On Thursday, Surfside officers hand-delivered letters to property house owners notifying them that every one ocean-front buildings greater than 30 years outdated and taller than three tales ought to rent engineers to start the 40-year constructing recertifications required by legislation — successfully beginning the method 10 years early. Town can also be asking property house owners to rent registered geotechnical engineers to research foundations and subsurface soils.
Mr. Prieto spent 5 years as a constructing inspector at close by Miami Seaside, the place metropolis officers agreed to pay him $80,000 a 12 months — greater than 50 % above the marketed wage — as a result of he held quite a lot of essential licenses, together with one in roofing. Metropolis officers who employed him famous {that a} background verify revealed monetary issues, together with a chapter in 2002, his personnel file exhibits.
There isn’t a indication that these points had been associated to his competence as a constructing inspector, however they’re usually thought of potential pink flags throughout pre-employment background checks.
At one level, Mr. Prieto owned his personal growth firm and was concerned in a number of actual property growth ventures. Court docket data present that whereas employed at Miami Seaside, in 2012, Mr. Prieto filed for chapter once more, this time telling the courtroom he had amassed $1.7 million in debt. He stated he was dropping one of many three properties he owned to foreclosures.
Just a few years into his tenure in Miami Seaside, his bosses complained that he was incessantly late, had missed greater than 20 days of labor one 12 months, and sometimes couldn’t be situated, in keeping with emails in his personnel file. The report exhibits Mr. Prieto stated he did not name in sick on time as a result of he had bother along with his sinuses. His bosses expressed concern that he incessantly didn’t reply his cellphone once they had been making an attempt to succeed in him.
He was suspended after twice calling in sick a number of hours after his shift had already begun.
Surfside employed him in 2013, paying him $110,000 a 12 months to be its chief constructing official.
“I wasn’t made conscious of an issue. Quite the opposite, there have been folks that may inform me how glad they had been with Mr. Prieto,” Charles W. Burkett, the mayor of Surfside, stated, stressing that he joined town after Mr. Prieto was employed. “You may return over the fee conferences, and as I recall, folks had been praising him for his responsiveness and his demeanor and his helpfulness.”
