(CMR) A mother and her children were left homeless after a certificate of occupancy for the building where she purchased a unit was withdrawn by the Department of Planning following allegations of construction fraud. This means all occupants of the complex had to vacate their homes.
A notice posted by the Department said the new building, located off Cherry Tree Dr, is unsafe, and the mother and other occupants who purchased their units last year were asked to vacate the building immediately.
To make matters worse for this mother, who did not wish to be identified, the financial institution with which she has a mortgage still requires payment despite the building being condemned.
“We were all on the street (the) Monday, struggling to find a place to live. This month, I had to find rent plus deposit and mortgage. I emailed Credit Union the same Monday to inform them of this and sent them the letter from the Planning director, and I have yet to hear from them. They still took out my mortgage on the 18,” she explained.
The building is said to have five units, four reportedly occupied by single mothers and one by a couple.
CMR understands that recent checks by the Department revealed the building lacks steel, which was apparently present during the early stages of the construction, suggesting they were removed after checks by the Department.
Investigations have revealed that the developer of the property is Collin Barrett. According to LinkedIn, Barrett is a tour guide or taxi operator at Pride Taxi and Tours. A search of Cayman trade licenses also revealed several businesses listed under his name, including a construction company called CBMS, a contractor and civil engineering company.
The occupants of the building are not happy it took the Department this long to find out the contractor did not use the required steel.
The mother said she struggled to acquire this property, and to now not have a home is a nightmare for her.
“As a Caymanian, I went through a lot to buy this place, used all my savings for the deposit and now I have nothing because anyone can build a home in Cayman. Planning has nothing in place to regulate or enforce this. I have lost everything- in a bad place right now- holding it together for my kids,” the mother stated.
“Me personally, I was dragged through the mud to get a mortgage from credit union. They approved my loan, and I paid my deposit to Century 21 for the property. Then, the credit union came back months later while I was waiting for completion to say that my loan was not fully approved. And I had to complete and submit everything over again. It has been hell,” she added.
The woman, appealing to the Government for assistance, said three weeks after moving into the apartment, she noticed hairline cracks and brought it to the developer's attention. Other owners also pointed out issues to the developer. The developer assured them it was settling cracks and that he would come by and fill them; they had nothing to worry about.
Several persons visiting the families in the building questioned the poor quality of the construction of the building; however, the mother said without knowledge of construction, she did not know the problem was so severe.
After several complaints to the Planning Department, they did additional inspections and also found several shortcomings. However, a CMR source revealed the building inspector checked for steel after realizing another building by the same developer did not have enough steel.
An independent engineer was reportedly hired to investigate, and a report of that investigation was submitted in August. Following a review, a decision was taken that the building was not suitable for occupancy.
“Two separate engineering companies have invasively investigated the building, and it has been found to have major structural issues,” the distraught mother said.
“Planning is not taking no responsibility, and the developer is dumbfounded. The place should not have been approved from the footing, but Planning kept approving it; now they won’t take responsibility for their negligence,” she added.
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