Miami Beach landlord who threatened mass eviction drops suit. But dispute isn’t resolved

A property owner who filed a lawsuit seeking to evict everyone from a 102-unit building in Miami Beach agreed to drop the case Monday but made sure to note that the matter is far from resolved.

The landlord’s voluntary dismissal of an eviction lawsuit filed in Miami-Dade County Court takes away the immediate specter of residents at Gardens on the Bay at 6484 Indian Creek Dr., being removed from their homes. It comes after a hearing last week at which a judge questioned whether she had jurisdiction over the matter and worried there would be “no way” to manage the case with more than 100 named defendants.

But in a letter Monday to Judge Stephanie Silver, an attorney for the landlord said the eviction threat had “overshadowed the crux of the ultimate relief being sought” — namely, “the procurement of adequate insurance and completion of necessary repairs and maintenance” — and that the landlord would continue to push for those needs to be addressed.

“He will still insist on and enforce the covenants having to do with the building being adequately insured and properly maintained,” a spokesman for the landlord said, referring to the requirements of a lease agreement with an association of unit owners that expires in 2056.

The 1954 building is in need of at least $2 million in repairs, according to the landlord, an LLC controlled by Miami-based Millennium Management and its leader, healthcare magnate Abraham Shaulson.

Shaulson has also said the three-story building lacks adequate insurance, an issue the company has repeatedly flagged to the owners association over the past several years. In May, the building’s property insurance company said it would not renew its policy, citing the age and condition of the roof.

It wasn’t immediately clear Monday how Shaulson planned to enforce his demands after dropping the eviction case. He could potentially enter claims in an ongoing Circuit Court lawsuit the owners association filed against his company in February, after the landlord sent an initial “notice of termination” to unit owners.

Silver, the judge, said at last week’s hearing that the matter may be better suited for an “ejectment” action in Miami-Dade Circuit Court than an eviction case in county court. Evictions are generally filed against tenants, whereas ejectments relate to claims that someone is illegally occupying property.

‘He’s never gonna be satisfied’

Meeting Shaulson’s demands will likely present a challenge at Gardens on the Bay, which operates as a co-op with each unit owner holding a stake in a master lease. Many of the unit owners are seniors on fixed incomes who may struggle to pay for special assessments and increased maintenance fees.

The owners association recently retained an engineering firm, Plaza & Associates, to conduct a preliminary inspection of the building’s balconies. And the association bought new property insurance, according to its president, Irene Lopez, who said the cost was more than $350,000, triple what it was before.

But the landlord and the association still aren’t entirely on the same page. They disagree, for example, about the total value of the property and how much insurance coverage is required.

“He’s never gonna be satisfied,” Lopez said in an interview last week.

Lopez could not immediately be reached for comment Monday.

READ MORE: A Miami Beach landlord is threatening to evict everyone from this 102-unit building

The case has drawn the attention of some local elected officials, including Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who visited the building last month and has pointed the association to county programs aimed at helping condo owners cover the cost of special assessments.

At the court hearing last week, several unit owners told the judge they were struggling to come to terms with the situation.

“What is happening is incredible. It’s difficult to understand,” said owner Marilyn Usuamintiaga. “The intention is not safety. The intention is to actually take possession of the place and do whatever he wants with it.”

‘Not going away anytime soon’

Shaulson has denied any intent to demolish or redevelop the building, which his company bought from Barry University for $3.2 million in 2019.

But he has argued the individual unit owners are “tenants” under the lease agreement and therefore are each legally responsible for maintaining the building.

The owners association, represented by a team at condo law firm Becker & Poliakoff that includes former Miami Beach City Commissioner Michael Gongora, has countered that the association — which receives maintenance fees from unit owners and pays the landlord $65,000 per year — is the tenant.

Despite those nuances, the dispute reflects broader trends in South Florida and the North Beach neighborhood as residents of aging, relatively affordable coastal buildings are facing pressure from investors and lawmakers to spend more on maintenance and insurance or risk being displaced.

Gardens on the Bay, a former motel known as Garden of Allah until it was converted into residences in 1984, looks like a relic on a road replete with luxury condos.

At last week’s hearing, Silver said she could “only imagine how difficult this is” for residents — but that it probably wouldn’t be resolved quickly even if the eviction lawsuit got dismissed.

“It’s not that this matter is going away anytime soon,” the judge said. “I think it’s probably to the contrary.”