Commissioners in Surfside, Florida, have rejected a proposal to trade public land to potential buyer of the condominium collapse site
SURFSIDE, Florida – Commissioners in Surfside, Florida, have rejected a beachfront public offering proposal to the prospective buyer of the condo’s collapse site so that a memorial to the 98 victims can be built.
The decision came after an emotional meeting on Tuesday, as family members of those killed in the collapse of the southern towers of Champlain and city residents filled the commission’s chambers, reported the Miami Herald. They had to set up an overflow room to accommodate people.
After an hour of public comment, commissioners told the families of the victims that they would not consider a proposal to demolish the Surfside community center and build a new one, along with a memorial, at the site of the colf. lapse. They also said they would not put this land exchange in front of voters in a referendum.
“My heart breaks for you, because I know this is what you expected,” said Mayor Charles Burkett, who was the sole supporter of the proposal. “I hope you don’t give up hope.”
Commissioners Salzhauer and Nelly Velasquez had appealed to opponents of the idea to speak.
“This is the time when we come together as a community to defend our community center and all the properties in the city,” Velasquez wrote on social media. Salzhauer wrote separately that the city “will NOT allow this tragedy to be exploited for profit and become the scorn or the precious community center of Surfside and the quality of life of our residents.”
At times, deliberations were interrupted by annoying family members, the newspaper reported. A man shouted, “Let people vote!” One woman pressured Salzhauer about his recent comments and said, “You called us delirious.”
The board agreed to explore ways to build a memorial to the victims, either on a piece of land where part of the tower fell or elsewhere.
There is currently a $ 120 million bid on the table for the Champlain Towers South property. The exchange plan would have allowed the buyer to build a tower on the site of Surfside’s 10-year community center, which features a beachfront pool and water slides and multi-purpose rooms. A new center would be built, along with a memorial, at the site of the disaster.
Miami-Dade Judge Michael Hanzman, who oversees the class action lawsuit for the collapse, had favored the exchange as a way to compensate the victims by selling property while allowing a memorial to be built.
“It shouldn’t be his decision, it should be the residents’ decision, ”said David Rodan, whose brother and three cousins died in the collapse. “They’re scared because they know the residents want to do the right thing. They want to look back at history and see a monument where it should be instead of a building.”
Rodan told the Herald that he and his group will continue to push for a referendum.
“The community wants to see a memorial there and if land exchange is the only option, the community is willing to move its five-block community center,” Rodan said.
However, some residents who oppose the land exchange told the commissioners that they supported a memorial site, but not at the expense of the community center.
“I am in favor of a memorial. I think it is right only for the victims and their families. I’m not in favor of a land swap, ”Surfside resident Paul O’Malley told NBC6.
Raquel Oliveira, whose husband and 5-year-old son died in the collapse, asked commissioners to help families find ways to build a memorial.
“Maybe sharing isn’t the best option or maybe it is,” he said. “What I’m asking is that we have some time to make the right decision.”