Diamond Lakes, Vero Beach, Florida

April 6 - Last night I received the following email information regarding the April 3rd Emergency Meeting of Diamond Lakes residents. This email came from a homeowner in Diamond Lakes.

"I don't know if you have already been told or not, but the "county officials" at the meeting said that the report that you posted on your website was not accurate. I felt as if the county was just doing damage control and covering their back sides. I can't believe that we don't have a full report yet. Something is just not right here and I think there could be a possible cover-up going on. This is just a gut feeling I have. Maybe the county is afraid of Lennar or even worse....if you catch my drift! We need to get our own sampling and testing done. It can't be that difficult! The county did at least reluctantly admit that they have never seen this many homes in one community with the "slime" problem in the water. It's pretty obvious that Lennar must have cut yet another corner to keep their profit as high as possible. We were told that it could cost upwards of $1000 for each home to treat the water pipes."

Below are the posts regarding Diamond Lakes. I met with Glenn Schuessler, a State represenatative of the Department of Health. He had a lot to say, off the record, and things to say for the record. But the bottom line is this. There is something definitely wrong with the water in Diamond Lakes. After three weeks, they are still not sure what exactly. It all seemed very strange to me, since they admit there is something wrong, but they are not issuing an official health warning . . . even though they are not sure what is wrong.
Glenn was not clear on exactly who authorized the water testing. At one point he told me the County, then the State, then the residents. Without a doubt, he knows what is going on, but he seemed to want to cover his butt, rather than do what is best for the residents. If they know something is wrong, but they don't know what exactly it is . . . then you issue a precautionary warning.
I'm not a water expert, therefore everything posted are comments from others or research on the Internet. Until the State Department of Health decides to do their job, Diamond Lakes residents have no clue whether their water is danerous to their health. Based on the comments from the Diamond Lakes HOA President below, I would not be using the water in Diamond Lakes until someone came out with a clear, concise and written report.
I requested additional information pursuant to the Freedome of Information Act,from Mr. Schuessler, at the Department of Health, yesterday. He emailed me back . . . NO NEW REPORTS. His response was in all caps, indicating Internet language for yelling. I will have my attorneys send a formal written Freedom of Information Act request.

March 30 - We just received a copy of one of the health reports from a Diamond Lakes home direct from the Health Department at Indian River County. Here is a quote from the resident that sent me the email about the reports:

"The water is bad, very bad."

Here are two of the items that showed up on the Health Report:

Pseudomonas spp. including Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Pseudomonas spp. are common environmental organisms. However, they can easily colonise water systems forming thick biofilms which can affect the taste and colour of the water, and indicate a dirty system that requires cleaning. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen which can cause illness. This organism should be absent in food and pharmacutical production, healthcare premises, swimming pools, and other places that have regular human contact.
In chilled water circuits Pseudomonas can cause loss of heat exchange and under deposit corrosion.

Here is a large PDF about drinking water. I’m sure there are more current reports on the Internet, but you will get some idea of what you are dealing with.

http://www.p2pays.org/ref/15/14291.pdf

Here is a link to drinking water issues: http://www.inspect-ny.com/water/watrtest.htm

There are many more things on the Internet.

The advice given to residents three weeks ago was to NOT drink the water, do NOT take baths, only use towels once, only use hot water for washing clothes. Now that reports are in, I would suggest not using your water for any purposes other than watering your lawn.
There will be an Emergency Meeting at 7:00pm on Tuesday evening. One of the key attorneys from the most prestigious law firms in the State of Florida will be there. The media will also be there
Unfortnately, I advised the community to develop a strategic plan a month ago. Nothing has been done to develop a plan. If you are reactive and Lennar is proactive, you will suffer the consequences. In addition to the water issues, Diamond Lakes homes are defective and not build in accordance with the Florida Building Code. We have inspected several homes, and the reports are coming back at 50+ pages. And if that was not enough, we have been told you have common area problems with the roads and sewers and unfinished areas of the subdivision.
Lennar has already set up their circus tent in attempt to get residents to allow them to fix things. Unfortunately, Lennar does not want to fix the big problems, and residents that have waited for Lennar repair people to show up, have been sorely disappointed.

WARNING: Do NOT sign anything Lennar asks you to sign without your attorney reviewing it first. Even if they ask you to sign off on work, do NOT, until you review it with your attorney.

March 29 - I received a phone call from a very upset resident in Diamond Lakes,which is a Lennar Homes community in Vero Beach, Florida. His entire family has been sick, and he now believes it must be the water in their home. They have suffered rashes, unhealed cuts, and host of other things that sound very similar to some of the things I heard three weeks ago from the President of the Diamond Lakes HOA.
The results are in from the water tests, and the results are bad. There will be an Emergency Meeting Tuesday, April 3rd with local and State official present, as well as the media. If you are interested in attending the meeting or interested in the results,please contact me using the form below.
At the last meeting, residents were warned not to drink the water, to take showers, not baths, to only use towels once, and to only use hot water when washing clothes.

March 29 - Email Received from Resident - Lennar flooded my entire house and then rebuilt it. My child has been on medication since we moved in. The AC is all rusted out and my house smells like dead people. Raw sewage also backed up into my home four times. I have to open the clean out outside to let the XXXX drain onto the yard. I wish I would win the lottery to take Lennar to court. I always feel dizzy and sick when I stay in my home for extended periods.
There re many other issues. My wife actually left me for awhile because she could not stand to live here with the smell and mold. I cannot sell my home due to the market. If this is not resolved, I will have to file for bankruptcy. Lennar has truly ruined my life now for years.
They scheduled two appointments and have again NOT showed up. What should I do. I am very sad. I have worked so hard for my “Dream Home” and my credit score. It appears that my life will not take a turn for the worst as I cannot stay in this sewer mold house much longer. At least for my three year old daughter’s sake. It is very sad that large companies can step all over consumer and nobody in power can seem to help.
I want Lennar to take this house back and pay off my mortgage, but we know that will never happen. I now have a constant ringing in my inner ear that no doctor can seem to diagnose. One day I will probably be found dead than you can just add me to your list of Lennar’s war casualties.
Hopeless in Vero Beach.

March 15 -We have not heard anything back from Frank, the HOA President, so we must discount the information regarding the water referenced below. That still leaves the 40+ page inspection reports on the first five homes they have inspected. Unfortunately, we have not received any new information, and the only contact we have had is with two concerned homeowners. One of these homeowners has already contacted an attorney and is filing a DBPR complaint. If you are concerened about your home, feel free to contact me, and I will put you together with these two homeowners and the law firm.

March 3 - With the magnitude of the problems in Diamond Lakes homes and the common areas, not to mention the water issues, we have a very good chance of having all Lennar work stopped in Indian River County until Lennar addresses all issues in Diamond Lakes. I have contacted the Governor, Attorney General and a number of other officials to see what we can do to expedite investigations into Lennar.& At this point we believe we have sufficient documentation to have Lennar's license suspended or revoked in the State of Florida.

March 2 - Don't Drink The Water - Last night I participated an Emergency Meeting to discuss the issues and develop strategy. More than 60 people showed up for the meeting. It was a great meeting with a lot of fed up homeowners that are not going to take it anymore. The most alarming information shared at the meeting were recent tests on the water in the homes. Residents have been complaining of a variety of health problems including rashes, urinary problems, etc. Now we know why. The initial test of the water show a problem. Residents were warned not to drink the water, not to take baths, to wash all clothes in hot water, etc. It seems like the problem is between the street meter and the homes, which is the responsibility of Lennar. As we learn more about this problem, we will update. UPDATE - MARCH 15 - We have not heard anything back from Frank, so we must discount the information regarding the water. That still leaves the 40+ page inspection reports on the first five homes they have inspected.

Inspection Reports - We have received a few of the inspection reports from Diamond Lakes. These are massive reports of 50+ pages littered with defects and blatant violations of the Florida Building Code. Due to the size of the reports, they are difficult to downloand online. If you would like to see just how bad these homes are, we will send you a PDF report via email grunion0@gmail.com You can try to download these reports, but since they are so large, the download takes quite a bit of time:

Inspection Report for 1005 Ruby Ave Vero Beach Fl 32968.pdf

Inspection Report for 5200 Sapphire Ln Vero Beach Fl 32968.pdf

Inspection Report for 1095 Amethyst Ave Vero Beach Fl 32968 02 08 07.pdf

February 24 - After it appeared as though the homeowners have taken Lennar's bait, I have had not choice but to withdraw my assistance for the Diamond Lakes homeonwers. Lennar is very slick in "after the fact" attention to problems. In fact, they ignored Diamond Lakes for months. It was not until I got involved that Lennar started sending out letters, knocking on doors and setting up circus tents for their teams of Customer Service people. Unfortunately, this is exactly what they did at Martins' Crossing. And the end result is Lennar wins. They split eveyrone up, and the group is in dissaray. My advice to any homeowner in Diamond Lakes, is to sell now before things get worse. When homes come back with 50-60 page inspection reports, it doesn't take half a brain to realize you have a disaster in Diamond Lakes, and now that Lennar is in control of the "side show" you will suffer the consequences of a long battle that results in lots of nice cosmetic things, but no attention to the hard cord defects and violations of the building code. Good Luck folks.

February 23 - On Saturday and Sunday (24th and 25th) Lennar is going to be at Diamond Lakes knocking on doors and talking to homeowners. That's exactly what they did at Martins' Crossing. Unfortunately, unless the homeowners stick together, Lennar wins We have advised the HOA President to request that Lennar pay for inspections of all homes in Diamond Lakes, and then address all defects and building code violations. Anything less, is going to effect the value of all homes in Diamond Lakes. The home inspection reports at Diamond Lakes have been coming in at 50+ pages, full of defects and building code violations. If you are a homeowner in Diamond Lakes, you need to take action and make sure Lennar does not succeed in breaking you apart as a group.

February 15 - Emergency Home Owner’s Meeting
There will be an emergency home owner’s meeting on Friday, March 2, 2007, to discuss our unresolved common area and home issues. The meeting will be at 7:00p at Citrus Elementary School.
It should be noted that four of our homeowners have recently had independent home inspections completed. The reports have come back with 50+ pages of defects and Florida Building Code Violations. These homes are all different models in different Phases of construction.
We need to come together and discuss our next course of action! We look forward to your input.
The Board of Directors

UPDATE: We met with a group of Lennar Homes homeowners and members of the Homeowners Association board in the Diamond Lakes development in Vero Beach, FL. The purpose of this meeting was to develop strategy regarding defective homes in the community and issues with the common areas of the community. At the end of the meeting it was decided to begin detailed inspections of homes., as well as retaining an engineering firm to inspect and report on the common areas. With these inspection reports in hand the homeowners will take the following action:

1. Emails and letters to Lennar Homes executives and Board of Directors, with copies to the Governor, Attorney General, Insurance Commissioner, Department of Business and Professional Regulation, State Senators, the media, Wall Street analysts, reporters and public service groups.

2. Attendance at an Indian River County public meeting to voice concerns during the public comment time about the problems with Lennar Homes.

3. Formal complaints filed with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation and Indian River County against Lennar Homes.

4. Homeowner meeting with State Senators regarding defective Lennar Homes

WOW! - The first two home inspection reports in Diamond Lakes came back. Would you believe 57 pages and 54 pages of defects and code violations? Believe it.

And there's more. There are several other reports due next week AND they are retaining an engineering company to report of the common areas. If you need help in your HOA, I will provide you with all of the assistance you need to fight back against Lennar.

Here is an email we received from a Lennar Homes owner in Diamond Lakes. This Lennar Homes owner sent us a 54 page inspection report littered with defects and building code violations:

I just thought maybe you would like to see how Lennar had us live for months. Because they did not follow the approved plans from the county, and undersized our A/C's, they had to come in and replace everything. And created more problems then anyone should have to go through in a new home. I have said from the begining their TLC (total lennar care) should read TOTAL LACK OF CARING!!!!!!!