Five years ago, a massive beachfront condo building near Miami collapsed, marking one of the deadliest structural disasters in the nation’s history. Now, a firm seeking to build new condos at the site is reportedly running into issues selling its units.

Champlain Towers South, a 12-story condo building in Surfside, Florida, collapsed on June 24, 2021, killing 98 people and injuring several others. About a year later, a Dubai-based company acquired the site for its own luxury condo tower, with units starting at $15 million.

But no units have been purchased since the company began the sales process about 18 months ago, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Martin Langesfeld, whose sister and brother-in-law died in the collapse, told the newspaper: “It’s prime real estate, but it came at the cost of 98 lives.”

The firm, Damac Properties, described the upcoming condos as “true mansions in the sky, averaging more than 7,000 square feet and supported by more than 55,000 square feet of unparalleled amenities,” according to a 2025 press release.

Construction on the project paused in February, after the company said it hadn’t obtained the necessary insurance to continue building, The WSJ reports. A Damac spokesperson told The Independent the pause in visible construction activity in February “was directly related to finalizing the project’s insurance program, a standard and necessary step at this stage of a development of this scale and complexity, and one that had to be resolved prior to commencing the next phase.”

“That process has been concluded, and the project remains on track for completion in 2029. Total investment in the construction process so far has been approximately $40 million. This on top of the site acquisition cost. We remain committed to transparency throughout every phase of this project and will continue to adhere to the most stringent building codes and regulatory requirements applicable,” the spokesperson said.

While no units have been sold, the spokesperson said there’s been “substantial interest.” They added: “A number of offers have been made, but the developer remains committed to what is called ‘Tier 1’ pricing. We have chosen to not discount the pricing prior to vertical construction.”

Damac purchased the site in 2022, and the sale helped fund a $1 billion settlement for the victims’ families, many of whom had initially called for the land to be used for a memorial instead.

Some families advocated for the firm to include a memorial on site, but after they couldn’t reach an agreement, local officials committed to building a memorial nearby, which Damac pledged $1.5 million toward, the Miami Herald reported last year. Damac would also be willing to give up seven feet into its property line for the project, the firm’s spokesperson told The WSJ.

When asked about the memorial, a Damac spokesperson confirmed the company’s $1.5 million commitment “toward the infrastructure and framework for a future memorial” and added that the firm has “proactively sought opportunities to work constructively with family stakeholders, the Town, and others involved in the memorial discussions.”

“That effort is reflected in an extensive record of correspondence and outreach. The development agreement itself required coordination between the memorial design and the building’s landscaping — a reflection of how integrated these two efforts were intended to be from the start,” the spokesperson said.

“The developer is not opposed to the memorial — quite the opposite. Our focus has consistently been on finding a path that is workable, achievable, and responsibly executed. We remain open to constructive dialogue with all parties who wish to engage in good faith, and we look forward to seeing a permanent and meaningful tribute established for the 98 lives lost,” they added.

The Champlain Towers South collapse is under investigation by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, an agency within the Commerce Department. In March, investigators submitted an annual report to Congress describing their progress.

“The report outlines how the investigation’s team has completed the majority of its technical work, including the testing of materials beneath the building site; full-scale building replica tests; analysis of data and evidence to update the building collapse timeline; and more,” the agency said in a release.

Investigators are also planning to publish a video update this month.