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Kravis Center construction causing outrage for neighbors at The Courtyards

Posted at 11:04 PM, Aug 02, 2018
and last updated 2018-08-03 05:44:17-04

A group of people who live in a building near the Kravis Center in downtown West Palm Beach said construction is causing them serious emotional and physical stress.

“We hear everything. Our lives are being destroyed on a daily basis,” said West Palm Beach resident Beverly Taylor.

Taylor isn’t mincing her words when it comes to the view outside her condo window.

“The deafening earthquake sounding noise that we hear, it’s terrible,” said Taylor.

Taylor owns her condo at The Courtyards just across the street from the Kravis Center in Downtown West Palm Beach. The multimillion-dollar construction project started earlier this summer.

"I'm worried about damage to the foundation,” said Taylor.

She’s not alone in her complaints. One resident who didn’t want to be identified says she is worried about potential future damage to the inside of her place.

“We want an independent seismic geological survey being done doing the measurements on our side that is completely independent and paid for by the Kravis and Weitz Construction company"

The group of residents at The Courtyards said the first few weeks of construction were tolerable. However, in recent days they claim they can’t sleep and fear for their safety when inside.

“We have a few requests and they need to be addressed. We can't live like this, we are incurring emotional damage and we are all concerned about our condominiums if we are suffering damage,” said one Courtyards resident.

The city of West Palm Beach told NewsChannel 5 police and code enforcement have been out to the area to check out any potential damage.

A city spokesperson said in an email, “Our Chief Building Inspector found no code violation and determined the contractor was in compliance.”

The Kravis Center provided the following statement about the construction: 

“While our project is not in violation of any ordinances we and the Weitz company are aware of the neighbors' concerns and the Weitz company, consummate professionals, have made some accommodations to address their concerns,” said Kravis Center CEO Judith Mitchell in a written statement.

According to the Kravis Center website the project is expected to be complete by the summer of 2020.