By Mary Hladky
Boca Raton’s building certification program has launched, with the city sending out in late January the first notices to owners that their buildings must be inspected.
The city enacted an ordinance in August requiring safety inspections two months after a Surfside condominium’s collapse claimed the lives of 98 people.
The ordinance establishes certification standards similar to those that exist in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. But it is more stringent, requiring inspections of buildings 30 years old rather than 40, with additional inspections taking place every 10 years thereafter.
The ordinance divides the city into four zones, with buildings on the barrier island receiving the highest priority for review. Each zone was further divided into four groups based on building age in order to stagger inspection due dates.
The notices went to 14 barrier island buildings, mostly on North and South Ocean Boulevard. Inspection reports must be submitted by Feb. 1, 2023.
Officials initially said that 242 buildings in the city met the criteria for certification. They have since lowered the number to 191, although some of those include multiple buildings.
The ordinance applies to buildings that are taller than three stories, or 50 feet, or have an “assembly occupancy” that is more than 5,000 square feet and more than 500 people. Single-family homes and duplexes are exempt.
The city is in the process of hiring a code enforcement officer and an administrative staffer to help implement the ordinance. Officials expect to contract with an engineering firm soon.
The city also plans to create a public database that will list every building that must be inspected, when the inspection is due and whether the building is in compliance, among other things.
The ordinance was a priority for Mayor Scott Singer, who did not want to wait until the state or Palm Beach County took action.
Both the Florida House and Senate are working on certification legislation that, if enacted, would apply statewide.
The bill that is viewed as most likely to pass would require condos to be certified after 30 years if they are three stories or higher, or are 25 years old and within 3 miles of the coast. They would have to be recertified every 10 years after that.
It also would require condominium associations to conduct reserve studies every decade to make sure they have the resources to finance needed structural improvements. They would be barred from waiving a requirement that they put money into reserves to make those improvements.
Singer has said he is willing to revise Boca Raton’s ordinance so that it does not conflict with any state law that is enacted.
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