The ongoing saga between Miramar residents and the city's water treatment policies has reached a new chapter, following an appellate court's recent decision that allows homeowners to bring forth a class-action lawsuit. According to NBC Miami, the suit addresses complaints that the water supplied by the city from 2016 to 2022 caused damage to residential copper piping.
The case, which had previously been dismissed in parts by a circuit judge, saw new life as the 4th District Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the residents, stating that the claims of negligence could proceed against the city of Miramar, and a negligence and professional-malpractice claim against Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. The consulting firm was tasked with analyzing the water and advising the city. More than 1,000 homeowners are implicated, all receiving water from the West Water Treatment Plant of Miramar, the group represents a significant portion of the city's residential tapestry.
As detailed by Sun Sentinel, the plaintiffs allege that the “city owed them a duty to treat the water so that it would be non-corrosive, and (the) consultant owed them a duty to exercise reasonable care in analyzing the water and advising the city." It is their contention that these duties were not met and as a result, the water they depended upon carried the destructive tinge of negligence.
The decision handed down by Chief Judge Mark Klingensmith along with Judges Martha Warner and Alan Forst cited a legal doctrine affirming that if the city, as alleged, "negligently maintained, controlled or operated the water treatment system," then it may indeed be held liable for plaintiffs’ damage.
