NORTH BAY VILLAGE, Fla. – The clock was ticking for dozens of Majestic Isle residents Friday who have only four days to evacuate their 36 apartments in Miami-Dade County’s North Bay Village.
The three-story building, at 7946 East Drive, in Harbor Island, was no longer safe, according to Brent Latham, the mayor of North Bay Village, an island city of about 8,000.
Developed in the 1960s, some of the residents have lived there for decades. Lenny Fagundo, who has lived there for about 30 years, said he wasn’t prepared to leave.
“Such short notice and you know, it’s hard,” Fagundo said.
Not everyone trusted the city officials’ motives for the evacuation. Latham discredited allegations that there was a conspiracy to help the developers to snatch up the land — amid ongoing David vs. Goliath litigation between residents and developers.
“There are no contracts that I’m aware of,” Latham said. “I’m aware of discussions that have been going on for a long time, maybe a year or more, and nothing that has come to fruition.”
There was an inspection on April 14 that was part of the 60-year certification. City officials ordered the evacuation on Thursday and announced the 10 a.m., Tuesday deadline.
“Part of the roof did collapse with the recent rainfall, and that’s what triggered the report which has led to the conclusion that the building can’t be inhabited at this time,” Latham said.
Photos indoors showed collapsed ceilings; aerial video showed what appeared to be three water stains on the roof of a section of the waterfront building.
Miami-Dade County officials were assisting the displaced residents with the search for shelters. Latham reported that many of them were asking friends and family for support.
“We want to help these people rebuild their building and move back in. The building hasn’t been condemned. It can be fixed,” Latham said. “There are ways to bring resources to the table and the city has multiple ways to offer resources to help them reconstruct their building.”
Local officials have become more proactive with evacuations since 98 people died when Champlain Towers South, a 12-story beachfront condominium, collapsed on June 24, 2021, in Surfside.
The Miami Foundation partnered with North Bay Village officials to set up a fundraiser to benefit the residents who were displaced. For more information about how to make a donation, visit this page.
Local 10 News Digital Journalists Chris Gothner and Andrea Torres contributed to this report.