Beloved monkey sanctuary under attack by their new industrial neighbor

By Staci-lee Sherwood

In the heart of modern day industry sits a sanctuary for monkeys.  Though monkeys are not native to Florida or the US they are ‘naturalized’ in Dania Beach since they have lived here in the wild for over 80 years.  Now one of their neighbors is making things very difficult for the sanctuary to operate.  Not everyone is a good neighbor even when they proclaim to be.  Thanks to the extraordinary vision and foresight of one person and her well trained volunteers, there lies a beckon of hope and safety for injured and sick monkeys that did not exist until a few years ago, The Dania Beach Monkey Sanctuary.

History of the sanctuary & why it’s needed

The Dania Beach Vervet Project started in 2016 by Dr. Missy Williams, PH.D.  What started out as a research project morphed into a much larger vision for the entire community of wild monkeys.  A new idea was born. There was a great need to care for the monkeys living in the wild but unable to get medical care because of their ‘non native’ status.  This was the catalyst for starting the sanctuary.  The Dania Beach Monkey Sanctuary was created to be the permanent home for vervet monkeys after rehab that cannot be released back into the wild and for those monkeys rescued from abusive situations.  The sanctuary is just as much a lifesaver to the monkeys who live wild as those who will forever call it home.  Any monkey that is sick or injured can now get the care they had been denied for decades. 

Perils of urban wildlife

There is a lot of wildlife classified as urban one might not think of.  Here in Florida we have many species from coyotes and fox to birds and owls making their home on college campuses, in people’s backyard and along busy highways.  None of this is wilderness as most of that has been cut down and destroyed to make way for shopping malls, data centers and housing projects.  The small family groups of monkeys that call Dania Beach home fall into this category of urban wildlife.

Dangers lurk all around and most of this comes from human development and interference.  What the open land had been in the 1950’s has been chewed up by an airport, marina, highway and railroad along which are many toxic industries.  Trying to navigate this and survive is beyond what most humans could ever manage but for over 80 years the monkeys have done just that.  They breed but infant mortality is high due to many factors including exposure to toxins released by nearby industries.  Until the sanctuary opened there was nowhere to go for help and no one who could legally help if they were injured or sick.  That all changed when the sanctuary opened. 

Vervet monkeys live in complex social communities and though wild depend on the sanctuary . 

Do good neighbors destroy wetlands and lock you in without notice?

The sanctuary sits on 12 acres of land classified as a conservation easement.  Along with a family group of about 15 monkeys the land supports a variety of wildlife, from birds and squirrels to raccoons.  They somehow know it’s safe for them and often raise their families there.  The land is also home to a variety of vegetation including the federally protected Mangroves.  This species is not only iconic to Florida but legally protected from harm such as cutting, trimming or outright killing them.  They live in wetlands and without water they would die.  As the saying goes water is life.  It’s not just the Mangroves that need the wetlands but all the trees and vegetation. 

Monkeys live in trees, it’s where they sleep, rest and use to lookout for danger.  In a dried up wetlands those important trees would die leaving the monkeys nowhere to go.  It would be akin to someone leaving your house but turning off all the power, water and maintenance until it crumbled from decay.  So when a company, possibly without proper training and permits, dumps dirt, sludge and leaves into the wetlands they suffocate it.  This effectively kills the wetlands by polluting or removing the water which means they are killing the vegetation. Including protected Mangroves.  A fragile ecosystem is not something you ever treat with such total disregard.

According to Florida state law -

1996 Mangrove Trimming & Preservation Act

403.9321 Short title. Sections 403.9321-403.9333, Florida Statutes, may be cited as the "Mangrove Trimming and Preservation Act."

403.9323 Legislative intent. (1) It is the intent of the Legislature to protect and preserve mangrove resources valuable to our environment and economy from unregulated removal, defoliation, and destruction. (2) It is the intent of the Legislature that no trimming or alteration of mangroves may be permitted on uninhabited islands which are publicly owned or on lands set aside for conservation and preservation

https://floridadep.gov/water/submerged-lands-environmental-resources-coordination/documents/mangrove-trimming-and

https://floridadep.gov/sites/default/files/mtpa96_0.pdf

The wetlands before Bridge Industrial ‘cleaned and vacuumed’ the area.  Natural wetlands as nature intended.

After they were done, now filled in and polluted

Here we have Bridge filling in and polluting the wetlands and mangroves

Listen to Dr. Missy Williams explain what happened to the wetlands

For many years the sanctuary has a neighbor on one side, Hertz Rental Cars, which has always been a good neighbor.  They have supported the sanctuary by not making waves or polluting the land behind them.  However, another neighbor has become a problem and for seemingly no reason.  This neighbor is Bridge Industrial.  They build these huge warehouse size building and then lease them out.  At first they seemed ‘neighborly’ and even had some employees volunteer at the sanctuary.  Their website boasts about being good environmental  stewards but actions say otherwise.

The Bridge Industrials’ own website proclaims ‘We are a positive force for environmental stewardship, creating value and resilience through innovative and sustainable practices.’  They also have the LEED Green building certification on display.  How is destroying a wetlands part of their sustainable commitment to the environment or is this a Madison Avenue PR firm write up to make them look good as most corporations pay for this word salad without true intent behind it.  Click here to read their own PR claims https://bridgeindustrial.com/environmental-social-and-governance/

In 2023 Bridge Industrial was sighted for 3 violations by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) under the Clean Water Act (CWA) under the guidelines by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  While they’re not considered major, like a nuclear reactor exploding, they demonstrate a careless disregard for permits, plans and proper operations.  On May 23, 2023 they were sighted for the following:

CWA    WW Storm Water Construction - Failure to Maintain Records

CWA    WW Storm Water Construction - Failure to develop any or adequate    SWPPP/SWMP

CWA    WW Storm Water Construction - Failure to properly operate and maintain BMPs

Click here for report  

https://echo.epa.gov/detailed-facility-report?fid=110071336567

I personally know how lax FDEP and the EPA are with enforcement choosing most times to look the other way or slap the offender with a small fine.  This does NOT negate the severity of pollution regardless of size or toxicity.

As if the pollution wasn’t bad enough while volunteers were working at the sanctuary they were being fenced in, unbeknownst to them.  There was no notice given by phone, email, text, in person or even a note on the sanctuary’s gate.  Imagine going into a closet, leaving the door open, turning around only to find it locked.  Nice right?  It’s hardly the actions of a company that had volunteered there the previous year or claims to be part of the community.  Here is what they claim in their own words on their company website.

According to Bridge Industrials’ own website they claim ‘At Bridge, we leverage our international reach to make a meaningful impact on the communities where we work.’  They proudly list these areas but Florida is glaringly absent. ‘We are invested in local communities both nationally and internationally’ Chicago, Miami, New Jersey/New York, Los Angeles San Francisco, Seattle, United Kingdom.  Click to read their own PR about communities https://bridgeindustrial.com/communities/

Not all neighbors are happy this is just 1 of many reviews on Google saying how unprofessional and unresponsive they are.

Listen to Dr. Missy Williams explain about the gate

The property manager for Bridge Industrial Marlene Alonso stated “I see what you’ve got going here and I love it and I volunteered here before.”  She went to say “I love what you’re doing I love the monkeys I think it’s awesome.”  But went on to add  “I feel we’ve done our part as far as volunteering” then why be an obstacle to something you admire?  If that’s how the property manager really feels, and is speaking on behalf of the company she works for, why not do the right thing and restore water to the protected wetlands and unblock their gate?  It’s simple and according to their website would certainly be what they call good environmental stewards and partners in the community.

I don’t think this photo needs any explanation about intent, do you?

Any business, store, home or sanctuary needs 2 exits. In the event of an emergency and one exit is blocked either by natural disaster or human cause a second exit is needed for safety. By fencing in a pre-existing gate attached to their own fence was petty, to say the least. 

Adding insult to injury is the latest absurdity of turning the sanctuary’s security cameras away from Bridge Industrial property. 

• First, there is the fact that legally everyone has a right to put up their own security cameras.  I have one and most people I know do as well. 

• Second, the sanctuary has an inherit and legal right to guard against intruders of any nature and especially for the safety of their staff, volunteers and animals in their care.

• Third, if Bridge Industrial isn’t doing anything say nefarious or illegal why would they be so worried about cameras catching their actions?  Outside of one’s own home you have zero expectation of privacy.

Are these the true colors of Bridge Industrial despite their rosy claims for public relations?  Taking into consideration the bad reviews of previous neighbors, EPA violations and current actions and one must draw the conclusion the words on their website are just that…. words.

 As my grandmother always said ‘actions speak louder than words’ and they do. 

In summary  -  Chronological Order of Events:

January 2014 – July 2022

• The Dania Beach Vervet Project (DBVP) had permission to access the Park N Fly business lot and surrounding mangroves, owned by Park N Fly.

• Volunteers signed liability waivers.

• Park N Fly was supportive and leased the land to DBVP, providing full access to the mangroves via a gate on their lot.

June 2022

• Bridge Industrial purchased the property for $20,000,000 (per Broward County Appraiser).

• Bridge provided a land agreement formerly included in the Park N Fly lease.

• DBVP was told to access the land through another business lot, likely due to construction beginning on the former Park N Fly site.

September 27, 2024

• Bridge hired a company to “clean the swamp”, impacting the protected conservation mangroves.

• Pollution and construction runoff permanently altered a portion of the mangroves.

Summer 2024

• Construction of the new warehouse on the Bridge lot was completed.

• DBVP offered waivers, but she still refused.

September 2024

• DBVP emailed Francis Roura and Kevin Carrol, Bridge executives, to modify the land agreement for continued access.

• They said they couldn’t formalize it in writing but verbally stated that access was permitted if the new tenants agreed.

• Parking/access was allowed as a “courtesy” while the building was still vacant.

June 2025

• New tenant Rehoboth/According Shipping began leasing half of the warehouse.

• DBVP asked the tenant for permission to park and access the property. The tenant said it was no problem.

• No new fence had been erected by Bridge, nor was DBVP informed that one would be.

June 17, 2025

• Fencing materials appeared on Bridge property near DBVP’s gate.

• DBVP contacted new property manager Marlene Alonso, who said she’d check with the Bridge development team (which now included Brenda Gonzalez).

• Marlene seemed initially receptive and said she’d confirm that a gate would be installed. A gate was provided by DBVP.

June 21, 2025

• DBVP volunteers were knowingly fenced in by Bridge while working inside the sanctuary.

• Bridge installed a fence without a gate, blocking access.

• Marlene cited the original policy (no parking/access through Bridge lot), based on guidance from Brenda Gonzalez and others.

June 26, 2025

• Marlene emailed DBVP stating they support the work, but volunteer access is “dangerous”.

• DBVP replied, reiterating the verbal approvals from executives and offering waivers again.

• Marlene did not respond.

• DBVP informed her about the critical water tank, which relies on Bridge lot access to supply the monkeys with fresh water.

Summary:

• DBVP had a longstanding agreement with Park N Fly (2014–2022).

• Bridge Industrial's acquisition in June 2022 led to unclear and inconsistent permissions.

• Despite verbal assurances from executives, formal access was denied or ignored by property managers.

• DBVP made investments based on good faith but is now fenced off from critical access, jeopardizing the sanctuary's operation.

How you can help the sanctuary

Click here to learn more about the sanctuary

https://vervetproject.org/

Click here to sign & share the petition

https://www.change.org/p/bridge-industrial-threatens-monkey-sanctuary?recruiter=51444891&recruited_by_id=006257f0-a5fe-0130-e395-0022196d7dd0&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink&utm_content=cl_sharecopy_490633121_en-US%3A8

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