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02/23/2000 MUNICIPAL CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD CITY OF CLEARWATER February 23, 2000 Present: Helen Kerwin Chair David Allbritton Board Member Frank Huffman Board Member Sheila Cole Board Member Joyce Martin Board Member Vacant Seat Absent: Lawrence Tieman Vice-Chair Also Present: Leslie Dougall-Sides Assistant City Attorney Karen Clark Board Attorney Sue Diana Secretary for the Board Brenda Moses Board Reporter The meeting was called to order by Chair Kerwin at 3:00 p.m. in City Hall Chambers. In order to provide continuity for research, the items are listed in agenda order although not necessarily discussed in that order. The Chair outlined the procedures and advised any aggrieved party may appeal a final administrative order of the Municipal Code Enforcement Board to the Circuit Court of Pinellas County. Any such appeal must be filed within thirty (30) days of the execution of the order to be appealed. She noted that Florida Statute 286.0105 requires any party appealing a decision of this Board to have a record of the proceedings to support such an appeal. 1. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. Case 10-00 Owner: Wolverine Prop Inv Ltd Partnership Lessee: Outdoor Systems Inc 2266 Gulf to Bay Blvd. (Sign) – Bohr B. Case 11-00 Owner: Ace Liquors, Inc Lessee: Outdoor Systems Inc 1751 Gulf to Bay Blvd. (Sign) – Bohr C. Case 12-00 Owner: Ellis Co Ltd Lessee: Outdoor Systems Inc 501-525 S. Belcher Rd. (Sign) – Bohr D. Case 13-00 Owner: Limited Properties, Inc Lessee: Outdoor Systems Inc 2800 Gulf to Bay Blvd. (Sign) – Bohr E. Case 14-00 Owner: Kennedy Frost Inv Inc Lessee: Outdoor Systems Inc 2760 Gulf to Bay Blvd. (Sign) – Bohr F. Case 15-00 Owner: Herbert E. Wollowick Lessee: Outdoor Systems Inc 2779 Gulf to Bay Blvd. (Sign) – Bohr G. Case 16-00 Owner: Car Spa Clearwater Lessee: Outdoor Systems Inc 2516 Gulf to Bay Blvd. (Sign) - Bohr Assistant City Attorney Leslie Dougall-Sides said staff is requesting a continuance to the next meeting for Cases 10-00 through 16-00 as the inspector handling the case has a conflict with today’s meeting. She said the counsel for Outdoor Systems, Inc. has a trial conflict with the March meeting and is requesting these cases be continued to the April 26, 2000, meeting. Member Huffman moved to continue Cases 10-00 through 16-00 to the April 26, 2000, meeting. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. H. Case 17-00 Owner: Thomas G. Seibert Lessee: Business Records Management, Inc 1143 Eldridge Street (Fire) - Anderson I. Case 18-00 Owner: Thomas G. Seibert Lessee: Business Records Management, Inc 1125 Eldridge Street (Fire) - Anderson Ms. Dougall-Sides said concerning Cases 17-00 and 18-00, Attorney Harry Cline, representing Business Records Management, Inc. is requesting a continuance to the April meeting. He indicated he has a trial conflict with the March meeting. Deputy Chief Fire Marshall Randy Hinder said staff has been trying to work with the owner to resolve the issues and gain compliance. These two cases involve public safety and fire safety issues. He expressed concern in continuing the case as it was originally cited in August of 1999. Attorney Cline disagreed that these cases are safety issues. He said no one resides in the building. The business consists of records storage. The issue is whether the building should have had sprinklers. He noted sprinklers would cost $150,000 to install. Ms. Dougall-Sides said these are two separate cases. One involves a new structure and one an existing structure. She said she has spoken to Mr. Cline regarding an on-site visit to try to find a resolution as not much progress has taken place over the last year. Mr. Hinder said firefighters have no knowledge of occupancy of a building and are obligated to save life and property. Given the extent of the hazard in the newer structure, it is of grave concern to staff and the Fire Chief that firefighters would be required to enter this building. He said there also are other issues involved. The City building department issued the building permit and during the process the owner was cited for a fire alarm violation in April of 1999. At that time, it was discovered that a rack storage arrangement was evident at the subject property and the owner was advised that staff could not sign off on the building as it violates Code. He requested that the Board consider the public safety and fire issues when granting the continuance. Mr. Hinder said there are no provisions that allow the Fire Department to refuse to go into a building to address a fire. He noted a recent instance involving the death of six firefighters due to a similar situation. Mr. Cline said the City approved the plans for the building and now objects to its use. The building has been a records storage business for years. He noted he would be bringing in an expert witness to debate the issue whether the building should be sprinkled. He requested the Board grant the extension. Discussion ensued and it was remarked that without the building department staff present to address some of the issues, it may be difficult to gain a full understanding of the fire code, permitting, etc. and would be difficult to render a decision. Member Huffman moved to continue Cases 17-00 and 18-00 to the April 26, 2000, meeting. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. 2. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. Case 31-99 - Affidavit of Compliance John C. Olson 1216 N. Ft. Harrison Ave. (Sign) - King Member Huffman moved to accept the Affidavit of Compliance for Case 31-99. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. 3. OTHER BOARD ACTION/DISCUSSION A. Case 06-99 - Addressing Board re fine Clearwater Prop Group c/o Kmart 3476 2130 Gulf to Bay Blvd. (Landscape) - Kurleman A representative of Kmart, due to a schedule conflict, has requested a continuance. It was noted the property owner is in compliance and the owner is asking for a reduction of fine. Member Cole moved to continue Case 06-99 to the March meeting. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. B. Case 30-99 - Reconsideration/Rehearing Arian Tenney 1320 Terrace Road (outdoor storage) – Rosa In a letter dated February 10, 2000, staff withdrew Case 30-99; however, a new case was posted on February 3, 2000, concerning the subject property. C. Case 13-99 - Addressing Board re fine Calvin M. Doyle 1268 Engman Street (Building) - Wright Calvin Doyle, distributed a timeline regarding activities pertinent to the violation. He noted he is a state-certified residential. He said the Board had granted him sixty days to correct the violations. He said he contacted four builders and several were not interested in working with him to correct the violations. He also contacted engineers and found one who agreed to oversee the necessary work. He entered into an agreement with the engineer the first week in June and found a builder on June 3, 1999. Due to a backlog of work, the builder could not guarantee a completion date of July 25, 1999. A contractor was located on July 18, 1999, and an agreement reached on July 24, 1999. The first attempt to pull a permit was on July 29, 1999. Other attempts were made due to additional information required by the building department. Mr. Doyle said all repairs were completed on July 25, 1999 and approval that all work was done properly was obtained from a professional engineer. Inspector Bill Wright issued a permit to Mr. Doyle on October 25, 1999. Mr. Doyle said he should not have agreed to complete the work within a sixty-day timeframe. He said the Code allows for a professional engineer to sign off on and affirm that work was done properly by filing a complete report with the building official. He stated his parents own the building and cannot afford the fine imposed by the City. His father is in an ACLF with Alzheimer’s disease. He requested, as the work was completed in July without the necessary paperwork and permits, that the Board consider a reduction in fine. In response to a question, Inspector Wright said the case has been ongoing since January 26, 1998 and Mr. Doyle came before the Board in May of 1999. Mr. Doyle said the debris referred to by the City at a previous Board meeting was not his. He said he repainted the entire building, secured all doors, etc. and attempted to comply with Code. It was noted that the fine levied against the property owner began on July 26, 1999 and continued until October 29, 1999. The total fine is $23,750. Inspector Wright said the building is still on the unsafe list. He had agreed that Mr. Doyle could secure the roof for safety reasons while he made plans to address the other violations. He performed all the work without permits and inspections. Inspector Wright said at one point in time the address on the building was incorrect as three structures were involved. Mr. Doyle said as no one inhabits the building and the electricity is off, the electrical component is not an issue. Mr. Wright said it has taken Mr. Doyle approximately six months to merely secure the building. Mr. Doyle said as he began to remedy one violation, another one appeared, complicating the project. He was unsure what to do about the violations and had considered demolishing the building. The permitting process took longer than anticipated. Mr. Doyle said the building is vacant and he may sell it to the church next door. Member Cole moved to reduce the fine from $23,750 to $3,750 payable within 30 days. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. D. Election of Chair & Vice-Chair Member Huffman moved to re-elect Member Kerwin as Chair and Member Tieman as Vice-Chair. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. 4. NUISANCE ABATEMENT LIEN FILINGS Randy Aulich/Johnny Travis COD1999-05113 527 Florida Avenue $ 320.00 Suburb Beautiful, Blk A, Lot 14 Brightwater Inv. Establishment COD1999-04878 155 Brightwater Drive $ 696.90 Bayside Sub No. 2, Lot 14 Ruth Wilson COD1999-03249 906 Pennsylvania Avenue $ 944.00 Pinecrest, Blk 2, Lot 3 Carlton L. McCray COD1999-04931 1018 North Greenwood Avenue $ 320.00 Palm Park Unbd Blk, N41.5' of S91.5' of E100' of Lot 32 less ROW Robert E. and Ruth V. Smith COD1999-05142 1444 San Juan Court $ 320.00 Boulevard Heights, Blk H, Lot 2 Philip R. Joseph/Teretha H. Pugh COD1999-05313 903 Beckett Street $ 460.00 Avondale, Blk G, Lot 1 and 4' MOL strip on West Lela Blocker Est c/o Fred Wilder COD1999-04441 1201 Tangerine Street $ 320.00 Greenwood Park #2, Blk D, Lots 1-2 Ophelia Blunt COD1999-03556 1008 Railroad Avenue $ 589.10 J.J. Eldridge, Blk D, Lot 41 Member Huffman moved to approve the nuisance abatement lien filings as presented. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – January 26, 2000 Member Huffman moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of January 26, 2000, as recorded and submitted in written summation to each Board member. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 3:51 p.m.