A woman battling concerns about mold in her apartment sees big changes from her landlord after a CBS News Miami Investigation.
“My God, it’s better, a whole lot better,” Shadrika Jacques, a tenant at Buena Vista Apartments, said. “If (CBS News Miami) had not come, it wouldn’t have been done. They would have still been putting me on the back burner (and) still telling me we’ll put you on the waiting list.”
Last June, her landlord filed for eviction and accused Jacques of breaking her lease because of bad behavior toward staff.
Jacques blamed them for respiratory problems that she said came from mold in her apartment.
In December, she called CBS News Miami for help.
At the time, county inspection records showed a history of fines against the landlord.
Two months later, the Miami-Dade County Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources sent a statement detailing eight open cases for violations against the owners of Buena Vista Apartments.
“The owners have recently reached out to the County, but the violations remain unresolved. Nine buildings have open cases for failure to obtain the required 70-year building recertifications. The current property owners have not submitted recertification reports for four of the buildings. A pending hearing to address the violations of these buildings is scheduled before the Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources’ (RER) Unsafe Structures Appeal Panel for March 31, 2026.
The five additional cases date back to 2019, when the housing complex was under different ownership, reviewed by RER’s Unsafe Structures Board, and involve older structures. While these buildings violate Miami-Dade County’s Building Code, residents are not under any orders to vacate their homes.
Three separate cases for failing to maintain a building in safe working order—involving cases of roof leaks, water intrusion, and drywall damage in individual units—are currently open and under enforcement. The current owner has paid an accumulated $15,538.43 in fines and penalties since 2024 for these cases, including fees paid to satisfy a lien placed against the property. However, no permits have been pulled to address these issues.
Attorneys representing the owners reached out to RER’s Consumer and Neighborhood Protection Division on February 9 to request a meeting to discuss the next steps.
In cases such as this one, owners are expected to provide a timeframe and plan of action to address multiple violations in these meetings. When owners fail to commit to correct violations, RER has the option to file a civil suit in court to compel compliance. The department will determine the next steps after those discussions take place.
RER remains committed to working with property owners to achieve compliance and assist with the recertification process, making safety a priority while trying to minimize disruptions to residents.”
The apartment’s management replied in a statement to the violations found in the investigation
Joined Management, which runs the complex, responded with a statement.
“Joined Management has moved this tenant to a clean, healthy living space at Buena Vista Apartments to enable thorough environmental testing at her former apartment,” Carmen Roman, Regional Manager for Joined Management. “When the results are available, an appropriate remediation plan will address any identified concerns.”
“The situation could have been remedied much sooner had the tenant reported the problem to us right away, but she did not. We learned about the situation in late December, and we immediately offered to move her to a new unit. The tenant refused and would not even allow us into her apartment to inspect the situation. It took more than a month to get her to agree to relocate within the property. Joined Management acts immediately on tenant concerns, but tenants must do their part to notify us and allow us to act.”
“Concerning Miami-Dade County violations, we have repeatedly filed proof with the county that any violations have been remedied. To our knowledge, these are mostly open repair permits that the county has not closed. Joined Management has a meeting scheduled with the county on February 26 and hopes to resolve these open permits. We look forward to moving forward in a spirit of cooperation.”
Jacques is optimistic.
“When I came to you and asked you to help me, they addressed my problem,” Jacques told CBS News Miami Friday. “So maybe they’ll fix it.”
