In a significant legal move, a property owner has taken action against neighboring businesses for allegedly causing extensive water damage to their premises. On November 12, 2024, III Properties, LLC filed a complaint in the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court in Pinellas County, Florida, against Cutlass Holdings, Inc., Land and Sea Motors, Inc., and Trust No. 1680. The lawsuit accuses these entities of negligence and creating a private nuisance due to construction activities that led to water runoff damaging the plaintiff’s property.

The case centers around the commercial building owned by III Properties at 1180 Ponce De Leon Boulevard in Largo, Florida. According to the complaint, after purchasing this property on September 15, 2020, III Properties undertook extensive renovations until September 2022. However, trouble began when Land and Sea Motors received approval from local authorities to alter adjacent parcels owned by Trust No. 1680 on December 15, 2022. These alterations included removing concrete structures and constructing new buildings with drainage systems.

III Properties alleges that during these construction activities by the defendants—Cutlass Holdings managing the properties and Land and Sea Motors redeveloping them—necessary precautions were not taken to prevent water runoff onto their property. By August 16, 2024, III Properties noticed excessive surface water accumulating both outside and inside their building. A forensic engineer determined that this was due to hydrostatic pressure from improper drainage management on the defendants’ part.