What began as a gripe over mishandled packages inside a 1960s-era waterfront Miami Beach condo has mushroomed into a federal civil-rights battle over building safety, landlord responsibility and disability protections. Also caught up in the kerfuffle: a Labrador-mix service dog named Ella.
In a Nov. 26 complaint filed in Miami federal court, ex-tenants Julio Rumbaut and his daughter Sarah Rumbaut accuse their former landlords and management at Imperial House of retaliation, constructive eviction and violating federal fair housing and disabilities laws.
Built in 1963, Imperial House rises 15 stories with 127 units at 5255 Collins Avenue. In 2023, Camilo Miguel’s Miami-based Mast Capital sought to buy out all the owners at Imperial House.
The defendants are Guarav Butani and Sumant Mehta, principals of the entity that owns the 14th floor Imperial House unit the Rumbauts leased; Imperial House property manager Genovev Mendoza and her employer FirstService Residential Florida; the condo association; and a contractor that performed work in the unit.
Rumbaut is representing himself and his daughter. Kylie Rae Werk, the attorney representing Mendoza, FirstService and the condo association did not respond to requests for comment. Butani and Mehta also did not respond to requests for comment.
Grocery Delivery Snafu
The trouble started when Julio Rumbaut accused Mendoza of providing false information about a mishandled grocery delivery that caused his frozen food to spoil, according to the lawsuit. Mendoza allegedly “became hostile and defensive,” blaming another employee and labeled him as “difficult.”
When Rumbaut complained to her corporate supervisors, Mendoza allegedly became “unforgiving,” turning an administrative misunderstanding into a pattern of hostility and retaliation, the complaint alleges.
Mendoza also allegedly supported and praised a front-desk employee who “repeatedly interrogated Sarah Rumbaut about her unit number despite months of residency and daily familiarity,” the complaint states.
The discord allegedly intensified amid a separate set of problems related to Miami-Dade County’s 60-year structural recertification of Imperial House — one of many midcentury coastal condominiums undergoing safety upgrades in the wake of the Champlain Towers South collapse in 2021.
Construction Dust Forces Tenants Out
Earlier this year, Butani and Mehta’s entity hired Contracting Specialists South East to perform interior work linked to recertification, the lawsuit states. The landlords pressed Mendoza to speed things along, and she “enthusiastically” urged the contractor to begin demolition and drilling work while the unit was occupied by the Rumbauts, the complaint alleges.
The two-bedroom unit was blanketed in dust and debris, creating unsafe breathing conditions that endangered their health, the Rumbauts allege in their court filings. Medical records attached to the complaint claim Sarah Rumbaut suffered respiratory symptoms tied to the construction. The family ultimately vacated the condo in April, a move that the Rumbauts allege amounted to constructive eviction — a forced departure due to untenable living conditions.
Service Dog Allegations
Julio Rumbaut also accuses Mendoza of engaging in a retaliatory campaign against him, including violating federal housing and disability laws by discriminating against his service dog, Ella. The lawsuit alleges that Mendoza exaggerated minor incidents involving the animal and sowed conflict over accommodation rules.
For instance, Mendoza allegedly forced Julio Rumbaut to use a freight elevator whenever he walked Ella, and attempted to have the canine removed from the property.
Rumbaut alleges these acts formed a separate pattern of discriminatory interference prohibited by federal laws.
“In our case, that meant dealing with interference around a service dog and unsafe construction while my daughter’s health was being impacted,” Julio Rumbaut said. “The bigger issue is how Florida condominium boards, management companies and insurers make sure these situations don’t happen to other residents.”
