Dreams of townhouse living upended

Water damage, termites and mildew have become facts of life for some at Nature's Watch at Boot Ranch. Repairs are under way.

By ROBERT FARLEY

© St. Petersburg Times, published August 6, 2000

EAST LAKE -- A quick look around Harold Berger's three-story townhouse in Nature's Watch at Boot Ranch suggests luxurious living.

Then Berger pulls back a couple of couches to reveal mildewed carpeting and carpenter ants below several windows.

He peels back wallpaper to show water damage in his walls.

He points out exterior cracks that run the length of his chimney, dark stains on his pink stucco and rotted wood in the fascia below his tile roof.

"It's a very, very sad situation," Berger said.

He's afraid of what workers might find when they open up his walls.

"The real damage is what you don't see," he said.

Berger's problems are not unique in Nature's Watch, a gated community of townhouses that sell for $160,000 to more than $220,000.

Now 7- to 8-years-old, six Nature's Watch buildings that include 28 townhouses could require major repairs, according to the development's property manager. Some condo owners have received letters warning that their balconies may be unsafe, and to use them at their own risk. The homeowners association has hired an architect and lawyer to investigate, and Pinellas County building officials are monitoring that inquiry.

The company that built Nature's Watch, Eagles Reserve Ltd., was voluntarily dissolved in December 1998, according to state corporate records. The company's chairman, Richard A. Geiger of East Lake, did not respond to telephone messages seeking an interview or a letter sent by the Times to his home.

Already workers have begun skinning the exterior of one building to repair extensive water damage.

"It's the prototype of what they feel is going to have to be done," Berger said.

The problems came to light when several residents began to complain over the years that water was getting into the buildings, said Dominick Scannavino of Management & Associates, the property manager of Nature's Watch. Basic repairs, like caulking, were tried but failed, he said.

While attempting to find where the water was coming from, "We found a hellacious situation," Scannavino said.

In November, the homeowners association hired an engineering firm to perform an intensive investigation of the first buildings constructed in Nature's Watch.

"That showed a multitude of sins," Scannavino said.

He said the firm found extensive damage from rotted wood and termites.

Balconies in those six buildings, where they exist, will have to be removed and replaced, Scannavino said. More significantly, he said, repairs may require that workers "skin" the buildings' exteriors, including replacement of the stucco. There also may be a problem with structural support, he said, and some tile roofs might have to be replaced.

"In those first buildings, we're going to have to do some extensive work," Scannavino said.

The architectural firm of Aude, Shand & Williams Inc. in Clearwater has been hired to assess the damage and coordinate repairs, Scannavino said.

In addition, the firm is inspecting the other buildings in Nature's Watch to see if the townhouses -- those on Arabian Lane and on Lago Vista Boulevard -- share some of the same defects, he said. So far, those inspections have not turned up similar problems, he said, but inspections are continuing.

Hans Seelig of 1731 Arabian Lane believes the problems are being overblown.

"I'm not so sure the problems are so serious in all the buildings, maybe just in a few, one or two," Seelig said.

He said a number of test borings were done on his house, and he hasn't heard of any water damage problems there.

"If I were to sell this place tomorrow, I could say with a clear conscience that I don't have any leaks, at least none that I know of," Seelig said.

But Berger estimates he has spent $15,000 repairing his 7-year-old townhouse, and that many more repairs are necessary. A retired commercial real estate developer who built condominiums in Sarasota, Berger does not share Seelig's confidence about selling his own home.

"I don't know how to legally market this," Berger said. "Do I tell someone it could need $10,000 to $80,000 worth of repairs? That's a wide range."

And make no mistake, Berger said, he would like nothing more than to sell the townhouse.

Berger blames the water damage, in part, on poor installation of the windows and the use of oriented strand board instead of concrete under the stucco exterior. Known as OSB, oriented strand board consists of wood strands arranged in cross-oriented layers and bonded with waterproof adhesives to form a solid panel.

"What bothers me is that I don't understand how inspectors let this fall through the cracks," Berger said. "It seems almost immoral."

Jack Tipton, the assistant county building director, noted that OSB is approved for use by county building codes.

Also, overseeing installation of windows is not part of the inspection routine, Tipton said. It is up to the contractor to ensure windows are properly installed, caulked and weather-stripped to meet code.

The two county inspectors who inspected the Nature's Watch buildings have since retired, Tipton said.

Tipton said Art Shand, partner in the architectural firm hired by the homeowners, told him preliminary investigation reveals several possible, existing code violations. Tipton noted, however, "I haven't seen any proof of it."

Tipton said the county is awaiting Shand's final report. Shand could not be reached for comment.

The homeowners association also has hired the Tampa law firm of Bush Ross Gardner Warren and Rudy "to find out who is truly at fault to pick up the tab," Scannavino said.

"There's no question from what we've found there are some people who should be held accountable," he said.

The homeowners association's attorney, Neal Sivyer, declined to comment.

Scannavino said homeowners insurance may cover some repairs. But costs not paid by insurance or recovered through legal action likely will be borne by the homeowners association because it is responsible for the exterior of the buildings, he said. There are a total of 182 units, townhouses and villas in 55 buildings in Nature's Walk.

Association president Douchka Noren did not return two telephone messages. Several other residents declined to discuss the situation.

William Isaacs, who has water damage at his home at 1630 Arabian Lane, suggested some residents may be reluctant to talk because action finally is taking place and they may not want to make waves.

"They're doing something, and that's the positive thing at the moment," Isaacs said. "At long last something positive is finally being done."

The cost of repairs has yet to be determined, Scannavino said.

"It's really a shame this has occurred," he said.

- Staff writer Robert Farley can be reached at (727) 445-4185 or farley@sptimes.com.

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