● Miami-Dade halts construction inspections,
After most of its permitting staff went into self-isolation because of multiple coronavirus cases within their ranks, MiamiDade is suspending construction inspections and telling builders to hire their own engineers to review work for safety and code compliance.
The measure, outlined in an emergency order from Mayor Carlos Gimenez, means the idling of the county arm responsible for inspecting construction sites outside of city limits and areas in municipalities governed by Miami-Dade inspections, such as for county buildings and land. The order does not apply to city inspection units. The order dated March 28 includes new forms and instructions requiring builders to hire independent architects or engineers to inspect their work. The rules specify the engineer may not have a “financial stake” in the project.
Using emergency powers, Gimenez has spared construction sites from orders that required businesses not deemed “essential,” such as restaurants and bars, to close. Despite warnings of workers not following rules to keep six feet apart, Miami-Dade has allowed construction work to go on throughout the coronavirus crisis.
“They have warned us multiple times,” said Truly Burton, government affairs director for the Builders Association of South Florida, about county authorities.
She said construction management is aware of the rules but the challenge comes in enforcing the restrictions consistently on the worksites. “We’re doing everything we possibly can to avoid getting shut down.”
Some smaller cities are pushing for construction to slow down or even halt during the coronavirus crisis.
Golden Beach has already shut down all construction sites within its small foot
print on the coast.
In Key Biscayne, which has enacted a curfew and ordered most non-residents to stay off the island, Mayor Mike Davey said the village has asked people to voluntarily close construction sites. Davey is warning about the risks of starting a project and then seeing it frozen by stricter rules.
“You don’t want to be in the middle of this and suddenly have a lockdown,” he said.
Greg Chavarria, the city manager in Hallandale Beach in South Broward, said construction has been causing headaches for residents. In one case, he said, workers told residents to briefly evacuate because they were disassembling a crane that posed a possible danger. Chavarria said city officials found a safe place for the residents to stay for two hours while the work was being done.
In another case, he said, work had been scheduled to start Monday on a chiller repair that would have taken out a family’s air conditioner for three days. City officials spoke with the building’s management company, and it agreed to reschedule the work.
Still, Chavarria suggested a local order suspending all construction wasn’t out of the question.
“If we find that it causes further risks to the public, we definitely will pursue all avenues,” he said Sunday.
Last week, Miami-Dade’s system for approving building paperwork became paralyzed when the county told more than 400 employees at the county’s permitting center at 11805 SW 26th St. to self-isolate after multiple employees tested positive for COVID-19. That meant a halt to the in-person processing of permits, and quarantine requirements for field inspectors who work out of the building.
Miami-Dade said a county inspector will still be needed for final occupancy certificates, and that those services would resume once the emergency measures are lifted.
Burton said some inperson inspections by Miami-Dade will continue, including fire inspections and key environmental screening. Building inspections will shift to private screening, including those required for a temporary certificate of occupancy. Otherwise, she said, finished buildings would need to remain vacant while the county can’t field inspectors.
“If you’ve got 200 tenants ready to move into your building in 10 days, you’ve got an inspection,” she said.
Alex Duart, a partner at Stonehenge Construction, a small commercial and residential builder in Miami, said the use of private architects and engineers for government-required inspections isn’t new. For builders willing to pay for expedited approval and who established that system ahead of time with the county, Miami-Dade always allowed private inspections.
“It’s a lot more pricey,” Duart said. But he said he welcomed the county rules to allow private inspectors without prior approval. He said the new rules will let Stonehenge tap engineers and architects who created their plans to come back and approve the work and then await final inspections from the county. “It will buy us time,” he said.