RIP Century Village founder H. Irwin Levy, who defended elderly residents | Editorial

Palm Beach Post Editorial Board
Updated ·2 min read
Century Village's original developer, H. Irwin Levy, and his son, Mark Levy. The elder Levy died this week.
Century Village's original developer, H. Irwin Levy, and his son, Mark Levy. The elder Levy died this week.

News of the passing this week of H. Irwin Levy at age 97 brought to mind an act of heroism by the Century Village founder several years ago.

Just west of the West Palm Beach city line, the Century Village off Okeechobee Boulevard and Haverhill Road is a massive low-rise complex, with 600 buildings and 6,500 modestly priced condos, housing thousands of senior citizens.

Nancy Salmi was typical of the residents. The cheery 71-year-old had moved there in 2004 from California, to be closer to her son and grandchildren, who lived in Wellington. She purchased her 615-square-foot unit on the ground floor of the Sheffield O building for $35,000, loved it and had no plans to leave.

Century Village founder: I’ll protect owners from forced purchases

However, in March 2015, Salmi got a letter from an investor who had snapped up several units in her building. Under a new law originally meant to help investors speed repair of hurricane-damaged buildings, he planned to leverage his majority ownership to dissolve Sheffield O’s homeowners association and force Salmi and others to sell. The word in the community was that he might turn it into an assisted-living or rehab facility or rentals. He wouldn’t say.

Nancy Salmi
Nancy Salmi

To the rescue came Levy, who’d heard the entire community was in a panic. The elderly residents feared what happened at Sheffield O might topple other buildings like dominoes.

Levy, of West Palm Beach, was well past his salad days, more into the purée days of his late 80s. The former Palm Beacher described his age as “ancient” but still worked with his son Mark, who ran Cenvill Recreation, the company that managed the recreational facilities of the Century Villages in Pembroke Pines, Boca Raton and West Palm. He was up for a good fight.

More: Century Village takeover fight ends, but bigger issue remains

“The letter this fellow wrote was outrageous,” Levy told the Post. “We’re going to take on this man, have a letter written to him, and whether he backs off..., we’ll see what happens but we’ll take on the cost, so these people aren’t penalized for trying to protect their interests.”

The investor backed off and residents breathed a sigh of relief.

Rest in peace, H. Irwin Levy, lawyer, developer, philanthropist, hero.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Editorial: R.I.P., Century Village founder H. Irwin Levy