MELBOURNE, Fla – A routine commercial re-roofing job on Talona Drive has left at least three small Brevard County businesses picking through water-damaged inventory, tools and equipment after part of the roof gave way during the project.
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The building at 7350 Talona Drive is home to several tenants, including 321 Home Staging, a home-staging and interior design business owned by Mikayleigh Ryan; Soli Deo Cabinetry & Closets, a custom cabinetry and closet business run by Julio Machado; and East Coast Soffit & Gutters, run by Adam Blair. All three have reported significant property damage tied to the roof work. The building itself is owned by Thierry Isambert, with Timothy Harber of Harber Real Estate serving as the property’s broker.
Ryan and her son Bodhi
Property broker Timothy Harber of Harber Real Estate notified tenants on June 1 that the 16,500-square-foot building would undergo a complete re-roof, including replacement of the metal decking visible from inside the units, beginning on or about June 18. In that notice, Harber warned that removing the old roofing would be messy and that some debris falling into tenant spaces was “unavoidable,” and asked tenants to protect their equipment and personal property before work began.
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A follow-up schedule from the roofing contractor, 321 Roof Experts, sent to Harber on June 17, the day before work began, flagged a poor seven-day weather forecast for the area. It also noted the company would not be liable for interior or water damage to tenant contents, stating that an earlier offer to fully cover belongings inside the units had been declined and that tenants would be responsible for protecting their own property.
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Despite the tarps and precautions described in that plan, the roof over the section housing 321 Home Staging’s storage unit caved in during the project, according to the business’s GoFundMe page, sending large chunks of concrete and metal shrapnel down along with rainwater and destroying nearly all of its staging inventory, including furniture, décor and the tools it uses to prepare homes for sale across the county. Machado, whom Ryan described as her “next-door neighbor” in the building, shared videos showing his tarped woodworking machinery being rained on directly during the tear-off.
Thierry Isambert, the building’s owner, responded to a formal notice of significant property damage at Suite B, the unit where 321 Home Staging stored its inventory, writing that he was “terribly sorry for the major inconvenience” and asking to inspect the space the following day.
“Mikayleigh Ryan is the one who gives the help, not the one who asks for it,” reads the GoFundMe campaign started on Ryan’s behalf by her friend Tracey Kandell. “Today, we’re asking on her behalf.”
A Bigger Need Than It Looks
As of this week, the GoFundMe had raised just over $6,000 of a $10,000 goal from 46 donations, including a $1,000 offline gift from Traci Geach. But in a Facebook post to friends and clients, Ryan said the $10,000 figure was only a starting point (GoFundMe campaigns launch with a low cap that can be raised over time), and that her actual, immediate need is closer to $40,000 just to keep the business moving while she rebuilds.
That money would cover securing a new warehouse (first month’s rent and two months’ security deposit), professional movers, temporary storage, extra U-Haul rentals, and eventually building the new space out with industrial shelving, she wrote. Separately, nearly $400,000 worth of staging inventory now has to be individually photographed, documented and accounted for as part of an insurance claim, a process she expects will take weeks.
Ryan said she isn’t currently able to accept donated furniture from the community, simply because she has nowhere to put it yet, though she’s grateful for the offers. Southern Ranch Construction and Roofing LLC, through Lyndsay King, has volunteered to help with cleanup once the claims process allows it, along with Josh Kinney of Caliber Property Improvements, Nate Cox of Nate’s Dryer Vent Cleaning, Mike Paul of MVP Painting, John Keefer of Keefer’s Junk Removal and Branden Sewell of Seal Pro Painting. HomeStory Staging & Design, a fellow staging company Ryan helped years ago, has offered to lend her furniture while she rebuilds, saying “seeing that kindness come full circle is something I’ll never forget.”
The number of businesses and volunteers eager to help is a testament to the relationships Mikayleigh and 321 Home Staging have built over the years. It’s a reflection of an owner and company known for supporting others, and a community now returning that same kindness.
Ryan, who is raising a young son, Bodhi, also described the physical toll of the last several weeks, saying the stress has caused a flare-up of shingles and significant hair loss. Still, she wrote that she has chosen not to be angry at anyone involved, including her landlord and the roofing company, saying she doesn’t want her son to grow up watching bitterness define her.
“Businesses can be rebuilt, and this one will survive too,” she wrote.
How to Help
Donate: Ryan’s GoFundMe, organized by Tracey Kandell, is accepting donations toward the rebuild at gofundme.com/f/1f6cc122f.
Hire her: Ryan has asked supporters to keep her team working by booking 321 Home Staging and Interior Design for staging projects.
Share: Even those who can’t donate can help by sharing the fundraiser with others in the local real estate and business community.
Editor’s note: This account is drawn from the GoFundMe campaign description, a public Facebook post by Mikayleigh Ryan, and email and text correspondence related to the Talona Drive re-roofing project. The exact date of the roof collapse was not independently confirmed; the timeline above reflects the order of the documents reviewed.
