WINK Investigates Reporter Olivia Jean
•7/29/2026
FORT MYERS, Fla. (WINK) — A downtown Fort Myers high-rise remains out of compliance with the city's fire safety requirements and owes nearly a half a million dollars in outstanding code enforcement penalties, according to city officials.
WINK Investigates has learned Harbor Grand Apartments, formerly known as the Oasis, owes the City of Fort Myers more than $457,000 in outstanding code enforcement penalties as of July 29.
According to fire inspection code enforcement reports obtained by WINK Investigates in March, the violations involve the building's fire alarm system, fire pump, sprinkler equipment and fire doors.
The city said the fire safety case is currently accruing $250 per day in fines, with no cap, until the property comes into compliance.
The 32-story building was built in 2008. In 2021, Westside Capital Group acquired Harbor Grand for $71 million.
Beyond the fire safety violations, WINK Investigates obtained a City of Fort Myers invoice showing Harbor Grand owes $457,250 in outstanding code enforcement penalties from multiple cases involving the property.
City officials told WINK Investigates the first five code enforcement cases listed on the invoice have been brought into compliance, which include elevator issues, broken tiles, clogged drains and pool deck wall damage, but the fines remain outstanding.
The fire safety case is the only one still out of compliance and continues to accrue $250 per day in fines.
The city also confirmed three additional code enforcement cases are currently in progress and have not yet gone before the Code Enforcement Board. They include:
The city said those cases will continue through the normal code enforcement process and will eventually be presented to the Code Enforcement Board. If they remain out of compliance, fines could also be imposed.
When asked what happens if Harbor Grand continues to remain out of compliance, a city spokesperson city said the fines will continue to accrue until the violations are corrected.
"The City of Fort Myers is not considering foreclosure at this time," a city spokesperson told WINK Investigates.
The city also said protecting residents remains its priority.
"The health, safety, and welfare of citizens residing in the City of Fort Myers is the priority of the city's Code Enforcement team. We actively investigate all complaints and take all resident concerns seriously," the spokesperson said.
Former resident David Charron said he moved into Harbor Grand in 2021 because of the river views but eventually moved out in 2025 after dealing with what he described as ongoing maintenance problems.
"It truly is a nightmare community to live in," Charron said.
Charron said elevator outages became one of his biggest frustrations while living on the 25th floor.
"There were, I'm going to say, 15 to 20 times in the two years that I lived here they were chronically broke," he said, adding that he often had to climb approximately 400 stairs to reach his apartment.
He also described the uncertainty each time he returned home.
"I would go in the morning and I would press the button and I would pray that the light would stay on," Charron said.
Another former couple, Mark and Michelle Gemma, previously told WINK Investigates in March they also decided to leave Harbor Grand after years of ongoing issues.
"I felt very unsafe," Michelle Gemma said.
A representative for Harbor Grand told the Code Enforcement Board in March they were aware of the violations and were working to correct them, including repairs to the building's fire protection system and maintaining a 24-hour fire watch. At the time, the representative said the issues were close to being resolved. More than four months later, city officials say the fire safety case remains out of compliance.
WINK Investigates reached out to both Harbor Grand's property management, Casenta, and the building's owners, Westside Capital Group via email multiple times, asking why the property remains out of compliance, what is being done to address both the fire safety violations, whether residents should be concerned, and when the property is expected to meet city requirements.
As of publication, neither had responded.
