The City of Plant City Code Enforcement Division works to ensure a safe and healthy environment.
Six people are on the staff. They investigate about 1,800 code enforcement related complaints, and 6,500 complaint associated inspections each year.
Among the Division’s responsibilities are:
Interpreting and enforcing all City ordinances and policies
Responding to citizen complaints and concerns
Researching and determining the severity of violations
Establishing remedial action, and time required for Code compliance
Providing city-wide surveillance to monitor effectiveness of codes
Investigating construction in residential housing without a permit
Condemning buildings to be demolished
“Our job pertains to keeping up the city—keeping people aware of keeping up their property and keeping blight from our area,” said Louis Gomez, Code Inspector.
In addition to code inspectors, the team also has a solid waste inspector, Ray Muniz. “My day-to-day is to keep the city clean from illegal dumping, and people’s properties up to the code as far as garbage, refuse, and rubbish,” he said. In an operation that should serve as a warning, the team uses illegal dumping cameras. These are live feeds, so they will alert to a cell phone, then staff will call Plant City Police Department (PCPD) to go to the site. Most people who have been caught illegally dumping are not from Plant City.
The Division searches for illegally dumped things like broken down vehicles, vehicles with no tag, and illegal signs to remove or have been removed. Along the streets, the team has come across abandoned cars, three abandoned boats, dumped tires, appliances, and furniture such as sofas.
In terms of property, they address issues for both commercial and residential structures including overgrowth of algae, rotting wood on buildings or fences, and roofs collapsing. Natural problems they try to identify are hazardous trees and plants that obstruct the view adjacent to streets. Along streets and in private yards, grass over 10 inches tall is a violation. “I made Plant City my home,” Gomez said. “I like the way it looks now, and I want to keep it up. My satisfaction comes from keeping the streets clean and making my city look nice.”
“We go around the city looking for any public nuisance or property maintenance,” commented Code Inspector, Cassie Magill, “We also work really closely with the other departments like PCPD and the Building Department.”
The Division has standard processes they follow to address code violations. “Normally, depending on if someone is there, we just give warnings,” said Tina Barber, Code Enforcement Manager. If there are circumstances that keep a property owner from complying, such as a medical issue, then the department can grant an extension of 10 extra days to rectify an issue. If the owner doesn’t do so, then the situation moves to the next level—a public nuisance violation, which has a window of 30 days to be corrected. If the violation isn’t resolved, then the owner can appear before the Code Enforcement Board to plead her or his case. This can buy an extra 30 days. However, if they don’t comply after that period of time, then fines between $100 and $250 per day are levied (depending upon the severity and frequency of the violation) until the problem is repaired. Fines are determined by Code Enforcement, by the Code Board. However, inspectors can make recommendations. Public nuisance fines can also be charged for vacant properties. For example, if grass isn’t being mowed to stay within code, the city can use contractors to mow and put liens on properties to pay for maintenance.
Vacant lots can become a problem for the solid waste inspector, too. If there are people squatting on vacant lots, they can pile up trash on the property. The city will remove the squatters, but not the trash. “So, I have to get ahold of the property owner, so the owner can clean up a mess that he didn’t make,” said Muniz. “So, that is a little tough. Sometimes we are able to get the city to clean up the property, but we put a lien on it. It is better that the property owner does it.”
“It’s a process, but what we do is pretty straightforward,” said Gomez. “We have warned them, we give them time. If they communicate back to us, then a lot of times we can work with them on extending the time to get something done. Our job is compliance—that’s what we want.”
Even though the process is clear, the team still encounters difficulties. Examples are when ownership of a property has recently changed hands and the County Appraiser’s records are not current, if a home or building is in foreclosure and the ownership is returning to a lender, or when the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is involved. Such situations can take several months to resolve, while Code Enforcement still has to process and respond to resident complaints about the violation.
The inspections, compliance, and code violation process is only a part of what the Division does. “We educate people a lot,” said Barber. “People don’t realize what our ordinances are, so we take time to explain everything to them.”
Code Enforcement sees the meaning to their work. “You see change through the work you do,” said Muniz. “I like to start my day picking up illegal signs. You can see snipe signs in the right of way in other cities, but when you come back to Plant City ,you won’t see any. So, you can see the change that we all bring.”
The team takes pride in making Plant City safer. Clearing thoroughfares from obstructions and signs that can distract people and cause auto accidents, removing garbage that can spread disease, and cleaning up chemical spills are among the services they accomplish.
“I was born and raised in Plant City,” commented Magill. “So, I like seeing how it is getting picked up and cleaned, and being safe too.”
“I like helping people,” Muniz added. The Division has resources they can refer residents to for help in certain situations. One of those is Paint Your Heart Out Tampa Bay. So far this year, this organization has painted four Plant City houses at no cost. Also, Rebuilding Tampa Bay has torn down, then rebuilt six houses in Plant City. “I also tell them to reach out to their local churches, because a lot of churches will come and help,” said Gomez. Inspectors also carry a local assistance directory they give to residents that have property needs.
“We are eyes out in the neighborhood,” commented Gomez.