Dina Bengelsdorf Week 7 - The Surfside Condo Collapse

 The Collapse of Champlain Towers South

During the summer before junior year I participated in a summer program where a major assignment was to find a current event, analyze the legal aspects of the situation, and produce a thorough research paper. My friends from the program did cases such as OJ Simpson or the Kim and Kanye divorce, but I chose to research the sudden collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida. The tragedy had occurred just days before, so I had few resources to investigate, besides what was already public record. I knew this would not be easy but I was fascinated and intrigued. The building had a predominantly Jewish population, it was located in Miami, and there had been new updates every time I’d refresh the page. After three weeks of intense research I discussed precedents, the facts of the case, what I think should happen to the parties involved, and what I predict would happen in the future. 

To this day I keep tabs on the updates. There was a one-billion dollar settlement and almost a hundred people died; the money would be split across the families. I predicted a huge sum of money would be allocated to providing relief for the families of those who died and also to the survivors. I was right. I also predicted that this would change the course of the real estate market in terms of older, run-down condominiums, as the price would go down significantly unless homeowners associations’ take action by maintaining their properties the right way. I figured that the town of Surfside and city of Miami would implement countermeasures with stricter policies for older buildings. Again, I was right. Just recently, the Florida legislature made more inspections required for buildings over 25 years old.  

So why am I bringing this up over a year later? Just the other day a building less than a mile from Champlain Towers South was evacuated. The same issues that I investigated with this building had resurfaced in the Port Royale building at 6969 Collins Ave. There had been a slow response to concerns addressed before this week and it was almost too late. I think that if the collapse of 2021 hadn’t happened, so many could have died. But still, I believe more reform is needed. So many buildings on the Miami strip haven’t been properly maintained for decades and decades, however thankfully, this situation is on its way to change.