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07-10-12 Minutes.pdfCITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MINUTES 6:00 P.M. — July 10, 2012 IN ATTENDANCE: Veda Harless, Chair Juliette Hagist Ian Luthringer Nicholas Dodaro (Arrived at 6:09) Richard Ouellette Benjamin de Luna, Alternate ABSENT: Barbara Weiss (Excused) Dayna Williams, Secretary Alan Jensen, City Attorney Kathy Stiles, Code Enforcement Officer Mike Griffin, Building and Zoning Director Chair Veda Harless called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m., followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. Roll Call Roll call was taken out of sequence and acted on later in the meeting. Item 2 was taken out of sequence and acted on at this time. 2. Administration of Oath to Defendants/Witnesses Chair Veda Harless gave the oath to the defendants and witnesses. 1. Approval of Minutes Motion: Approve minutes of the Special Called Code Enforcement Board meetinJ4 of June 20, 2012. Moved by Luthringer, Seconded by Hagist The motion was approved unanimously. 2. Administration of Oath to Defendants/Witnesses This item was taken out of sequence and acted on earlier in the meeting. Roll call was taken out of sequence and acted on at this time. Secretary Dayna Williams read the roll, finding a quorum was present. 3. Old Business: A. 995 Camelia Street, Patricia J. Pillmore, Case #4012: Atlantic Beach City Code, Section 22 -74(a) Installation of toilet facilities required: connection of facilities to public sewer. Officer Kathy Stiles presented the case. She stated ownership of the property was determined by Duval County Property Appraiser's website and her inspection was prompted by Public Utilities. She stated Donna Kaluzniak notified us, proper notice was achieved in accordance with Florida Statute 162 by Certified Mail and she has not spoken with someone in control of the property. She stated the City has a mandatory Ordinance to connect to the public sewer and this case was deferred after the previous meeting in order for staff to review the mandatory connection requirements. Ms. Stiles stated Donna Kaluzniak is present to answer any questions. Chair Harless asked Ms. Kaluzniak to state her name and her position. The witness stated Donna Kaluzniak, the Utility Director for the City of Atlantic Beach. Ms. Kaluzniak stated there is a second Ordinance that pertains to this case, Ordinance 22 -171. She stated in 2008 the City revised their system development charges, which are basically impact fees. Ms. Kaluzniak stated the sewer impact fee increased from $1,250 to $4,050. She stated the Commission allowed residents to pay those fees in advance of the effective date, which was December 1, 2008, at the lower rate. She added, if they did pay in advance, their connection deadline went fiom one year after the end of the assessment to the date of the end of the assessment, which basically meant they had to connect a year earlier, but they got the lower rate for the impact fees. Ms. Kaluzniak cited Ordinance Section 22 -171 which pertains to this case. She stated we have the receipt in the City system where the fee was paid at $1,250 on October 8, 2008 in advance of the December 1, 2008 deadline. Ms. Kaluzuniak stated this is the reason for the deadline being November 2011 versus November 2012. Chair Harless asked Ms. Kaluzniak who paid the fee and Ms. Kaluzniak stated it was Ms. Pillmore, the owner of the property. Chair Harless reiterated that Ms. Pillmore had paid the fee but had not yet connected. Ms. Kaluzniak confirmed that was correct. Ms. Hagist asked since Ms. Pillmore paid the fee would the $100 a day fine still pass to her since she has not connected. City Attorney Alan Jensen stated the violation being brought before the Board is that she has not connected. Mr. Jensen stated she paid the City fee and she needs to pay a private plumber to connect, which she has not done. Ms. Hagist asked if that means the fine still holds. Mr. Jensen stated we have not imposed a fine yet, it was deferred to this meeting. Ms. Hagist asked if we would still do that and Mr. Jensen said that is the decision being brought to the Board. Board member, Nicholas Dodaro, arrived at the meeting at this time, 6:09 p.m. Mr. Dodaro stated he had been held up in traffic. Chair Harless asked Ms. Hagist if that answered her question, that Ms. Pillmore may still be held in violation even though she has paid the City fee because she has not connected. Mr. Luthringer wanted to clarify for the record. Mr. Luthringer reiterated the City imposed an assessment that had to be paid by every land owner when the City upgraded the sewer systems. Mr. Luthringer stated Ms. Pillmore chose to pay it early, prior to said date, which allowed her to get a reduced fee amount. He stated by paying the reduced fee amount, her deadline to connect was shorter. Mr. Luthringer stated the deadline was November 2011 as opposed to November 2012 because she paid the reduced fee amount. He stated this is the issue the Board was trying to determine at the last meeting; whether Ms. Pillmore still had time to pay these fees and connect, or is she past the deadline. Mr. Luthringer stated since she paid the reduced amount, she fell under the shorter period of time to connect, which she has not done, so we are left with an open violation that she should have connected by November 2011. Motion: The Board finds the property owner in violation and orders that compliance be obtained on or before December 10, 2012 or a fine of $100.00 be imposed for the first day and $100.00 for every day thereafter the violation continues to exist. In addition, any fine shall also include the administrative costs to the City incurred in prosecutine this case. The Property owner is responsible for contacting the City Code Enforcement Officer and obtaining an inspection of compliance. Moved by Luthringer, Seconded by Ouellette Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on July 10, 2012 Page 2 of 5 Mr. de Luna asked Ms. Kaluzniak the Code Section she was citing. Ms. Kaluzniak stated the Ordinance the Commission passed when they changed the fees is under Section 22 -171. Mr. de Luna asked what Section was cited in the notice sent to the owner on Camelia Street. Ms. Stiles stated Section 22 -74. Mr. de Luna asked if it cited Section 22 -171 and Ms. Stiles stated no. Chair Harless asked Ms. Stiles if she had any correspondence with the property owner since our last meeting, Ms. Stiles stated she sent Ms. Pillmore another Notice of Hearing which Ms. Pillmore signed for, but Ms. Pillmore never called or contacted her. Mr. de Luna asked Ms. Kaluzniak if she read Section 22 -171 to amend Section 22 -74. Ms. Kaluzniak stated she was unsure if it would be an amendment. She stated if the owner did not pay in advance they would have to pay the higher fee of $4,050, but they would have an extra year to connect. She stated by giving them a break on the price it encouraged them to connect early. Mr. de Luna stated his main concern is for notice purposes, if the individual reads 22 -74 it would indicate to that person they would not be in violation until November 2012. He asked when they paid this amount was there a notice given to them that this shortened the deadline. Ms. Kaluzniak stated she believed the people who paid early received letters with their deadline of November 2011. Mr. Luthringer stated, even if not, we do have 22 -171 which is a public record just like 22 -74. Mr. Luthringer stated Ms. Pillmore took advantage of the reduced fee, and if she did not know what she was doing, ignorance of the law is not an excuse, so she is still bound to 22 -171 and the reduced period of time to connect. Chair Harless stated because Ms. Pillmore paid early she should have connected by November 2011. Chair Harless stated regardless if we allowed any leniency Ms. Pillmore has to connect by November 2012. Chair Harless stated our motion is being even more generous by giving Ms. Pillmore additional time until December 10, 2012. Mr.Luthringer reiterated that ultimately Ms. Pillmore is getting the longer period of time anyway. Mr. de Luna stated his concern was about due process. Mr. de Luna stated it was difficult for people if they do not have a Section cited to them that they violated. Mr. de Luna stated the notice given to Ms. Pillmore only reads Section 22 -74, it does not read 22 -171. Discussion ensued. Chair Harless asked Mr. Griffin if our letters included a copy of both Sections. Mr. Griffin stated no. Mr. Griffin stated we decided the 22- 74(a) which states that connection is mandatory within a certain time frame when the public sewer is available, and they were in violation. Discussion ensued. Mr. Luthringer stated he felt we should move to a vote. Mr. Ouellette asked for a re -read of the motion and Mr. Luthringer complied. Votes: Aye: - 4 — Ouellette, Luthringer, Harless, Dodaro Nay: - 2 — Hagist, de Luna MOTION CARRIED 4. New Business: A. 1917 Mealy Street, Michael A. Zimmer, ET AL, Case #11212: violation of International Property Maintenance Code, Sec. 302.4 Weeds. Officer Kathy Stiles presented the case. She stated property ownership was determined by Duval County Property Appraiser's website, her inspection was prompted by a routine survey, proper notice was achieved in accordance with Florida Statute 162 by Posting of the Property and she has not spoken with someone in control of the property. She presented photos of the property taken on April 9, 2012 and April 15, 2012 showing the grass was extremely high. Ms. Stiles Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on July 10, 2012 Page 3 of 5 presented another photo taken July 10, 2012 showing the grass was still extremely high and overgrown. Ms. Stiles stated they have moved out of town and she cannot get in touch with them. She stated they signed for the first Notice of Violation, but they did not sign for the Notice of Hearing so she Posted the Property for the Notice of Hearing. Chair Harless asked if they just left the property or if the property was in foreclosure. Ms. Stiles stated she spoke with the neighbors and was told they left several months ago and are living in Tennessee. Ms. Stiles stated the property was not in foreclosure. Ms. Stiles reported staff recommends the Board find the property owner in violation and order that compliance be obtained by cutting the grass and maintaining it on or before August 10, 2012 or a fine of $100.00 be imposed for the first day and $100.00 for every day thereafter the violation continues to exist. In addition the fine shall also include the administrative costs to the City incurred in prosecuting this case. The property owner is responsible for contacting the City Code Enforcement Officer and obtaining an inspection of compliance. Ms. Hagist asked if we had a regulation for a situation like this where people are gone and there is no one to take care of the property. Ms. Hagist asked if the City could cut the grass and charge a fee for maintenance. Mr. Griffin stated the City did do that for a while until the funding ran out. He stated a couple of years ago the City Commission discontinued funding for that program due to the high cost and the difficulty in recouping those costs. Ms. Hagist asked if the grass or property maintenance would just continue to go unattended. Mr. Griffin explained the fine would get to a certain amount and then we would place a lien against the property. He stated it is property abandonment and unfair for the neighbors to have to put up with. Mr. de Luna asked Ms. Stiles to repeat the compliance date she wanted. Ms. Stiles stated August 10, 2012. Motion: The Board finds the property owner in violation and orders that compliance be obtained on or before Aulzust 10, 2012 or a fine of $100.00 be imposed for the first day and $100.00 for every day thereafter the violation continues to exist. In addition, any fine shall also include the administrative costs to the City incurred in prosecuting this case. The property owner is responsible for contacting the City Code Enforcement Officer and obtaining an inspection of compliance. Moved by de Luna, Seconded by Hagist Mr. Ouellette asked if the house is unoccupied or is it a leased property. Ms. Stiles stated there is no one living there and it is not a leased property. Mr. de Luna stated the photo shows what appears to be a new fence on the property. Ms. Stiles stated there was someone living there last year at this time. The motion was approved unanimously. B. 451 Camelia Street, Thomas John O'Connell, Case #38712: violation of Atlantic Beach City Code, Sec. 24- 157(e) Maintenance of Fences; and International Property Maintenance Code, Sec. 304.6 Exterior Walls. Officer Kathy Stiles presented the case. She stated ownership of the property was determined by Duval County Property Appraiser's website, her inspection was prompted by a complaint, proper notice was achieved in accordance with Florida Statute 162 by Posting of the Property and she has not spoken with someone in control of the property. Ms. Stiles presented photos of the property showing the entire front of the house covered with vegetation, even under the eaves. Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on July 10, 2012 Page 4 of 5 She stated the fences are overtaken by vegetation and starting to lean. Ms. Stiles stated she posted the property on the May 22, 2412. She presented photos of the property taken June 15, 2012 and July 10, 2012 in the same condition. Ms. Stiles stated she has never spoken with the property owner but has spoken to the neighbors. She stated no one is living there, but it appears someone Guts the grass. Mr. Luthringer asked if there was any provision to define decorative growth such as vines. Ms. Stiles stated it can cause decay of the building and it is also causing problems for the neighbors. She stated this property is a duplex so the houses are together and there are insects and rodents. Mr. de Luna asked if there were holes throughout the walls. Ms. Stiles stated she could not see, as it is completely covered. Motion: The Board finds the propertV owner in violation and orders that compliance be obtained on or before Auzust 1, 2012 or a fine of $100.00 be imposed for the first clay and $100.00 for every day thereafter the violation continues to exist. In addition, any fine shall also include the administrative costs to the City incurred in prosecuting this ease. The property owner- is responsible for contacting the City Code Enforcement Officer and obtainin g an inspection of compliance. Moved by Dodaro, Seconded by Luthringer The motion was approved unanimously. 4. Miscellaneous business Mr. Griffin announced Kathy Stiles would be leaving us and this is her last Cade Enforcement meeting. He stated she had accepted a position in Palm Beach Gardens and would be leaving in about a week. Mr. Griffin expressed his appreciation for the service she has provided and stated we are sorry to see her go. Chair Harless thanked Ms. Stiles and said she will be greatly missed. All Board members expressed their thanks and wished Ms. Stiles luck on her new venture. 5. Adjournment There being no further discussion, the meeting adjourned at 6;35 p.m. Veda Hairless, Chair Day r L. Williams, Secretary Minutes of the Cede Enforcement 8card on July 10, 2012 Page 5 of 5