Hat Tip: http://grouchyoldcripple.com/
Posted on 09/19/2017 5:42:52 PM PDT by TigerClaws
Mere hours after Hurricane Irma, Miami-Dade County was ticketing residents for building code violations on their wrecked properties.
Celso Perez was helping his neighbors remove some fallen trees blocking their street when a county code enforcer rolled up and issued him a safety notice for having a downed fence. "I laughed," Perez tells WSVN-TV. "I thought he was kidding. 'You are kidding right? We just had a hurricane six hours ago.'"
It wasn't a joke. The official told Perez that the downed fence—which encloses a pool—was a safety hazard, and that if it wasn't fixed by the time he returned, Perez would be hit with a fine. The official then hung the safety citation on the portion of Perez's fence that remained standing, leaving him and his neighbors to finish clearing the debris from their street.
According to WSVN, the county has handed out 680 safety notices for downed pool barriers, and another 177 electrical hazard safety notices. Reason reached out to the county to confirm those numbers, but has not received a reply.
From what can be gleaned from the WSVN story and from county code enforcement procedures, these safety notices appear to be just warnings, meaning no fines have been handed out as of yet. Reason tried to confirm this with the county as well, but was again rebuffed.
Still, these warnings carry with them a duty to correct the violation within a specific window of time. That might not even be possible for some residents, given how many businesses are still out of operation.
As Perez said of the day he got his ticket, "All the stores were closed. It's not like I can go to Home Depot and find some temporary barrier."
Even if he could, it's quite possible that Perez and the other people handed citations might have more pressing things to do right after a hurricane than bring their homes back up to code. You know: clearing the streets, seeking medical attention, checking in on family members, trying to find food. You might think the county would have higher priorities too, like getting the lights back on for Miami-Dade's 16,510 homes and businesses still without power.
County officials don't see it that way. "It is important that we reach residents in the immediate aftermath of the storm," one tells WSVN, "because that is when conditions are most dangerous, and taking steps to protect life is a critical part of the recovery process."
Tyranny of the petty bureaucrats. Those with the least amount of power seem to wield it without mercy.
You make a valid point. It might be helpful in the situation where a homeowner doesn’t get their home back in order and creates a danger.
I think though waiving notice of penalties and fines for a certain time period so people can gather themselves, find a contractor, insurance claims. If you fixed it yourself, might jeopardize a claim. Or you might be in the hospital from the hurricane.
Seems a bit overzealous to fine folks. Nothing wrong with telling them to not pose a public danger.
It helps conservatives to highlight stories where government overreaches.
We (should be) the party of small government. More people are annoyed with government the more likely they are to vote Republican.
You saved it for me?
You racked your shriveled wit, trying to cobble together more than six words and come up with something clever, and look.....you failed.
You failed miserably.
LAST WORD.
Typical. Don’t bust looters just tax paying home owners.
These were citations—reminders that people are legally obligated to fix their fences that expose their pools.
AFAIK, not one person was assessed or given a fine.
Whether this was the right TIME to do it is debatable, but code enforcement wasn’t out beating people over the head. They were trying to make sure folks were aware of a danger to the property.
But 8 years isn’t enough time to at least impeach an apparently-,illegal immigrant and enemy agent occupying our White House
A “citation” usually implies some penalty is already in place. If I receive a “citation” driving, I can expect to either pay a fine or appear in court.
If it’s just a notice to fix things... what’s the time frame? Can they find a contractor? Have they gotten an insurance claim filed first?
I’d like to see someone from the country appear and explain.
“Nuttin but Overblown bullshit.”
You’re pretty mouthy about this story. Got any proof this is not real since there story checks out on local news??
I think you just are a petulant idiot about 15 years old and wanted to proclaim “fake news”.
Can Cane his ass!
Fixed.
A Dimocrat run county and city. Remember that.
You should probably put down the bottle and go on to bed.
(just saying)
Depends on what the citation is for. Around here, if it’s for something mechanical, such as a burned out headlight, the citation is dismissed upon showing proof of repair within a week (maybe longer - I’m not sure).
This is a similar situation.
I would have made him check my pool drain for about 5 minutes.....close up!!...*S*..if it didnt pass...Id pay the fine....
The official told Perez that the downed fence—which encloses a pool—was a safety hazard...
Maybe the inspector will have an accident and drown in the pool.
Well, you know, this is south Florida. People disappear all the time. The one’s they find chopped up in barrels are meant to send a message.
Hey fellas, it was on wsvn channel 7 news at 6 pm.
Or ropes and lamp posts. Hang the first few and the rest will get the message
Hat Tip: http://grouchyoldcripple.com/
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