Florida condo collapse raises concerns about Chicago buildings
CHICAGO - The death toll is now at 60 as hopes dim about finding any survivors in the Florida condominium collapse. The rescue has officially turned into a recovery effort.
Meanwhile, the collapse is raising concerns about buildings across the US, including some in Chicago.
The City of Chicago’s Building Department is conducting an inspection on a parking garage underneath the building at 111 East Chestnut after concerns about structural issues that are not being addressed.
Given what happened in Florida, residents in Chicago are raising alarms about repairs in their building that have been needed for three years, but have not yet been taken care of.
In 2018, a consulting firm found serious problems with support beams in the eight-floor parking lot under the 111 East Chestnut building, saying the conditions "pose an imminent hazard to the facility users and to the structure itself."
A week ago, the firm wrote a follow-up letter to the parking garage owner's association again warning about the issues, saying it is highly likely they have grown worse.
The people who live at 111 East Chestnut – 444 units – belong to another homeowner's association and are only just now learning about the problem.
"Well it's frightening, are you kidding? Nobody wants the same thing to happen over here that happened in Florida," said condo owner Jean Hutson.
"I think they'd better fix it, fast. And I think it would be a disgrace if they don't, even if nothing happens," said Roseanne Druian.
A spokesperson for the city's Building Department says they have not yet heard back from the inspectors on what structural issues they may have found Thursday.
There has been an emergency meeting scheduled for Friday between the two associations – the one that controls the condo building and the one that controls the parking garage. The people in the condos are hoping to convince the people who control the parking spots to pay $500,000 to get the fixes they need.