Miami Accuses Brickell Condominium of Operating as an 'Illegal Hotel'

This week, the City of Miami issued a violation notice against The Club at Brickell Bay, a 43-story condominium located on Brickell Bay Drive, alleging that it is functioning as a hotel without the necessary permits, according to reports from CBS News Miami.

City officials discovered that over 300 units in the building were being advertised on vacation rental platforms, despite the property's certificate of use only permitting 30 units for such purpose.

The notice was addressed to Brickell Bay Plaza Inc., the certificate holder, whose registered agent is Jerome Hollo, the building's developer and Vice President of Florida East Coast Realty.

The city has set an October 30 deadline for compliance. Failure to meet this deadline could result in fines of up to $5,000 per day and a hearing before the Code Compliance Board scheduled for December 9.

This notice follows a cease and desist letter sent by the city in August, which was ignored; as of the report's publication, bookings for November were still available online.

Resident Concerns and Legal Challenges

Permanent residents have long complained about the living conditions in what they've dubbed "Animal House." Resident Christina Lardon bluntly stated, "Behind me is an illegal and unlicensed hotel. And I happen to live here."

Lardon also voiced her worries about potentially bearing financial responsibility: "Am I also accountable? For paying their fines, the offenses they committed by not complying with the city's cease and desist order? That isn't fair."

The case is complicated by a web of responsibilities that hinders enforcement.

Hollo argued that his company lacks control over the residential units and that the notice was mistakenly directed at his office building at 1201 Brickell: "Florida East Coast Realty and our related corporation, Brickell Bay Plaza Inc., have no involvement in the occupancy or management of The Club at Brickell Bay's residential units. The Condominium Association is responsible."

Meanwhile, the condominium association's attorney stated that the notice was not intended for their entity either.

Historical Context and Regulatory Challenges

There have been previous attempts to enforce the law: city inspectors issued five citations to individual operators, all of which were dismissed when hosts temporarily removed their listings from platforms.

Since around 2020, approximately 500 out of the building's 643 units—between 78% and 85% of the total—have reportedly been converted into short-term rentals, primarily through Airbnb.

In response, District 2 Commissioner Damián Pardo is advocating for an ordinance to establish a mandatory registry for all short-term rentals in the city, alongside a multidisciplinary task force that would include code enforcement personnel, the city attorney's office, firefighters, and police. "We will do everything legally possible to stop this," he pledged.

The debate carries significant implications for thousands of Miami residents, including a sizable Cuban community renting or owning units in the area, where the median rent in Brickell was approximately $3,986 per month in August 2026.

However, regulation faces a legal hurdle: since 2011, a Florida state law has limited local governments' ability to impose new restrictions on short-term rentals, compelling the city to operate within a narrow legal framework.