In the wake of Hurricane Milton, developers and contractors in the Tampa Bay area are evaluating damage at project sites, calling insurers and preparing to resume construction work.
Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm with winds of 120 miles per hour on Wednesday night in Siesta Key in Sarasota County, flooding streets and homes, and spawning tornadoes as far away as western Palm Beach County. More than 3 million homes and businesses lost power. At least 12 people are confirmed dead.
The storm came nearly two weeks after Category 4 Hurricane Helene, which hit Florida’s Big Bend. But as Milton took aim at the Gulf Coast and then crossed the state, it plowed through a much more developed and populated region. Early predictions estimated losses of up to $175 billion in the Tampa Bay area due to Milton.
In St. Petersburg, where winds reached over 100 miles per hour, a crane at the construction site of developer John Catsimatidis’ luxury Residences at 400 Central condo tower partially collapsed and slammed into the office building across the street, leaving a hole in its side and bricks scattered. The offices at 490 First Avenue South house the Tampa Bay Times newspaper and other businesses.
“The good news is that the only thing that was hurt was a few bricks. No human beings were hurt,” said Catsimatidis, founder of New York-based Red Apple Group.
The 46-story, 301-unit condo tower will be the tallest building in St. Petersburg at 515 feet. It has three construction cranes reportedly rated to withstand winds of up to 110 mph.
The cranes were “fully secured,” Catsimatidis said, adding that work will resume with the two remaining cranes. “Bottom line is let the insurance companies sort it out. It’s going to be the insurance company for whoever put the crane up there.”
Attorney Michael Coffey, who has worked on construction crane accident cases, said the St. Petersburg collapse likely will prompt investigations by federal, state and local authorities. Among the inquiries will be whether the site should have used cranes made to withstand more than 110 mph winds.
“One of the questions would be who made the call that that level sufficed. Was that an appropriate crane to have been up on one of the largest construction sites in western Florida in the middle of hurricane season?” said Coffey of New York-based Coffey Modica.
Development has boomed in the Tampa Bay region in recent years. In addition to Catsimatidis’ luxury condo tower, South Florida developers such as the Related Group and Mast Capital are active along Florida’s west coast.
Miami-based Related assessed impacts from Milton in the greater Tampa Bay area on Thursday. Related’s founder, billionaire Jorge Pérez, said this summer that he plans to spend upwards of $3 billion on projects in the Tampa area.
“Fortunately, early reports show very limited damage across projects like The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Rome Yards, and West River,” a Related spokesperson said.
Related, led by Pérez and his sons Jon Paul and Nick, broke ground on the second tower at the planned Ritz-Carlton Residences in November. The construction site at 3101 Bayshore Boulevard overlooks Hillsborough Bay.
Rome Yards and West River are both mixed-income housing developments in west Tampa.
Even if damage on project sites is minimal, developers and general contractors have a lot of work to do, said Oscar Seikaly, CEO of Miami-based NSI Insurance Group. Damage at construction sites usually is from water intrusion, which could lead to mold and mildew. Contractors and developers have to document the issue, as well as document that it was fixed and the precautions they will take to avoid the same problem in the future.
“There’s a lot of mitigation that has to be done even if you have a small water claim,” Seikaly said. Otherwise, those water issues could cause bigger problems for buyers of those units down the line.
Also in St. Petersburg, Hurricane Milton tore through Tropicana Field Stadium’s fiberglass roof. The Tampa Bay Rays, a Major League Baseball franchise, previously announced plans to replace Tropicana Field with a new stadium as part of a larger mixed-use development. Tropicana was reportedly built to withstand winds of up to 115 miles per hour.
Though South Florida was largely spared from Milton, parts of the tri-county region suffered tornadoes. Video footage shows damage from a tornado in Avenir, a new master-planned community southeast of Lake Okeechobee, as well as a tornado that touched down in Wellington. Damage was also spotted in south Miami-Dade County and western Broward County.
Just north of South Florida in St. Lucie County, a tornado outbreak killed at least six people in the senior housing community of Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce, according to reports.
Milton came as Florida residential and commercial property owners have been reeling from skyrocketing insurance premiums. The state’s vulnerability to hurricanes and storm surge led some carriers to opt out of providing coverage in Florida, leading to less competition among insurers and ever-increasing premiums.
Seikaly, of NSI, said he does not expect Milton will necessarily further raise builders liability premiums, or those for flood and wind policies at construction sites. But in light of the partial crane collapse, insurance for crane operators could become more challenging in South Florida where only half a dozen insurers are willing to cover the risk. The tri-county region’s dense development makes real estate damage from a crane accident more likely
“It will make insurance companies take a much tougher look when they are asked to quote a crane company,” Seikaly said. “A crane in Brickell, I would have sleepless nights because no matter how the crane moves, it would hit something.”
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