$30G Fine for not cutting your lawn?

[Jstpssng]

If you read the details of the story, this guy had 12 code violations in the previous 11 years all related to being unwilling to maintain his property. So the city had expended money 12 times to intervene and deal with the guy and finally decided to treat him as a repeat offender. There was also a long history of neighbor complaints about the property. So it sounds more like a case of someone nobody wants for a neighbor rather than government over reach.

I didn't see that in the original link, or anyplace else that I looked. What type of violations did he have?
His mother died and he was trying to take care of her estate and deal with this at the same time. It might have been cheaper to fence it in and buy a couple of goats.

 

[KennyG]

These stories always seem to have more below the reported "facts". It may be the city being unreasonable but there may also be some extensive history. Our township has a very restrictive ordinance and my church has a "lawn" that stays so wet in the spring it can't be mowed. Fortunately, the township supervisor is a member of the church and warns us before we get cited so we can mow the accessible edges and stay out of trouble. It all depends on who you know.

 

[LD1]

Im sure there is more to the story. There always is. Im betting what is published is only half of it. But on the surface.....seems pretty crappy of the city. Not only was the guy out of town dealing with his mothers estate....but his landscaper passed away. IT seems he made a reasonable attempt to do the right think and ensure his lawn was taken care of my hiring a guy to mow it.

I dont believe one bit the city's BS about it devaluing properties, attracting snakes and vermin, etc. ITs a ploy to try and cash in and nothing more. If the city truly cared about the neighbors (or if the neighbors truly cared).....they just would have stepped up and mowed the darn lawn themselves. But to levy a $500 fine per day.....seriously. 2 months isnt that long......and to come home to a $30k bill becasue the guy you hired to mow it passed away....seems unreasonable to me

 

[dodge man]

I also didn’t see anything about past violations??

 

[/pine]

Obviously a majority of you think every place is the same as your own sad towns and cities...!...and obviously some don't have a clue about the city of record...

I was born and raised a few miles south of Dunedin...Pinellas County (west of Tampa) now has about 1 million residents in +/- 26 different municipalities...(many small beach communities etc...)
When I was young the two main industries were citrus and seafood...now it is mainly tourism and residents know the more tourists the more tourist tax collected...
Most code enforcement agencies in the county are not proactive...they do NOT go out patrolling for violations...they only deal with reported infractions and property owners are given ample warning and time to make reparations...
It's a big issue down there...

Take a virtual drive down Edgewater Drive in Dunedin...

Edgewater Dr · Dunedin, FL

Dunedin, FL

www.google.com

 

[jjp8182]

$500/day?!?

Granted it's a screwy situation anyway it's looked at (and there's probably a lot more that wasn't reported ...as there always is), but it sure seems this is the sort of thing that should be expected when people keep voting for more government involvement in their lives.

Particularly when more & more people seem to think they need to stick their (usually arrogantly clueless) noses into other people's business via public authorities rather than personal interaction.

Really begs the question of what kind of neighbors are in the area......

Though I guess not everyone lives in a neighborhood where neighbors will actually help each other (or accept help) when one is in a bind.

 

[Diggin It]

If the city truly cared about the neighbors (or if the neighbors truly cared).....they just would have stepped up and mowed the darn lawn themselves.

Which exactly what I did a couple of years ago when a neighbor fell on hard times.

Really begs the question of what kind of neighbors are in the area......

Though I guess not everyone lives in a neighborhood where neighbors will actually help each other (or accept help) when one is in a bind.

I have very few positive things in life, but one of those few is good neighbors who try their best to help each other.

 

[/pine]

FYI...In most cases where a property owner is unresponsive or defiant after being cited for code violations and they let things go to the point where fines are levied...the rates are set at the maximums...
...I.e., fines are stated "up to the maximum" ...that does not mean that is what the property owner would have been fined had they been more cooperative...Whenever a fine is levied there will always be a judge or magistrate involved...

 

[tradosaurus]

$500/day?!?

Granted it's a screwy situation anyway it's looked at (and there's probably a lot more that wasn't reported ...as there always is), but it sure seems this is the sort of thing that should be expected when people keep voting for more government involvement in their lives.

Particularly when more & more people seem to think they need to stick their (usually arrogantly clueless) noses into other people's business via public authorities rather than personal interaction.

Really begs the question of what kind of neighbors are in the area......

Though I guess not everyone lives in a neighborhood where neighbors will actually help each other (or accept help) when one is in a bind.

I understand the citys explanation. When I lived in a neighborhood I had a neighbor whose fence was falling down and whose dogs were a nuisance as well as raising goats and other animals in his small back yard.

....allowing his grass to exceed the requisite 10 inches in height for several months in the summer of 2018. The city claims the long grass could "draw snakes, rats or other vermin" and hurt neighborhood property values,....

I also understand the older gentleman predicament

Ficken left town to see to his late mother's South Carolina estate. During his absence, his lawn became overgrown by city standards because his landscaper died, he said. Such code violations are punishable by a fine of as much as $500 per day, according to The Tampa Bay Times. By the time Ficken returned home two months later, he owed the city an enormous sum of money: $29,833.50, to be exact.

If this was a first time "offense" I think the city should make allowances for his bad luck or at least a neighbor stepping in to help during his absence. But if he was a repeat offender I can see his neighbors looking on with glee as his grass got higher and higher hoping that the guy would get punished and maybe move.

So I found more to the story from another article which explains the max fine imposed.

In a statement, the city said it had to intervene 12 times since 2007 to get Ficken to properly maintain his property. Each time, the property was brought into compliance but only after intervention.

It was not until 2015 that code enforcement staff recommended repeat offender status in the case after receiving numerous complaints from the neighborhood regarding the property on Lake Marion Lane, Bramley had said.

 

[jjp8182]

I understand the citys explanation.

So I found more to the story from another article which explains the max fine imposed.

I can to a degree ... though wildlife wouldn't be my primary concern in a place that may look abandoned/overgrown.

Though on the other hand 12 times in almost as many years would hardly seem to cross the level into "repeat offender" when the grass probably needs to be mowed multiple times a week throughout the growing season -- which I'd expect to be most of the year given the climate.

But it's not my kind of place to visit/live so they can do as they wish ...and all sides can experience the consequences of their own actions.

I also wouldn't be surprised if the only ones who will really come out ahead in this case are the lawyers though.... particularly since the various news sources seem to be omitting (whether intentionally or not) quite a bit of information ...which will inevitably whip at least some of the readers into a frenzy demanding their desired actions/remedies be put in place, which drives more regulation/legislation continuing the cycle.....