Doral Community Charges Lennar With Condo Construction Defects

Marc Smiley, with Siegfried, Rivera, Hyman, Lerner, De La Torre, Mars & Sobel in Coral Gables. Courtesy photo

A Lennar Homes condominium community in Doral has a slew of construction and design-related defects including interior flooding, cracks in building facades and a gate that won't lock, a homeowner lawsuit claims.

The St. Maarten at Grand Bay condo association is suing two affiliates of the Miami-based homebuilder, Lennar Homes LLC and Flordade LLC, as well as architectural and engineering companies that worked on the project.

Lennar is accused of failing to meet Florida Building Code standards and follow design plans. The company, one of the nation's largest homebuilders, said it doesn't comment on litigation.

"Certain of the construction defects and deficiencies were proximately caused by the improper design and/or construction of the condominium property, which resulted in damage to other property of the association and numerous defects and deficiencies in various systems and components of the condominium property," attorney Marc Smiley, who filed the lawsuit, wrote in the Feb. 15 complaint.

Smiley is a shareholder at Siegfried, Rivera, Hyman, Lerner, De La Torre, Mars & Sobel in Coral Gables.



The condos were finished in 2013, and Miami-Dade County records indicate most units were sold that year as well. The condo association took control of the community four years ago.

The association said it told Lennar and its contractors about the construction issues, but requested repairs have not been made.

The lawsuit cites incomplete insulation in some of the bedrooms, unit flooding, cracked water pipes, uneven pavement, peeling paint, exposed reinforcements in some buildings, landscaping that doesn't fit design plans, and water heaters in some units don't have check valves, vacuum relief valves, air-relief valves and thermometers. A pedestrian gate can't be locked because the inside handle can be reached from the outside.

The 18-count lawsuit lists breach of statutory and common law implied warranties, negligence and building codes violations against Lennar and Flordade. It also lists negligence and code violations against the other defendants.

One of the defendants, engineering firm Pedro E. Rodriguez P.E., said In a court filing that the assessment report listing the alleged deficiencies doesn't allege any issues stemming from its plans, and government agencies signed off on the engineering plans.

Smiley didn't respond to a request for comment on the estimated cost of repairs and how much the association has spent so far on corrective action in the community at 8900 NW 97th Ave.