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03-18-2008 Regular MeetingCITY OF CLERMONT MINUTES CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MARCH 18, 2008 The regular meeting of the Code Enforcement Board was called to order on Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. Members attending were James Purvis, Chairman, Joe Janusiak, Tim Murry, A. D. Van Demark, James Davern, Alfred Mannella, and Les Booker. Also attending were Betty McMinamen, Code Enforcement Officer, Suzanne O'Shea Code Enforcement Officer, Yvette Brown, City Attorney, Valerie Fuchs, Code Enforcement Board Attorney, and Rae Chidlow, Code Enforcement Clerk. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Code Enforcement Chairman Jim Purvis read the Opening Remarks. Alfred Mannella, James Davern and Jim Purvis were sworn in for new terms of office. The minutes from the Code Enforcement Board Meeting of February 19, 2008 were approved as amended. Chairman Purvis asked for nominees for the electing of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman. It was recommended that James Purvis continue being the Chairman and A.D. Van Demark continue being the Vice-Chairman. Mr. Purvis and Mr. Van Demark both stated they would like to see someone else step forward to take the position, but they both accepted to continue with the positions. The Board was unanimous in agreement of the nominations. Code Enforcement Officer's Betty McMinamen and Suzanne O'Shea, along with any of the public whom may testify, were sworn in. Jim Purvis gave the floor to Code Enforcement Staff and Attorney NEW BUSINESS CASE N0.08-388 Gale T. Bell 690 Anderson St. Clermont, FL 34711 LOCATION OF VIOLATION: 690 Anderson St., Clermont, FL 34711 VIOLATION: Ordinance No. 232-C, Chapter 34, Section 34-61 Unlawful Maintenance of Nuisances City Attorney Yvette Brown introduced the case. Code Enforcement Officer Suzanne O'Shea exhibited pictures that are a true and accurate depiction of the condition of the property on the date taken and read the violation summary as follows: You are hereby notified that you are in violation of the referenced section of the City of Clermont Code of Ordinances due to the following: Refuse - outside accumulation of debris, which includes but is not limited to, concrete blocks, boards, plastic buckets, tarps, pipes, lattice falling over on the side of the house, empty plant pots, plus scattered trash and litter throughout the property. Weeds/harborage for CITY OF CLERMONT MINUTES CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MARCH 18, 2008 rats -Property is extremely overgrown with tall grass and weeds and is a harborage for rats and other vermin. Stagnant water/health or life threatening activities -The pool water in the backyard is stagnant and green, which becomes a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Compliance of This Violation will be when the premises have met the following conditions: Refuse -Removal of all debris and garbage from the property. Weeds/harborage for rats- All overgrown vegetation is uniformly trimmed and mowed, including to the street right-of--way, with all clippings removed from property. Stagnant water/health or life threatening activities -The pool should be returned to a condition met with custom and usual pool maintenance that includes an operational filter, clear, clean water, etc. Ms. O'Shea stated she last inspected the property two days ago. She stated a lot of work has been done but it is not in full compliance. She stated that Ms. Bell has gone into the hospital for a procedure and her son in law was here to speak on her behalf. Virgil Dempsey, 677 W. Minneola Ave., stated that the property has been neglected due to health issues. He stated that if the City will give them until the end of the month, they will have everything in compliance. Board member Booker asked what their plans were for the property in regards to having it in full compliance by the end of the month. Mr. Dempsey stated that hopefully it will all be done by the end of the month, but because of the health issues, they do not know from day to day what may happen. Board member Booker stated he has a problem with the uncertainty of it being done. He stated that it is going to have to be done because they are putting the City in a position where they have to listen to the neighbor's complaints. Mr. Dempsey stated he will have it done by the end of the month. Chairman Purvis asked what the long range plan for the property is once it is brought into compliance because obviously Ms. Bell will not be able to do the upkeep on the property herself. Mr. Dempsey stated they have pulled most of the foliage out. He stated they will plant grass so they can just maintain it by mowing which will be done by himself or his sons. Chairman Purvis stated he is concerned that if the property is brought back into compliance by placing grass, doesn't there need to be irrigation in place to keep it in compliance. Ms. Dempsey, 677 W. Minneola Ave., stated that the irrigation will be replaced and sod will then be put into place. 2 CITY OF CLERMONT MINUTES CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MARCH 18, 2008 Chairman Purvis asked if the fine would be retroactive to February 13tH if the Respondent did not come into compliance. Board member Davern stated the fine would move forward from the 15tH of April. Board member Murry stressed his concern about not making the fine retroactive. He stated he would like for the fine to at least be retroactive to this date of March 18tH Chairman Purvis asked Board member Davern if he was willing to make an amendment to the motion. Board member Davern stated he would keep the motion as he first stated. James Davern made a motion to fnd the Respondent in violation of the cited City code and be fined at a rate of $50.00 per day for every day in violation startin~pril 1 S 2008 • seconded by Janusiak. The vote was 6-1 in favor of finding the Respondent in violation and in avor of the time period and the amount o the fine with Tim Murr~pposing CASE N0.08-390 Gonzalez Holdings, LLC 135 N. Highway 27 Clermont, FL 34711 LOCATION OF VIOLATION: 135 N. Highway 27, Clermont, FL 34711 VIOLATION: Ordinance No. 320-C, Chapter 102, Section 102-3 (b) (3) Enforcement; Removal of Unlawful Signs City Attorney Yvette Brown introduced the case Code Enforcement Officer Betty McMinamen exhibited pictures that are a true and accurate depiction of the condition of the property on the date taken and read the violation summary as follows: You are hereby notified that you are in violation of the referenced section of the City of Clermont Code of Ordinances due to, but not limited to, allowing the MOTEL 8 signs to remain on your property on the South and West walls of the structure that are advertising a business that has ceased to exist. Compliance of This Violation will be when you have removed all of the unlawful and abandoned signs from the entire property, since no business has existed at this location since the cessation of water and electric services on August 1, 2006. Vilma Gonzalez, 1010 Terrace Blvd. Orlando, stated that when they decided to close the motel, they were going to demolish it and build an office building. She stated that they decided not to build the office building and plan to reopen the motel again. She stated 3 CITY OF CLERMONT MINUTES CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MARCH 18, 2008 that is the reason they did not remove the signs, but she will have it taken care of right away. Chairman Purvis asked Ms. Gonzalez to explain right away. Ms. Gonzalez stated she will have them remove them this. week. James Davern made a motion to fnd the Respondent in violation ofthe cited City code and be fined at a rate of $250.00 per day for everv day in violation startingApril 15 2008 • seconded b_y Janusiak. The vote was unanimous in avor of ending the Respondent in violation and in favor of the time period and the amount of the fine. CASE N0.08-391 Gonzalez Holdings, LLC 135 N. Highway 27 Clermont, FL 34711 LOCATION OF VIOLATION: 135 N. Highway 27, Clermont, FL 34711 VIOLATION: Ordinance No. 281-C, Chapter 102, Section 102-24 (a) (b) (5) (8) Nonconforming Signs City Attorney Yvette Brown introduced the case. Code Enforcement Officer Betty McMinamen exhibited pictures that are a true and accurate depiction of the condition of the property on the date taken and read the violation summary as follows: You are hereby notified that you are in violation of the referenced section of the City of Clermont Code of Ordinances due to, but not limited to, allowing the free-standing MOTEL 8 pole sign to remain on your property and advertising a business that has ceased to exist. Compliance of This Violation will be when you have removed the unlawful and nonconforming free-standing pole sign from the property, since no business has existed at this location since the cessation of water and electric services on August 1, 2006. Ms. Gonzalez stated they did not remove the sign because she was under the impression the property was under a variance for this. She stated it was her mistake to not have the correct information. She stated that she has contacted a sign company about removing it. She has not heard back from them so she needs to follow up on the removal of the sign. James Davern made a motion to find the Respondent in violation of the cited City code and be f ned at a rate of $250. DO per day or everv day in violation starting April 1 S 2008 • seconded b_y A. D. Van Demark. The vote was unanimous in avor o~ anding the Respondent in violation and in favor of the time period and the amount of the fine. CASE N0.08-392 4 CITY OF CLERMONT MINUTES CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MARCH 18, 2008 Gonzalez Holdings, LLC 135 N. Highway 27 Clermont, FL 34711 LOCATION OF VIOLATION: 135 N. Highway 27, Clermont, FL 34711 VIOLATION: Ordinance No. 232-C, Chapter 34, Section 34-61 Unlawful Maintenance of Nuisances City Attorney Yvette Brown introduced the case. Code Enforcement Officer Betty McMinamen exhibited pictures that are a true and accurate depiction of the condition of the property on the date taken and read the violation summary as follows: You are hereby notified that you are in violation of the referenced section of the City of Clermont Code of Ordinances due to the accumulation, which includes but is not limited to, the extremely tall grass and weeds growing throughout the property that contains piles of discarded carpet, a large pile of roofing shingles, pieces of wood, boxes, and large sections of a broken sign, in addition to the building not being secure against intruders as evidenced by the open doors of motel rooms #5 and #22. Compliance of This Violation will be when the premises have been secured and returned to a condition met with custom and usual maintenance, clean of all excess vegetation, uniformly trimmed and mowed, and then all clippings and debris removed from the property. Ms. Gonzalez stated that she did have someone cut the grass but she did not follow up on what exactly was mowed. She stated that can be taken care of this week. She stated the container was already full and that is why all the debris was not picked up but will be taken care of as soon as the container is emptied. She stated they have secured the doors numerous times; however people continue to break in. She stated that the holes in the walls between the rooms were created by the fire department because they were using the motel for fire drills. Board member Booker asked what the original plan was for the building. Ms. Gonzalez stated that the original plan was to demolish the building; however, they are talking about reopening. Board member Davern asked if they would be using the same structure or a new structure. Ms. Gonzalez stated that they are thinking of using the same structure but making it nicer. Board member Van Demark asked if the fire department caused the damage to the individual units on the interior portion of the motel. b~ CITY OF CLERMONT MINUTES CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MARCH 18, 2008 Ms. Gonzalez stated she cannot say they caused all the damage to the interior of the motel, but they did use a couple of rooms for fire drills but she was not sure how many rooms were used or the specifics of the drills. Ms. McMinamen stated that all the rooms she has looked in have interior damage. Board member Booker stated that they need to board the room doors up like the windows to secure the doors. Board member Van Demark stated that securing the building is a long range solution to the problem. He stated that this building is a problem to the entire community. He stated they need a business plan to take care of this. Board member Booker stated he agreed with them needing a long range plan for this building. Board member Davern stated that the first thing that needs to happen is to board up the doors to restrict vagrants from entering the structure. Board member Mannella asked if the City had a condemnation order in place to condemn this building. He stated that it is a health and safety issue. Chairman Purvis stated that he feels the Board is in agreement that this building is a hazard to the safety and well being of our community. He suggested that they encourage the Respondent to come to a quick and firm business plan by finding them in violation tonight and accessing them $500 a day by April 1St if it is not boarded up or demolished. Board member Booker asked Mr. Hitt if the City has a building inspector to inspect this property in order to condemn. Ms. McMinamen stated that the outside is not the problem; the unsafe part is the vagrants entering the building. Board member Van Demark stated he feels the fine should start immediately. A. D. Van Demark made a motion to frnd the Respondent in violation of the cited City code and be fined at a rate of $500.00 per day or everv day in violation starting March 24 2008 if building is not fully secure; seconded by Janusiak The vote was unanimous in favor of coding the Respondent in violation and in favor o the time period and the amount o,~the fine CASE N0.08-393 Family Four, LLC Vacant Lot at East Ave. & W. Highway 50 Clermont, FL 34711 6 CITY OF CLERMONT MINUTES CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD MARCH 18, 2008 LOCATION OF VIOLATION: Vacant Lot at East Ave. & W. Highway 50, Clermont, FL 34711 VIOLATION: Ordinance No. 232-C, Chapter 34, Section 34-61 Unlawful Maintenance of Nuisances City Attorney Yvette Brown stated this case has complied and will not be heard. CASE N0.08-394 Central Florida Homes & Land Richard & Joanna Thacker 365 Citrus Tower Blvd., Suite 108 Clermont, FL 34711 LOCATION OF VIOLATION: 365 Citrus Tower Blvd., Suite #108, Clermont, FL 34711 VIOLATION: Ordinance No. 351-C, Chapter 58, Section 58-116 Failure to Obtain Business Tax License City Attorney Yvette Brown stated this case has complied and will not be heard. CASE N0.08-395 Douglas Francisco Land South of 634 Bloxam Ave. Clermont, FL 34711 LOCATION OF VIOLATION: Land South of 634 Bloxam Ave., Clermont, FL 34711 VIOLATION: Ordinance No. 36-C, Chapter 34, Section 34-95 Unlawful Storage in Residential Areas City Attorney Yvette Brown stated this case has complied and will not be heard. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned. At est: 1 Rae Chidlow, Code Enforcement Clerk 7