Attn. Sunwing: Fair Warning
Dear Editor,
When the roof blew off the Sonesta Great Bay Hotel a few years ago, the parts and pieces all came and slammed into my house and did 20 or 30 thousand dollars’ worth of damage. I understood that and accepted it. Act of God and all that and, in all honesty, it seemed that they took it seriously because they spent a lot of money and time re-doing the roof in what appeared to be good order.
Now it's happened again with Irma. This time the damage to my property was much worse and, obviously much worse for them as well. The destruction was total and the new owners, Sunwing and (my understanding) the Spadaro Group must be feeling more than a bit chagrined about the timing of the purchase. I sympathize with them for their losses as I do with everyone else still licking their wounds.
Having said that, I can't help but notice, since I live within a 9-iron distance of the property, that absolutely nothing has been done in the last 60 days about the tons of loose man-killing, house-killing debris that still litters the remains of the roof and the surrounding properties. Items that even the mildest of hurricanes will turn into a shrapnel storm that will destroy anything and everything nearby as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow. And that WON'T be an act of God. That will be negligence for which I and every homeowner nearby will hold Sunwing Corporate and the Spadaro Group (if, in fact they are part of this deal as reported) legally liable all the way to The Hague if necessary.
You won't be able to say that "We didn't know" because the evidence is right here to be seen and documented. You won't be able to say that "No one told us" because I have already spoken to your lawyers in Canada and made them aware and certified letters are on the way. This is your opportunity to not be stupid and simply get out in front of this and save yourself a lot of aggravation and grief as well as sparing your new neighbours the same.
It is wishful thinking to assume VROMI [Ministry of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure – Ed.] will do anything since, ironically, their own building blew away as well (who did THAT inspection, I wonder?) so it’s going to be up to you to protect your own interests here. Remember what your lawyers always tell you: "The easiest lawsuits to win are the ones that never get filed." Now is the time to win these.
Steven Johnson
