U.S. SENATOR MARCO RUBIO CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION INTO
OWNER OF STONEYBROOK APARTMENTS IN RIVIERA BEACH
RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. (May 25, 2016) – Following a meeting with City of Riviera Beach Councilwoman Dawn Pardo, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) today called for two federal agencies to launch investigations into Tennessee-based Global Ministries Foundation (GMF). GMF owns the Stoneybrook apartment complex in Riviera Beach, one of several properties in its portfolio that is subject to repeated code violations and reports of deplorable living conditions by residents, most of whom receive federal housing subsidies through Section 8.
"I will not tolerate investors using federal subsidizes to prey on our community's less fortunate,” said Pardo. “No child should play in dirt and glass. Every housing complex should provide a safe environment for its residents, especially when the money is coming from the taxpayers. I commend Senator Rubio on his leadership.”
Senator Rubio is urging the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of the Treasury to launch investigations into GMF. After visiting the nonprofit’s federally-funded Eureka Garden Apartments in Jacksonville, Florida earlier this month and witnessing the deplorable living conditions, Rubio vowed to “bring to bear the full efforts of every agency with jurisdiction over this issue in order to hold GMF accountable.”
“GMF has received millions of dollars in federal funding, raised hundreds of millions in municipal bonds, and claims exceedingly high property values – yet they can’t seem to find the money to maintain a decent standard of living at their facilities,” Rubio wrote in the letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch.
City of Riviera Beach administration and staff will provide full cooperation to any federal investigation.
Stoneybrook Apartments, with a total of 216 units, is one of 60 properties GMF owns around the nation. At least a dozen of these properties are located in Florida. On Thursday, May 26, a Riviera Beach special magistrate will hold a hearing on repeated code violations at Stoneybrook.