Folly Beach orders Pavilion Watch condos shut for structural repairs
The Post and Courier
By Prentiss Findlay
08 April 2017
Prentiss Findlay—Staff
Folly Beach South Carolina—Structural problems at Pavilion Watch condos
prompted the city to shut down one of its largest buildings until
ongoing repairs are done, officials said.
This structure is unsafe and its occupancy is prohibited
"This structure is unsafe and its occupancy is prohibited by the city
of Folly Beach building official," says a sign posted at the condos on
West Arctic Avenue.
Information on when the 30 condos might be OK to occupy again was not available late last week.
"Once we are apprised, we are going to have to make sure that the
(repair) work was done," said Mayor Tim Goodwin. "So when they finish,
they'll call for an inspection."
At a city hearing in November, an engineer hired by the condo owners
association testified the property was unsafe for occupancy. No
opposing testimony was presented, and the city ordered the property be
vacated until substantial repairs were performed.
Eric Lutz, city building official, decided after hearing the testimony
and reviewing letters from the condo owners' engineering firm the
property was not stable and had "potential and significant life safety
issues" that made it "unsafe and unfit for human habitation until
repairs are completed."
Reached Friday, Lutz referred media questions to the condo's homeowner association and to the city's attorney.
“stack-a-shacks”
Lutz was not the city building inspector when the condos were permitted
in 2000, Goodwin said. During that era, Folly saw a few similar
large-scale projects, which some locals criticized as "stack-a-shacks"
out of character with the island.
Pavilion Watch—a thin, elongated structure with three residential
stories over an open parking area—sits along the second row from the
beach near Center Street.
A spokesman for the Pavilion Watch Owners Association could not be reached for comment.
City attorney Joe Wilson provided a copy of the order requiring that
the condos be repaired to make them safe before they are occupied
again. He said he could not comment more about the situation beyond
what was in the order.
In a September letter to the condo owners, the engineering firm
Rickborn & Associates alleged "numerous structural deficiencies
associated with the original construction of the condominium complex."
They included alleged problems with the framing of the front access
walkways and rear private decks. In addition, the Rickborn &
Associates letter cited "severe deterioration of some portions of the
site installed girder system supporting these two areas of the three
condominium buildings."
The firm again inspected Pavilion Watch condos in October after
Hurricane Matthew at the request of Lutz. Rickborn & Associates
reported finding some worsening of previously observed problems with
structural framing for the front access walkways and rear private decks.
"At this time, it is R&A's opinion that the potential and
significant life safety issues that exist at Pavilion Watch
Condominiums make the structures unsafe to occupy," the firm wrote in
an Oct. 8 letter to Lutz.
The condo owners sued more than a dozen defendants in 2012
The condo owners sued more than a dozen defendants in 2012, alleging
gross negligence in the construction of the condos. The plaintiffs
sought actual damages in an amount to be determined at trial as well as
incidental, special, consequential and punitive damages, according to a
copy of the suit.
In February, Circuit Judge J.C. Nicholson issued an order to restore the suit to the active Circuit Court roster.
top
contents
appendices
previous next