{"id":203644,"date":"2026-03-24T09:02:43","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T09:02:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/203644\/"},"modified":"2026-03-24T09:02:43","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T09:02:43","slug":"orange-county-finds-unpermitted-work-at-rialto-apartments-amid-structural-concerns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/203644\/","title":{"rendered":"Orange County finds unpermitted work at Rialto apartments amid structural concerns"},"content":{"rendered":"

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. \u2013 Orange County building inspectors found unpermitted work at a Sand Lake Road apartment complex where tenants were evacuated last week <\/a>over safety concerns about the building\u2019s structure, according to a field investigation report obtained by News 6.<\/p>\n

More than 350 people who live at The Rialto were forced out of their apartments Thursday after a tenant said she called 911 to report loud cracking and popping sounds<\/a> from her unit\u2019s walls and ceiling.<\/p>\n

[RELATED: Orlando apartment complex residents plead for answers, timeline to return<\/a>]<\/p>\n

\u201cThe building\/unit(s) have received structural damage sufficient enough to cause occupancy denied and cannot be occupied until Engineers\/Architects reports have been received and reviewed by Orange County Building Official and all required inspections have been completed,\u201d a field investigation report obtained Monday by News 6 states.<\/p>\n

[WATCH: Woman whose 911 call led to an Orlando apartment building evacuation describes that morning]<\/p>\n

The county is requiring the apartment\u2019s owner, Northland, to obtain a structural damage assessment from a licensed designed professional and to hire a licensed contractor to perform any required repairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe County\u2019s Division of Building Safety has not yet received the required inspection report from the property manager, which is necessary to determine next steps and ensure the safety of residents,\u201d a county spokesperson told News 6. \u201cOnce the engineering report becomes available, the Orange County Division of Building Safety will assess any engineering requirements to verify that all life-safety requirements are in place, in hopes of people being able to return to their homes as soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

While conducting the field investigation, the county inspector found \u201cstucco repairs\u201d to the building\u2019s exterior that had been performed without a required permit, the field investigation report shows.<\/p>\n

The report does not specify where the unpermitted stucco work was found on the building\u2019s outer walls or how recently it may have been completed.<\/p>\n

News 6 asked county officials whether building inspectors believed the unpermitted stucco repair may have concealed evidence of structural damage.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this point, we can\u2019t speculate,\u201d the county spokesperson replied.<\/p>\n

[WATCH: Orange County apartment building evacuated because of \u2018structural instability]<\/p>\n

The inspector also reportedly discovered a wood retaining wall at the apartment\u2019s dog park that had been built without required building permits.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the apartment did not immediately comment on the county\u2019s field inspection report.<\/p>\n

\u201cEngineers worked throughout the weekend and are continuing their investigation on-site today,\u201d a spokesperson for Northland told News 6. \u201cCertain areas of the building are undergoing more detailed evaluation, which may include opening portions of walls, flooring, and ceilings to better understand conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n

[READ the Orange County inspector\u2019s report below]<\/p>\n

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Copyright 2026 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. \u2013 Orange County building inspectors found unpermitted work at a Sand Lake Road apartment complex…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":203645,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[93419,6032,133,2026,1335,139,141,140,92273],"class_list":["post-203644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-apartment-evacuation","tag-dr-phillips","tag-fire-rescue","tag-investigators","tag-orange-county","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-rialto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203644","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=203644"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203644\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/203645"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=203644"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=203644"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=203644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}