Condo owners at La Clara in West Palm Beach were promised a luxurious experience with high-end finishes “smooth and free of imperfections.” But now they’re alleging the finished product was anything but that.
The condo association representing owners at the waterfront tower is suing the developer, an affiliate of Toronto-based Great Gulf, and the design and construction team that built the 25-story, 83-unit building at 200 Arkona Court.
The association is alleging negligent and fraudulent misrepresentation, defective construction, unjust enrichment and other related counts, according to a copy of the complaint, filed by Siegfried Rivera attorneys Nicholas Siegfried and Mitchel Lindheim. It was filed in Palm Beach County Circuit Court this week.
Great Gulf tapped Douglas Elliman to lead sales of the project in 2019. A construction team led by John Moriarty & Associates completed the tower in late 2023, and the developer secured a final certificate of occupancy in March 2024. Edmonton-based Stantec and Siamak Hariri of the Toronto-based firm Hariri Pontarini Architects designed the building.
Great Gulf, John Moriarty & Associates, Stantec and Hariri Pontarini Architects did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The developer drew buyers with “an appealing design” featured in sales materials, but “misrepresented key amenities, features, and common areas that would ultimately be delivered to unit owners,” the complaint states. “What was once a promise of an idyllic living experience turned into a disheartening reality for the unit owners who had paid premium prices for their units.”
When La Clara was completed in 2023 it was the first new construction condo in West Palm Beach since the waterfront Bristol was finished in 2017. Prices ranged from $1.5 million to $6 million for most units, not including penthouses, records show.
Great Gulf’s total sellout was more than $209 million, and attracted buyers like American Express heiress Stephanie Currey Ingram, Marvel Studios executive Louis D’Esposito, and D.C. development scion Jonathan Lerner, whose family owns the Washington Nationals.
Spec developer Todd Glaser and his investment partner, Jim Randall, bought the penthouse for $18.8 million, with a plan to flip it for $28.5 million. The building’s alleged defects stymied their resale efforts, Glaser said.
“The workmanship was terrible,” he said, describing electrical outlets covered in plaster, incorrectly sized wall paneling and a lobby that is “just terrible.”
The condo association alleges that the developer used value engineering, a common practice in development to cut costs, by replacing high-quality drywall, for example, with a lower quality finish. Instead of a luxurious Venetian plaster finish in the hallways, “cheap paint” was used, the complaint alleges.
“The choice to ‘delete’ what was promised is a deceptive act motivated by greed,” the lawsuit states.
The complaint also names a John and Jane Doe who work for the developer who were allegedly involved in the value engineering. The association claims that it has not been able to identify those two people because the developer and architect failed to produce records required by state law.
After the developer turned over control of the association to the buyers, the association hired engineers to inspect the building. The engineers’ reports found a number of defects and deficiencies that didn’t comply with Florida’s building code or did not match plans that were filed and approved, the lawsuit alleges.
The alleged defects allowed for water intrusion, staining on balconies and peeling wallpaper.
Glaser and Randall took their penthouse off the market to fix the construction issues and hired an attorney to negotiate with Great Gulf, with the hope that the developer would cover some of the costs.
“The good news is these idiots are getting ready to build another building,” Glaser said, referring to the waterfront West Palm Beach site Great Gulf bought for $28.5 million last year. The firm plans to build a 32-story luxury condo tower at the 2.5-acre 5400 North Flagler Drive property.
Glaser said La Clara’s reputation is hurting resale value at the building. “The building itself has a black eye in the Palm Beach neighborhood,” he said.
In addition to affiliates of Great Gulf, La Clara’s condo association is suing John Moriarty & Associates, Stantec Architecture, Hariri and Hariri Pontarini Architects, Global Performance Windows, Biscayne Construction Company, Edgewater Construction Group and 10 other defendants.
The association is seeking an unspecified amount of money in damages to repair the alleged defects, cover the cost of additional inspections, maintenance and additional claims.
Such lawsuits are common across South Florida.
In an amended complaint filed in December, the billionaire owner of a penthouse at Arte, a boutique luxury condo building in Surfside, sued the developer and the general contractor over alleged defects, including conditions that allegedly caused water intrusion.
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