RUN FOR COVER!

SS – ‘Structural issues’ force partial closure of Broward courthouse

“They had discovered a crack on the 21st or 22nd floor, on or near a beam,” said Broward Chief Administrative Judge Jack Tuter. “We’re not sure how serious the issue is, but we’re taking precautions and we’ve been assured that whatever this issue is, it does not go further than the 18th floor”

Many courthouse employees remained unaware of the situation until the courthouse gossip website JAABlog posted about it on Friday afternoon.”

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Official email sent this evening:

And an email apparently sent yesterday, which is now being distributed to courthouse people since JAABLOG broke the news this afternoon:

Lastly, a photo of the aforementioned police/DOD joint training ops:

175 thoughts on “RUN FOR COVER!”

      1. 7

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        Bill Gelin’s self-described,
        award-winning blog
        is merely , quote :
        “the courthouse gossip website JAAblog”

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          And yet, courthouse employees had to rely on this “gossip website” to find out the building they work in is structurally unsound.

        2. 12

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          Looking at it another way: JAAB Site could have saved incalculable lives by being on top of this serious issue.

          As far as I’m concerned, following JAAB is the only way to see thru the otherwise purposefully obscured corruption, nepotism and cronyism that is rank under CJ Jack Tuter and his web of worthless judicial pimps.

          I congratulate JAAB on its years of focusing a spotlight on the grimy machinations of the Broward County Courthouse and the self serving players in its regrettable drama.

          Mr. Gelin is a pearl in a sea of swine.

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            Well said. Jaablaw is the sole soarce of commun and communication in the court house community.

  1. 3

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    Obviously they knew what they were doing when they put the County Clowns on the lower floors of the new building.

  2. 5

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    Um, why would they restrict pedestrian and car access on the street to be careful, but let the public (and employees) work in the building? A Surfside collapse would kill everyone in the building. Where’s Court and Clerk Admin relocated to? Let me guess—–the North Wing?

    1. 2

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      North Wing won’t fit 3 floors full of employees. They will likely work from home.

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            Only very arrogant attorneys think what judges get paid is peanuts. You all really show your asses with those comments, and you only impress each other.

            Yeah we all get it that politicians are lawyers and they make the laws and they designed the system to make lawyers wealthy.

            Most people don’t make that kind of money, and frankly that’s the attitude that makes people think so little of you collectively.

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        The geniuses in the clerks office probably can’t work from home. Their IT department is sub par.

    2. 2

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      Nope, not the North Wing but, you guessed it, the 18th, 19th and 20th floors. But everyone else on the floors below? Continue working, there’s nothing to see here.

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        Gunty was never allowed above the 10th floor anyways… structural stress issues.
        The writing has been on the wall since wasting taxpayer’s money on this temple to hypocrisy and hubris. All the judges are concerned about is getting secured covered parking so it’s easier to sneak out after lunch.
        Can you imagine if we get hit by a mean hurricane head-on ? The place will be left in pieces with Tuter still strapped to his chair.
        The Broward Courthouse is a tragedy in waiting with the clock ticking.

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          Or love, depending on how you want to call it ! Lol
          She never has come clean on the real story.

        2. 0

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          Wow low blow or was that what she was doing
          No it was a sexual assault I promise. Sorry hubby

  3. 1

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    If the Courthouse collapses, maybe Whiney will finally get something deservedly named in his honor?

    1. 0

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      PETER WEINSTEIN REMAINS THE BIGGEST SLUG THE BROWARD COURTHOUSE HAS EVER KNOWN

      THAT IS UNLESS YOU GO BACK TO MORON ROSS AND HIS HENCHMEN JAY SPECHLER AND TOMMY LYNCH

  4. 10

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    For those who didn’t watch the news coverage after Surfside, did anyone ever watch the show “Seconds from Disaster”? They cover multiple structural collapses. The script leading up to the fateful day is always the same. People start noticing cracks in the building. They report them. Officialdom always says it’s nothing serious and the building is safe. Nothing to worry about. Then skip ahead to hundreds dead and buried under the rubble.

      1. 0

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        This guy is one ugly dude. I think that we have found the Forefather of the Neanderthals.

  5. 2

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    Tell them to stop plugging the cracks with Sticky Notes because they’re making it worse

    1. 0

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      Looks like Trevor with his little tool box and duct tape getting ready to fix everything in the courthouse. Good job Trevor Fisher.

    1. 1

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      They gaze out from their lofty perches at the horizon and self-aggrandize on their supposed greatness. But they can’t accept the truth. They’re bureaucrats. Merely ticks on the butt of hard working and creative Americans who add value to society. The cracks in the veneer are a message?

  6. 1

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    The judges can just as easily not work with the courthouse closed as they do with it open.

  7. 6

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    Thank you Bill Gelin! If it wasn’t for you, courthouse management was going to say it’s just another overflowed toilet, while they are all sitting at home of course, and while instructing their lower level management to pretend that they don’t know anything and not say a word, to keep the underlings calm and quiet and working.

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        Joe and Diana are the first and second CEOs (clown executive officers) of Court Admin. Tuter relies on them to keep the rest of us in line. Very sharp and trustworthy people.

    1. 0

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      17th Circuit 5 Point Plan on How To Handle Emergencies Etc.

      1. Scream.
      2. Panic.
      3. Run around the room breaking things that get bumped into.
      4. Curse the Blog.
      5. Make things much worse by bungled messaging etc.

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          Not relevant to the situation. There’s no paper towels in the bathrooms. Does not apply.

      1. 2

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        This thing looks like 200 pounds of manure stuffed into a 5 gallon black plastic garbage bag. Actually the difference is that the manure is actually useful and productive. Unlike the the thing in the picture.

    2. 0

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      Who the hell are Joe and Diana ?
      Talking about Tuter passing the buck. It won’t be quite so easy if it really becomes a problem. They should move Tuter out to the parking lot for all he actually does.

  8. 4

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    As cheap as this building is constructed, it might be wiser to have the entire building inspected to make sure just how many other things are wrong with it. I remember when they were building it. A building made of Lincoln Logs would be better built. Half the time the toilets don’t flush the first time. It’s like everything else they do here. The only thing these idiots can do right is collect their paychecks.

    1. 7

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      Here’s the thing. The old courthouse still needs demoing. It’s asbestos ridden. Why not finally tear it down and tear down the defective new one at the same time. There’s never more than 10-15 Judges working at a time anyway. They can be platooned in the Satellite courtrooms. A suitable new single courthouse can then be built in the cleared space downtown. It will be more cost effective than retrofitting the broken newer building. It will eliminate that g-dforsaken connecting ramp too. For sure.

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        Can the demolition of the older building proceed, now that there’s structural problems in the newer one?

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          I always wondered what the hold up was on leveling the old one. The must’ve known the Tower was a liability.

      2. 2

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        Weinstein and his cronies were flushing things down toilets and staging floods all the time in an attempt to get the new courthouse built over the objections as I recall of Broward Voters ! They finally got it built over objection and now this ?

        Weinstein was the one pushing it hard when he wasn’t downing doughnuts like they were going to stop making them. God knows what else he was able to squeeze out of the deal.

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        This is actually a very good idea. And there’s zoom to accommodate since the satellites don’t have the infrastructure for that kind of foot traffic.

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      I honestly love that tuter is relying on the geniuses behind this epic fuck up to advise him on whether the building is safe.

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    I’ve heard of planned obsolescence for cars and other products. Mattresses used to last a lot longer, but now they make them so they need to be replaced after 8 years. I guess now they make government skyscraper buildings that need to be replaced after just 5 years? The insurance companies are just going to love this one.

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    So the “consultants who designed the courthouse building” are the ones making the determination of whether the building is safe?? And the ones that decided that the “consultants who designed the courthouse building” should be the ones making that determination are lawyers??

    Nobody sees a conflict of interest here?? Are you f-king kidding??

    If the building isn’t safe enough for Tuter’s and D’Amico’s and Forman’s and Diaz’s fat assess, then nobody should be there.

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      Beware! The private industry consultants are highly sophisticated businesspersons whom will run circles around the mediocrity of the individuals populating county government. The fox is indeed now guarding the henhouse! Immediately bring in the Governor’s office or the Supreme Court. Safety and massive amounts of taxpayer dollars are at stake. Repeat! Bring in sophisticated individuals to protect the safety and well being of us all. Imperative!

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          And started building that walkway on two different floors and only realized it when it was too late?

    2. 1

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      True. It’s like saying the building is almost safe. It’s either safe or it’s not.

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    Those people aren’t going to say the building is unsafe until it’s on the ground.

    Somebody independent should be in there evaluating the building.

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      And they’ll all say there’s no way they could have seen it coming, while scratching their heads

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      And they continue to reelect Tuter and build monuments to his greatness. He should’ve been given a no confidence vote after the Scherer fiasco.

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        No wonder he was given the shove-off when he failed to pull his weight when he worked for Scherer and pushed into politics in the greasiest circuit in the State. He’s perfect for this sinkhole.

  12. 4

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    18th floor: not safe to be there! beware! do not enter!

    17th floor: a-ok! keep working! don’t look up, nothing to see there!

  13. 2

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    TUTER’S PATHETIC ATTEMPT TO CONTROL THE NARRATIVE OVER THE SAFETY OF COURTHOUSE EMPLOYEES IS AS TELLING AS THE REST OF HIS LACK OF DEFINABLE QUALITIES OF LEADERSHIP
    NO SURPRISES HERE

  14. 3

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    I’ll bet a lot of palms were amply greased in the building of the new courthouse. Substandard building practices are nothing new in Broward. This should prompt an investigation.

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        If more Judges and the other Politicians were honest about their drug and alcohol use (downers/uppers/pills, pot, wine + spirits) the stupid drug possession laws could be changed.

  15. 0

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    Will management tell the employees about this tomorrow or they’ll all pretend it’s not happening and the staff will have to rely on this blog?

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        The crack has progressed Sir. To the point that it might be part of the crack or your Harse.
        But if I you were you don’t worry we have plenty of room for cracks expanding, just name the judge or ASA or PDs I’m sure they have cracks too.
        Crack it Up Ya All come on several more months no work or Zoom.
        Better than CoVid. That damn virus infected the structure. It cracked it.
        Or was the concrete and steel from China infested with CoVid. Lol.

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      Partly that, and damage from the Steeplchase horsie events the rich Judges hold up there.

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    ITS LIKE EVERYTHING ELSE DEALING WITH THE BROWARD COURTHOUSE
    ULTIMATELY WE CAN THANK TUTER FOR THE RIDE

    1. 1

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      There is no camparison to pic. That absolutely is a disgrace.
      The boys in landing crafts where sitting ducks
      It only belongs in gratitude.

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    Newsflash. If the New courthouse collapses do you seriously think that the North Wing won’t be affected. Get real.

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    JUDGES AND BILL SCHERER’S SHIH TZU FIRST

    WE’LL BE BACK FOR EVERYONE ELSE LATER

    THAT’S A PROMISE

  19. 7

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    How many people remember when the New courthouse opened and we had a rain storm and all of the hallway windows on the 10th floor and other floors leaking like it was an indoor waterfall. Turns out that the windows had been installed backwards and not properly sealed. What does that tell you about the contractors installing the windows. Better yet what does that tell you about the Inspectors that signed off on that job passing it as a good job. How about the contractors putting in industrial lightning in the courtrooms instead of the correct lighting. How about that abortion of a walkway connecting the 3rd floor to the new courthouse. It’s more like a Ski Slope, older people and people with disabilities have a very hard time on that long uneven walkway. What happened to being compliant with the handicapped disabilities laws, I guess if it’s a county building it doesn’t apply. How about the inspectors that signed off on all of these subpar, garbage jobs. Where else were corners cut and inspections signed off. This entire courthouse is a major disaster waiting to happen.

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    Everyone screamed and cried to have the courthouse shut down because of Covid. And the courthouse was shut down for over 18 months because of Covid. Now they had to evacuate and lockdown the 18,19,20 and 21st floors because of possible structural beam damage. But yet the rest of the floors and the rest of the Entire courthouse remains open. And the Chief judge keeps telling everyone that there’s nothing to worry about, that the closed floors will not affect the rest of the floors. So now not only is this guy the chief judge but apparently he’s also a Structural Engineer. Wow, very impressive. Any idiot with half a brain and an ounce of common sense would figure out that if, heaven forbid, one of those top floors were to collapse then so would the rest of the floors below it. It’s called Weight and Gravity, and No, the Chief judge/Structural Engineer won’t be able to stop it. The entire courthouse should be Closed down until it is thoroughly inspected entirely from top to bottom and everything in between. And this needs to be done by someone other than the people that had anything remotely to do with the building of this huge abortion of a building. This building is only 5 years old. I seriously doubt that it would be able to withstand a decent Hurricane.

    1. 1

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      “So now not only is this guy the chief judge but apparently he’s also a Structural Engineer.”

      Don’t worry. The chief judge, county commissioner, or whatever local politico will have some “structural engineer” on the payroll to sign off on their “nothing to worry about” tripe. And after the likely subsequent disaster, they will all say that some guy with “P.E.” after his name told them it was safe, so how were they to know any better?

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      “Any idiot with half a brain and an ounce of common sense would figure out that if, heaven forbid, one of those top floors were to collapse then so would the rest of the floors below it.”

      The giant industrial air conditioning units are at the top of the building. Remember they had to be lifted onto the top by crane? If the top floors buckle, those giant air conditioners weighing dozens of tons will come crashing through and smashing down onto the lower floors along with the weight of the crumbling upper floors. The air conditioning units were the final domino that spelled doom for the Sampoong Department Store.

      https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/may/27/seoul-sampoong-department-store-disaster-history-cities-50-buildings

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    You All can think of Bill Gellin whatever you want or call him whatever you want. But if it wasn’t for Bill Gellin speaking up how many of you would know what’s going on with the structural beam issues in the courthouse. The Powers that Be won’t tell you anything because you are considered nothing more than little peons that don’t need to know anything. So thank Bill Gellin for speaking out.

    1. 4

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      Bill doesn’t know anything more than what’s been reported in the newspapers. An employee tipped him off to the email sent to people who work at the courthouse everyday. That email came Thursday evening and was sent to everyone. The media was also alerted. The blog shouldn’t be where you get your news people.

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        It was in the blog before it was in the news. And both the blog and the news beat out the powers that be, who still haven’t informed all the people that work in the building as to what the hell is going on.
        If it wasn’t for the blog and news, court admin would still be trying to hide it.

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        I get all my courthouse news from this blog. Over the years, I’ve come to believe it’s the only source of information I can trust. It’s always been right on regardless if the narrative pushers wish it so or not.
        Thank you for your diligence and honesty.

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          If you work in the courthouse, that’s all you have, because management doesn’t tell them anything.

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    I have always believed that the County Commissioner’s offices and meeting Chambers should be located within the County Courthouse. They would have 24 hours security, plenty of ample parking when they have public commission meetings and hearings and most importantly it would save some taxpayers dollars by not having a separate building and separate security for the commissioners. Let them work in the beautiful new courthouse that they all wanted and pushed for so hard.

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    Interesting that the floors apparently affected by this so called crack are also the same floors where the water smells like sewage when you use the restrooms. I wonder if its in any way connected to this structural problem ?

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    So the very same guys that did the shoddy and subpar work building the courthouse and the same Inspectors that signed off on the shoddy and subpar work are the ones telling you that there’s nothing to worry about, that there’s no problems that they can see or think of. That everything is good and just keep on working with absolutely no worries. And someone, anyone actually believes them. Hey I’ve got a great 1975 Chevy Vega for sale with only 7,000 original miles and the original tires. Only driven by a little old lady. I’ll give you a great deal on it. Trust me.

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      That wouldn’t be very hard to do. I’ve got a feral barn cat that would definitely be better and a lot more street wise and smarter.

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    Bill Gelin can be an obnoxious pain in the ass most of the time but I will say this about him, at least he’s not afraid to go after the Slackers and the ones trying to keep important information from the mere lowly peons that they want to keep in the dark all of the time. So yes, I do give Bill Gelin credit for being persistent and not being afraid to piss anyone off. I’m glad that he’s bringing to light what’s happening with the courthouse right now and so should everyone that works in the courthouse.

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        Wow, those sound like words of wisdom. I wonder how long it took him to think of that brilliant explanation. And to think that this guy gets payed over $150,000 a year. Taxpayers money well spent. Wouldn’t you agree.

  26. 5

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    Yep, don’t worry, it’s just dust. FAIRY DUST. No problems here. Now get back to work and enjoy this beautiful courthouse that the Broward county Commissioners allow you the privilege of working in. Enjoy.

  27. 4

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    Broward County government allowed this courthouse to be built the way that it was. So when the Broward county public works director says that the cracks on the roof beams are not what they appear to be, that it’s exaggerated by dust and dirt then I would absolutely believe that, he does work for Broward county after all, no problem there. So I would absolutely take his word for it. Wouldn’t you.

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    “The road was already closed this week to accommodate specialized training conducted by the Department of Defense. All training exercises scheduled for tonight have been canceled to minimize vibration and any potential accelerated damage to the structure.”

    But hundreds of people stomping around inside the structure is just fine!

    WTF?!?!

  29. 3

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    What utter disrespect to not tell employees anything and to make them find their information on their own. Shameful

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    Please keep this situation front and center. If it fades from view, they are going to continue hiding what’s happening.

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    If you want to realize and understand the competency of the courthouse builder and the planning and thought process that went towards the building of the courthouse all that a person needs to do is take a look at the walkway from the 3rd floor of the old building leading to the new courthouse. If that atrocity that was designed and built by drunken Crack Heads doesn’t convince people that the courthouse was built very cheap and shoddily then you are either blind or stupid or both. If this walkway that is clearly visible to everyone and passed an Inspectors approval then just think about what they did and what passed inspections that are not visible to the naked eye.

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    The courthouse is a Pig with lipstick on it, a lot of lipstick on the Pig to make it look pretty. But when you take the layers of lipstick off you still end up with a shoddily built Pig. And now the powers that be want to keep convincing everyone that it’s a safe and beautiful Pig. It’s a 5 year old Pig with structural beam issues.

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    So they have shut down four floors until they can figure out what is going on with the Structural Beams and how they can fix the problem. But they have given the all clear for the rest of the courthouse even though the rest of the floors and the rest of the entire courthouse has not been checked out to see if there’s any structural beam issues or any other issues anywhere else in the courthouse. But they said that everything is good, not to worry, keep on working as if nothing happened. Check out today’s Sun Sentinel.

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    There’s a difference why the courthouse was closed down for Covid and not being closed down because of the possible Structural Beam issues that have caused floors to be shut down. There’s a very big difference why the courthouse was closed for Covid and not now. The difference is that for Covid the shut down had nothing, absolutely nothing to do with the building or the construction of the building. The shut down had to do with covid, only with covid. Now the Broward county leaders won’t shut down the courthouse even though it possibly has structural issues because that would be bringing to light, to everyones attention that the Taj Mahal that they bragged about and for which they keep patting themselves on the back for is actually a 5 year old building that could possibly have serious structural issues. Closing the courthouse down would be a black eye and an embarrassment to the Broward county commissioners and others that pushed for a courthouse that was all about looking pretty and having expensive Abstract artworks but not a damn thing about quality construction or actual functionality. It was all about making it pretty. It was built with Popsicle sticks and Balsa Wood, but hey, It’s Pretty and that’s all that mattered. And now that’s why they can’t close it down because they would be admitting to the taxpayers what a colossal abortion they wasted the taxpayers money on. All anyone has to do is take a look at the 3rd floor walkway to realize what kind of construction and inspection process went into the construction of the courthouse. And the Broward county commissioners continue to keep the courthouse open rolling the dice in regards to the safety of the employees and the general public that enters the courthouse. Funny how none of the Broward county leaders that decide whether or not to close the courthouse have offices or actually work in the courthouse. Think about that.

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    I’m sure that there’s many people that work in the courthouse that are concerned and worried about what’s going in with the courthouse and what they are being told and not told. Some people are saying that if these people are worried about the safety of the courthouse then they should speak up and make their concerns be known to the media otherwise they should shut up and keep working. It’s not that simple. I’m sure that if these employees started making their concerns known to the media or anyone else that would actually listen that they would face serious consequences and repercussions as far as their jobs go. Anyone that actually works in the courthouse knows that this is a very big concern about speaking out and trying to get straight and truthful answers.

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      I had a courthouse employee tell me that the reason that the County leaders won’t tell the courthouse employees the truth about what’s going on with the Structural Beams issues is because they don’t want to cause a panic in the courthouse. My response to her was the following. Wouldn’t it be better to close the courthouse down and conduct a thorough inspection process of the entire courthouse floor by floor and be absolutely sure that there are No structural issues anywhere in the building including the floors that have been shut down. And then when the courthouse hopefully passes the thorough inspection make it public to EVERYONE so that their concerns and fears are dispelled. Instead the County and the Chief Judge keep telling everyone that everything is ok, not to worry and are very vague about giving out any real straightforward and truthful information. The employees have to rely on what the hear on the media and thru other employees. Broward County Commissioner’s would rather roll the dice with the safety of the employees and general public that are in the courthouse instead of doing the right thing by closing it down for a complete inspection. The Broward county commissioners don’t want to be embarrassed by the fact that a building that they touted as being such a great building and that they patted themselves on the back every chance they got for pushing it’s construction through and is only 5 years old may possibly have structural beam issues. They don’t want to face that embarrassment.

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    The Broward County Commissioner’s and Everyone and anyone else that had anything to do with the building of the courthouse would rather Save Face and not be embarrassed than actually doing the right thing for the people in the courthouse, employees and the general public. It’s more important for them to downplay and not be honest and straightforward. Broward County leadership at it’s finest.

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      Yes. Because it PROBABLY won’t fall.
      They don’t care, they don’t work in the building.

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        The county Commissioners should be the very first one’s that should have their offices located INSIDE THE COURTHOUSE and be made to put in 8 hours a day 5 days a week working INSIDE THE COURTHOUSE SINCE EVERYTHING IS OK.

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    Maybe if the Broward County Commissioner’s and the Powers that Be that run the courthouse were actually truthful, straightforward and honest with the employees instead of being Vague and downplaying everything just so they can save face. Maybe then the employees would have some respect, confidence and trust the people that they work for. But instead the Broward County Commissioner’s and the people that run the courthouse would rather continue to be Vague and evasive about actually doing the right thing and being honest.

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    Anyone see any upper management in the building today or have they all been safely relocated?

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    The first thing that the Broward County Commissioner’s and the Big shots at the courthouse will say if something happens at the courthouse will be… “Why didn’t the employees say anything, why didn’t they say that something was wrong with the courthouse. We would have done something about it to help them. If they would have just said something. We can’t do anything if no one tells us there’s a problem ” in the meantime if the employees do say something they will suffer the consequences.

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    Wow this is one ugly dude. I believe that we have found the Forefather of the Neanderthals.

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    In my non-engineer opinion, Pancake collapse is the most likely outcome from this. I’d use my PTO for the next week.

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