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3-13-12 Minutes CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MINUTES 6:00 P.M. — March 13, 2012 IN ATTENDANCE: Ray Martin, Chairman Veda Harless, Vice Chair Ian Luthringer Kathy Stiles, Code Enforcement Officer Juliette Hagist Mike Griffin, Building Official Richard Ouellette Dayna Williams, Secretary Barbara Weiss Alan Jensen, City Attorney Benjamin de Luna, Alternate ABSENT: Nicholas Dodaro (Excused) Chairman Ray Martin called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m., followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag by all present. Secretary Dayna Williams read the roll, finding a quorum was present. Item 2 was taken out of sequence and acted on at this time. Chairman Martin gave the oath to the defendants and witnesses. Chairman Martin announced that yesterday he submitted his resignation from the Board and Chair to Mayor Mike Borno effective tomorrow morning so he would have the pleasure and fun of one last meeting on the Board and also to offer some comfort to Vice Chair Veda Harless, who will be moving into his place. Chairman Martin stated he had spoken briefly that morning with City Attorney Alan Jensen as to the appropriate procedure for re- electing officers. Mr. Martin explained that it was still up in the air as to the correct process we should follow and then turned the meeting over to Vice Chair Veda Harless. Mr. Martin reiterated to the Board the importance of first being recognized before you speak and when you speak you speak into the microphone, which you have turned on. Vice Chair Veda Harless thanked everyone for their patience and, most importantly, thanked Mr. Martin for doing such a great job for his service to the City of Atlantic Beach. Ms. Harless stated that it had been quite a while since she has facilitated a meeting and she would do her best to stay with protocol as best as possible. 1. Approval of Minutes Motion: Approve minutes of the Code Enforcement Board meeting of March 13, 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. 3. Old Business: A. Sonja Gross request for reduction of fine. 331 Seminole Road, Sonja Gross, Case #63210: violation of International Property Maintenance Code adopted, Chapter 3, Sec. 307.1 Accumulation of rubbish or garbage. Code Enforcement Officer Kathy Stiles stated the Board found Sonja Gross, owner of the property at 331 Seminole Road in violation on July 12, 2011. She presented a picture from November 10, 2011 showing the property still in violation on that date. She then presented a picture from today, March 13, 2012, showing that the violation has been corrected and is now in compliance. Ms. Stiles turned the case over to Building Official Mike Griffin. Mr. Griffin announced there was a representative for the property owner at the meeting. Vice Chair Harless requested that she step forward and state her name. Realtor Margaret Sherrill, introduced herself and thanked the Board for letting her speak on behalf of the property owner, Sonja Gross. Ms. Sherrill stated the property is for sale and she is the current listing agent. She stated it is a short sale and the seller vacated the property four years ago. She explained Ms. Gross went through a bankruptcy proceeding about two years ago and believed at that time she no longer owned this property. Ms. Sherrill stated Ms. Gross did not find out she owned the property until this past December when Bank of America contacted her as the owner of the property and offered to do a cooperative short sale with her. Ms. Sherrill stated she has had offers on the property and has a buyer in place that Bank of America accepted; except that in the Title search she found some discrepancies, one of them being the lien from the City of Atlantic Beach. When she pulled the title search it showed the lien which was recorded for an amount of $2,653.16 on September 11, 2009. She explained she padded the amount to $3,653.16 in the offer she gave to the bank and got an approval from Bank of America. She further explained that coincidentally Ms. Stiles called her that same day to inform her of the rolling violation of $100.00 per day, and the fine to date is over $25,000. Ms. Sherrill said she was hoping to appeal to the Board to see if they could get a reduction of that fine to allow her to close the property with the current buyers. She elaborated on the problems involved if she cannot get it closed by getting some resolution on the lien the lender will allow, explaining the property will go into foreclosure which will leave another vacant property for a year and a half to two years. Ms. Sherrill expressed hope the Board would come to a fixed number that she could give to the bank that they would accept. Vice Chair Harless requested clarification from City Attorney Alan Jensen whether they could modify the fine. Mr. Jensen answered that they can. Ms. Harless asked what the total fine was as of today. Mr. Griffin responded that it was $25,637.65, not including administrative costs, which would add another $1,000. Mr. Martin asked Ms. Sherrill what Bank of America would realize out of this sale. Discussion ensued regarding the financial details and negotiations. Ms. Sherrill summed up that the bank had agreed to take a deficiency on the property and they had allowed another $6000.00 to another lien they had found on the property; therefore, the approximate net amount they would receive is approximately $85,000. Further discussion ensued. Ms. Harless asked Ms. Stiles if she had any recommendations. Ms. Stiles deferred to Mr. Griffin who explained this was an unusual situation where a bank has a real estate agent come in with an offer for the property that will cause the property to be occupied if we reduce the fine. He added, without reduction of the fine, the property may remain unoccupied for quite some time. Ms. Harless asked if our contact had been solely on record with the property owner, or was Bank of America also notified. Ms. Stiles responded that she had notified the property Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on March 13, 2012 Page 2 of 6 owner who did not want to do anything. Ms. Sherrill interjected that she may be able to answer that, as she had pulled the minutes from the last time this property was discussed. Ms. Sherrill believed it was the meeting prior to the January 10, 2012 meeting. She further explained that at the prior meeting the Board discussed whether or not there was a lender who needed to be notified. She stated that Mr. Jensen reported the property was not in foreclosure in the minutes of that meeting and the appropriate course would be to continue to pursue action through the owner. Mr. Luthringer inquired how long it had been in default. Ms. Sherrill stated that Ms. Gross had not made a mortgage payment in four years. Mr. Luthringer noted that the bank was aware of the default. Ms. Sherrill confirmed the bank was aware and had also been out to the property on a monthly basis, as best she could tell, for at least the past year. She claimed that as the bank is not the owner of the property, they cannot do anything to the property. Mr. Luthringer inquired if they had been keeping up property taxes and insurance and Ms. Sherrill indicated they had. She further noted that the title search revealed several different liens against the property. Mr. Luthringer asked if those liens were going to be paid off out of the proceeds. Ms. Sherrill stated the seller gets no proceeds, but she did not elaborate on the other liens receiving proceeds. Ms. Harless re- capped the issues discussed thus far, and questioned if Bank of America was unwilling to pay more than $3,500 of the $25,000 Code Enforcement fine. Ms. Sherrill stated she was willing to take any offers proposed and is looking for a solution to help have a property occupied and back in the condition it needs to be. Mr. Luthringer asked Mr. Jensen if it was correct that a code enforcement lien, unlike a property tax lien, is not superior to a purchase money mortgage. Mr. Jensen said that was correct. Mr. Luthringer stated it is in our best interest not to have this go to foreclosure, as it will wipe out our lien and we will get nothing. Mr. Jensen stated it depends on what the sale of the property was and further stated that he had some basic concerns. Mr. Jensen stated it was important to get a lot more documentation before any action was taken. Mr. Luthringer asked if we could reserve ruling and Mr. Jensen said yes, and further explained that when the mortgage company is checking a property on a monthly basis, they are charging a fee for that. He stated they apparently were checking it for a long time when it was not in compliance and did nothing about it. He said they have the right to protect and preserve their property under the mortgage, but they chose not to do that. Discussion ensued. Ms. Harless added that the fines had stopped as of today because they have come into compliance. Mr. De Luna expressed concern that we should have more documentation to review the entire package before making a decision. Ms. Harless asked Mr. Jensen what documents he recommends we have prior to making any type of motion on this request. Mr. Jensen advised that we have the title search and any back up documents that came with the title search and we should also have the liens that are recorded, the mortgage, the contract for the sale of the property, tax records to show the assessed values and, basically, the entire package necessary to close this transaction. Motion: The Board requests such documents from the prospective purchaser and that we agree to reduce the lien to $15,000 contingent upon those documents accurately reflecting the representations of the Bank and the Parties and, if they do, and Ms. Sherrill provides an approval for that amount to be paid off, then we accept that amount to extinguish the lien and that be the end of it. Then we can actually give Ms. Sherrill a number, let her get approval for the number, provide the documents that support it and then we can wrap it up next time without further delay. Moved by Luthringer, Seconded by Martin Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on March 13, 2012 Page 3 of 6 Mr. Ouellette suggested having the documents delivered and reviewed by Mr. Jensen before making a decision on this since there is no rush because the fines have stopped. Ms. Sherrill explained that she does have a time constraint in dealing with the bank before they start foreclosure proceedings. Ms. Harless asked how quickly she could provide the documents. Discussion ensued and it was decided that she could email the documents, within a day or so, to City Attorney Alan Jensen. Discussion ensued. Ms. Sherrill explained she cannot get the short sale approval letter until the end of the process and asked if a letter sent by email from the Bank stating that they were approving the $15,000 and accepting the terms of our conditions would suffice in lieu of the final short sale letter. Mr. Jensen replied that it would be acceptable. Ms. Harless offered to reiterate the motion. The motion was approved unanimously. 4. New Business: A. 735 Bonita Road, Kimberly Peters, Case #53611: Atlantic Beach City Code, Chapter 24, Sec. 24 -173 (b) 1 & 5 Neighborhood preservation and property maintenance standards- Appropriate maintenance and upkeep. 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 Certified Mail, and she has spoken with someone in control of the property. She reported the driveway and carport are always a mess with open storage and discarded belongings. She presented photos of the property taken on January 18, 2012 showing buckets, carpet, an old door, lumber, and something covered with a tarp. She showed photos taken on February 29, 2012 with more brooms, mops, a screen, and other discarded belongings. She showed a photo taken today, March 13, 2012, stating that it has been cleaned up significantly, though some items remain. She explained that in order to correct the violation, the property owner must clean up and dispose of the remaining items including buckets, storage containers and their contents, paint cans, gas cans, shelf, and an unidentifiable blue piece of machinery, and they must maintain keeping it clean. She reported that staff recommends the Board find the property owner in violation and order that compliance be obtained on or before April 13, 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. The fine shall include all administrative cost to the City. The property owner is responsible for contacting the City Code Enforcement Officer and obtaining an inspection of compliance. Vice Chair Harless recognized a visitor present at the meeting and asked him to state his name and address. He introduced himself as Isabello Arenas who resides at 735 Bonita Road. Mr. Arenas addressed the photos that Ms. Stiles presented. He stated there is a lot of construction debris due to some remodeling he is doing inside the house. Mr. Arenas said that he has complied with any violation found as soon as Ms. Stiles made him aware of it. He further explained the items still outside and said they would be picked up on his garbage day this Thursday. Mr. Arenas asserted that he felt everything else was in compliance and requested some documentation of what is required for maintenance, what is allowed to be stored on the Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on March 13, 2012 Page 4 of 6 property and what is not allowed. Mr. Martin asked if it was a motorcycle under the tarp and, if so, does it operate. Mr. Arenas stated that all the vehicles operate and are registered and insured. Mr. Luthringer asked if the remaining debris, referenced in the staff recommendation, would be removed by April 13, 2012 and Mr. Arenas answered yes, that everything not in compliance is ready for trash pickup on Thursday. Motion: The Board finds the property owner in violation and orders that compliance be obtained as directed in the Staff recommendation on or before April 13, 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 Luthringer, Seconded by Hagist The motion was approved unanimously. Vice Chair Harless asked Ms. Stiles to provide the respondent the information he requested regarding staying in compliance with the Ordinance for debris maintenance. Ms. Stiles explained that all the information is included in the Notice of Violation and Notice of Hearing letters we send and she will provide him with additional copies of the letters. Mr. Arenas was in agreement with that and thanked the Board for letting him speak. B. 945 Plaza Drive, Bobby L. Knight, Case #1312: violation of International Property Maintenance Code adopted, Section 302.8 Motor Vehicles; and Atlantic Beach City Code, Chapter 24, Sec. 24 -173 (b) 1 & 5 Neighborhood preservation and property maintenance standards- Appropriate maintenance and upkeep. Officer Stiles presented the case stating property ownership was determined by Duval County Property Appraiser's website, her inspection was prompted by a routine survey, the proper notice was achieved in accordance with Florida Statute 162 by Certified Mail, and she has spoken with someone in control of the property. She showed photos taken on February 7, 2012 of an unlicensed red Jeep Cherokee, discarded belongings and trash all over the yard and carport. She presented photos taken today, March 13, 2012, showing the unlicensed red Jeep, an old bicycle, trash bags, buckets, tackle box, lumber, tire, coolers, broken chair, tables and other debris. She explained that in order to correct the violation the property owner must clean up the remaining items including gas cans, tables, lumber, old bicycle, bucket, trash, crates, coolers, tackle box, tires and have the Jeep licensed. She reported that staff recommends the Board find the property owner in violation and order that compliance be obtained on or before April 13, 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. The fine shall include all administrative cost to the City. The property owner is responsible for contacting the City Code Enforcement Officer and obtaining an inspection of compliance. Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on March 13, 2012 Page 5 of 6 Vice Chair Harless asked Ms. Stiles if she had spoken with the property owner. Ms. Stiles replied that she had spoken with him a couple of times and expected him to be at the meeting. Ms. Harless asked if he was still in violation as of today and had he assured Ms. Stiles on other occasions that he was going to take care of this. Ms. Stiles stated that he has done a lot and had informed her that it would all be done by Monday, March 12, 2012. Motion: The Board finds the property owner in violation and orders that compliance be obtained as specified in the Staff recommendation on or before April 13, 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 Luthringer, Seconded by De Luna The motion was approved unanimously. 5. Miscellaneous Business None 6. Adjournment There being no further discussion, the meeting adjourned at 6:43 p.m. IL% Wet-- - Veda Harless, Vice Chair DaynaWilliams, Secretary Minutes of the Code Enforcement Board on March 13, 2012 Page 6 of 6