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Owner of multi‑story beachfront hotel ordered to re‑permit or register as vacant building after 50 violations
Summary
The city documented about 50 violations at a multi‑story hotel owned by SLF VDBS Holdco LLC; the magistrate ordered either full re‑permitting and repairs or vacant‑building compliance with staggered deadlines, fines and administrative fees.
A special magistrate ordered SLF VDBS Holdco LLC — which acquired a multi‑story hotel after bankruptcy proceedings — to either re‑permit and complete extensive repairs or register and maintain the property as a vacant building with enhanced inspections and engineering reports.
City counsel Miss Herstein told the hearing the site has roughly 50 violations, including missing seawalls, undermined concrete slabs, boarded windows, open storage of construction equipment without permits, cracked retaining walls, damaged pool areas and malfunctioning fire suppression elements. Many of the violations predate the current owner’s acquisition, but the city emphasized that ownership carries responsibility for compliance.
Owner representative Thomas Christopher (the senior lender that took title through bankruptcy) and project manager Erica Killam said the ownership group has obtained a DEP permit for concrete repairs, that seawall materials have arrived in Florida and that contractors stand ready to mobilize once city permits are picked up. Killam said some remediation tasks remain to be scheduled and that local management will assist with cleanup and low‑effort items.
Magistrate Steve De La Roche ordered submittal of a Certificate of Compliance Vacant Property (CCVP) and scheduling of interior and exterior inspections before April 16, 2025; correction of a prioritized subset of violations by July 16, 2025; and correction of the remaining violations by March 16, 2026. The magistrate set a $250 per day fine for continued noncompliance and required payment of a $149.90 administrative fee within 30 days.
Miss Herstein described two compliance pathways: (1) re‑permit the unpermitted work and proceed to final inspections, or (2) pursue vacant‑building registration and follow the city’s vacant/abandoned building monitoring program, which includes structural engineering evaluations and annual reporting under the cited municipal code provision. The magistrate emphasized the owner’s responsibility to remedy violations regardless of when they arose.
The order requires the owner to obtain all required permits and final approvals and gives the city authority to return the matter to the magistrate if compliance is not achieved.
