One of the topics at the Annual Board meeting on 9/29/21 was a discussion regarding the structural integrity of the Pilot House. Condominium structural integrity is a topic of great interest, given the recent incident in Florida, where a 12-story condominium in Surfside, Florida collapsed, as a result of apparent structural integrity issues. There is a significant degree of activity that has occurred since this collapse, including attempts to identify the root cause in the failure of the building's structural integrity and the degree to which it could have been averted. It will be some time before the full story unfolds, but it does remind Pilot House Board members of our fiduciary responsibility to maintain a safe and secure environment for all of our residents. It is likely that at some point there may be a federal or state mandate for condominiums to perform a periodic structural integrity evaluation from a qualified company. At this time Virginia is one of only 9 states that have a statutory requirement to perform a Replacement Reserve Study every 5 years. We recently completed this study in January of 2021. This study evaluates the overall state of our building, although it is not a certification of structural integrity. Miller Dodson Associates, a financial consultant company, prepared this study and was complimentary of the overall health of the Pilot House and noted no major concerns related to the building. A copy of the 2021 study is readily available on the Pilot House Website at the following link. https://drive.google.com/file/d/12PpWju0E4hsZIggAOmYLZaaO9eWNakxZ/view?usp=sharing
As we gain more information on the outcome of the Florida event, the board will continue to evaluate information coming forward regarding any potential changes in statutory or federal requirements. We shall also continue to assess any potential for risk relative to structural integrity and will respond accordingly. For now, we want to share a couple pertinent and related articles to keep you abreast of recent reports and events.