the video provided by St. Lucie County clearly show crumbling concrete, large cracks, and rusted rebar.
“Given the severity of these conditions, I strongly recommend the immediate evacuation of residents from buildings 4 and 5, along with the urgent implementation of emergency shoring,” the report states.
Later, it included building 3 in its evacuation recommendation.
Evacuated residents were only told to “take whatever they could and try to leave as quickly as possible.”
Apartment owners were shown images and videos detailing the damage, informing them that saltwater had affected the rebar and corroded the structural integrity of the concrete.
Now, residents are wondering how much this will cost and whether they will be able to afford it.
Adding to the frustration, residents were already paying $40,000 in special assessments to replace their roofs and bring the electrical work up to code.
Image: 12News
