As we mark the third anniversary of the Champlain Towers South tragedy in Surfside, Fla., CAI honors the memory of the victims and reiterates its commitment to promoting safety and resilience within community associations. CAI remains dedicated to providing education, resources, and support to community associations to protect the lives, well-being, and investments of all community residents.
When the Champlain Tower South condominium in Surfside, Fla., partially collapsed three years ago this month, Daniel Gonzalez was in bed just an hour away in Boca Raton. His immediate reaction was to commission a structural inspection on their nearly 50-year-old building. Gonzalez advises managers and boards facing the recertification process to be hypervigilant about structural maintenance.
Community associations should incorporate preventive maintenance and structural inspections into their reserve studies—the important budget planning tools that identify the components a community association is responsible for maintaining or replacing, indicate the status of the reserve fund, and provide a stable and equitable funding plan to offset anticipated future major common area expenditures. The recommendations are part of new Reserve Study Standards released by Community Associations Institute (CAI), the leading international authority on community association governance, management, and education.
Addressing unexpected maintenance often results in boards having to approve large special assessments, which can cause a financial strain to homeowners. A report from the Foundation for Community Association Research details why the unanticipated expense of repairing hidden damage can be so overwhelming.
