Determine whether Florida's SB 4-D / 553.899 milestone inspection statute applies to a parking garage associated with a condominium or cooperative building

Steps

1. Confirm the property is owned by a condominium association (ch. 718) or cooperative association (ch. 719); the statute does not apply to non-condo/co-op ownership structures.
2. Check whether the specific building — including a standalone parking garage structure titled to the association — is three stories or more in height, since the statute's trigger is building height, not use; a parking garage level within a mixed-use residential tower counts toward the inspection of that building, but a detached freestanding garage's own applicability should be confirmed directly with the local building official, since 'building' is not separately defined for garages in the statute text.
3. Identify the applicable trigger date: milestone inspection due by December 31 of the year the building turns 30 years old (based on original certificate of occupancy date), and every 10 years thereafter. Under F.S. 553.899(3)(b), the local enforcement agency (not a fixed statewide distance rule) may determine that local circumstances — including environmental conditions such as proximity to 'salt water' as defined in F.S. 379.101 — require the milestone inspection to be performed instead by December 31 of the year the building turns 25 years old, and every 10 years thereafter; confirm with the local enforcement agency whether it has made such a determination for the specific building rather than assuming a fixed mileage test applies.
4. Confirm the local enforcement agency (county/municipal building department) has sent the required written notice by certified mail before assuming an inspection is due — the statute places the notice obligation on the AHJ.
5. Engage a Florida-licensed architect or engineer to perform the phase one visual milestone inspection within 180 days of receiving the local enforcement agency's notice; escalate to phase two only if substantial structural deterioration is found.
6. Distribute the inspector's summary to unit owners and post it per subsection (9), and check whether the county has adopted a local ordinance under subsection (11) imposing its own repair-commencement deadline (up to 365 days after phase two).