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07-28-1988 C> Q o CITY OF EDGEWATER CITIZEN CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD July 28, 1988 7:00 p.m. COMMUNTTY CENTER MINUTES The meeting was called torrder by the Chairman, Mary Ciccarello, at 7:00 p.m. in the Community Center of the City of Edgewater. ROLL CALL Members present were: Ella Adle, Janice McGhee, Delores Cucanich, Paul Biggerstaff, Phil Williams, Maureen Borner and Mary Ciccarello. Also present were: Dennis Fischer, Code Enforcement Officer/Buildiing Inspector; David Jones, Assistant Code Enforcement Officer/Fire Safety Inspector; Pat DiLeva, Assistant Code Enforcement Officer/Safety Official; Attorney Clay Henderson; Attorney David Vukelja; two reporters; Respondents to Subpoenas; interested Citizens. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the April 28th meeting, which were tabled June 30, 1988 due to lack of a majority, were accepted by motion of Mrs. Cucanich, seconded by Mrs. Adle and CARRIED 5-2, Mr. Biggerstaff having been absent and Mrs. Borner not having been on the Board as yet. Mrs. Ciccarello then announced the minutes of June 30, 1988, will be TABLED as they have not been read. Mrs. Adle so moved, seconded by Janice McGhee. Motion CARRIED 7-0. Mrs. Ciccarello read the procedure of the hearing and introduced the members of the Board, along with Mr. Fischer, Mr. Jones, Mr. DiLeva and the Secretary. OLD BUSINESS: 88-CC-20, Dr. James Mitchell, 2811 Royal Palm Drive, Tabled June 30, 1988. Mr. DiLeva informed Mrs. Ciccarello Dr. Mitchell was now in compliance. 88-CC-21, Duane Blair, 117 E. Marion Avenue, Tabled June 30, 1988. Mr. DiLeva informed Mrs. Ciccarello Mr. Blair is also in compliance. NEW BUSINESS 88-CC-27, Joseph Kopec, RE: 1092 S. Ridgewood Avenue. Mrs. Ciccarello . was informed the business there has been closed and it is, therefore, no longer a violation and the case can be dismissed. Mr. K9pec .asked to speak but had not been recognized nor sworn in. 88-CC-28, Albert E. DiSaia, 2516 Hibiscus Drive. Mr. Jones explained to the Board he had not been able to reach Mr. DiSaia either by phone or at his place of business, and he would like to have this tabled until the next meeting. Mrs. Cucanich moved we table this case until the next meeting, seconded by Mr. Biggerstaff. Motion CARRIED 7-0. 88-CC-29, Carmen Montesano, 2033 Ridgewood Avenue, violation of sprinkler system in a spraying booth. Mrs. Ciccarello asked anyone who wished to speak please come before the table and be sworn and Mr. Montesano was sworn in by Mr. DiLeva. Mrs. Ciccarello asked Mr. Jones to speak. Mr. Jones explained to the Board that the Standard Fire Prevention Code and Fire Safety 101 Code were adopted by the City of Edgewater, the Fire Safety Code 101 also being adopted by the State. Mr. Jones said when he was first hired he and Mr. Fischer didn't know exactly how to proceed and he wrote to Standard Fire Prevention Code, Mr. Battles, a list of questions and also wrote to RichardVognal, Standard Building Code of Alabama, stating this City has several automotive body repair shops and also other applications of flammable finishes, such as sign manufacturing and stated it is Mr. Jones's opinion that for equal enforcement of the Codes all existing and new spray booths should be protected by an automatic sprinkling syste~,and separat~d vErtically and horizontally from any other areas by construction complying with the requirements of the Standard Building Code, Section 408.2.6. / ~ o o Mr. Jones then told the Board he had sent each individual on the agenda a letter. Mr. Montesano asked the date of the letter and Mr. Jones said the letter itself did not have a date on it, but the mailing receipts were dated. Mrs. Ciccarello asked the date of Mr. Montesano' letter explicitly and Mr. Jones replied the receipt is dated May 6, 1988. Mr. Jones then read the letter to the Board and concluded by saying he wanted them to contact him and go over the requirements together. Mr. Jones read a letter from OSHA wherein it stated all booths must be protected, and Mr. Jones has many Code books he had researched. Mrs. Ciccarello then asked Mr. Montesano if he would like to give his side of the case and Mr.Montesano said his attorney would now speak. Attorney David Vukelja was sworn in by Mr. DiLeva and asked questions of Mr. Jones, He first asked Mr. Jones if he had an opportunity to see Mr. Montesano's booth, and Mr. Jones said it was the date he had the inground storage tanks and that he had talked with his son about the spray booths. Mr. Vukelja then asked if he had observed anything hazardous to life and, 'property at Mr. _ Montesano's booth other than reading of the Standard Fire Prevention Code, and Mr. Jones answered it was his opinion that when you have a spray finishing environment of flammables, all, and not part of, safety precautions should be taken. Attorney Vukelja continued he still just wanted to know if Mr. Jones observed anything that struck him'as un~sually hazardous, other than the fact he has these re- quirements he is now wishing to bring these various body shops into conformity, and Mr. Jones answered he goes by strick compliance to the Code and he doesn't believe there was one car in the booth while he was there. Mr. Vukelja asked if, then, this was all Mr. Montesano lacks and Mr. Jones said he would have to go over that and have an updated inspection. Mr. Jones added when they received the letter he expected everyone to contact him but that did not happen. Mr. Vukelja said he believed there should be some sight by sight determination as to whether some or all of these requirements are needed in all spray booths, and believes Mr. Jones should come down to Mr. Montesano's and determine if this automatic sprinkler system was required. Mr. Vukelja continued the booth has been there eight years and they do not know of any fires, any other accidents, and before a decision is adopted to require all these men to put forth, as I have heard, $3,000 to $6,000, all they ask is the fire inspector be sent out to determine what is and what is not required. Mr. Vukelja went into an in-depth discussion of the research he has done on this problem, and discovered there is also a water pressure problem here. He repeated each one should be determined separately and if required, thirty days to install may not be enough time and perhaps they will have to come before the Board again. Mr. Vukelja stated OSHA does not require an automatic sprinkler system; Life Safety Code does not require an automatic sprinkler syste~ it requires venting, which is already in place; that it is the Standard Fire Prevention that makes reference to automatic sprinkler systems and it is that same Code that gave the fire inspector discretion to examine these facilities and determine if some or all are required. Mr. Vukelja said he doesn't see how Mr. Jones can, across, the Board, say "do it all" when he hasn't had an opportunity to examine all these facilities and say what is necessary. / Mrs. Ciccarello then announced the hearing is closed and is opened to the floor for deliberations by the Board members. Mr. Williams asked if there were seven businesses on here who are not in compliance, and Mr. Fischer answered yes. Mr. Williams then stated he would like to know why, and he has been on the Board seven years, they were alloweQ to open up five or six years ago, and Mr. Fischer said at that time there were no Fire Inspections by the City of Edgewater; that Mr. Jones had been hired in 1984 and many of these businesses had been opened up before that. Mr. Williams continued they were then allowed to open spray booths with no exhaust fans and no fire extinguishers in this town? Mr. Fischer said not since he has been here. Citizen Code Enforcement Board Minutes of July 28, 1988 Meeting -2- / o o ~ Mr. Fischer then continued the City adopted the Fire Prevention Code last year, and from that period on, he and Mr. Jones discussed how to enforce the Standard Fire Prevention Code regarding new and old businesses, and rather than single out certin ones they decided to do an across the board enforcement. He stated a year ago they informed the body shops of the upcoming requirements and they were to contact them; some did, some did not. He continued we have a volunteer fire department and in these instances where businesses are affiliated with gas stations the response time will not be there and he therefore believes we need to start doing more fire protection. ,.. Mrs. Ciccarello then asked if Mr. Fischer had been at the following businesses; Mr. Graham's, Noland Car Company, B & B Paint Shop, Swain's Auto Body, in the last 30 days, and Mr. Jones said no, he had noti;She then asked, in the last 60 days? Mr. Jones then said he cannot remember the dates, but he had been to these places; Noland, B&B i ;Body and Swain I s Auto Body. Mrs. Ciccarello continued her only question was; was he there specifically to inspect for this sprinkler system you are now asking they put in, or to inspect the booths to see if it was needed, specifically for that? ~Mr. Jones answered yes, specifically for sprinklers. He had been in Nolands with Mr. Fischeri he and Mr. Fischer had both been at B & B, and that is it. Mrs. Ciccarello then said Mr. Jones had not been to Mr. Graham's or Mr. Montesano's to check. Mrs. Ciccarello then said it was her opinion, especially on these two cases, that Mr. Jones make an on-site visit to determine"a sprinkler system is really needed, and he do this before the Board makes a decision. Mr. Williams then asked if all of these companies got fire extinguishers and Mr. Jones said yes, as far as he knows. Mr. Williams then said if the City of Edgewater adopted the Code, if needed, and there are seven of these, and hard to judge seven at once, he would like to move the Board see pictures of these booths, and, at Mr. Jones's_discretion, he would like to see the spray booths hmselfi that the Board is for the people as well as the Code; we enforce the Code and protect the people; that he has been on the Board seven years and no one has ever got railroaded. Mr. Williams said he would like these cases to corne back next month with pictures of all the booths and that they have adequate water pressure. The motion was seconded by Mrs. Adle and at this time, Mrs. Ciccarello wanted to read into the record the exact cases and read: Mr~ Mont~san9, M~. Graham, .Noland Car Company, B & B Paint Body Shop and Swain's Auto Body, all to be tabled if the Board votes for this. The roll was then called and the motion CARRIED 7-0. The audience was then advised by Mrs. Ciccarello to return the last Thursday of the month, which would be August 25th. / 88-CC-34 - GARY SWAIN, 2011 Mango Tree Drive - Section 5-7, Operating an Animal Shelter in Residential Area. Mr. DiLeva swore in Mr. Gary Swain. Attorney Clay Henderson, representing Mr. and Mrs. Swain, stated the objection they would like to impose is that Section 5-7, Animal Control, should not be before this Board. He also stated he wrote both of these Ordinances and the Animal Control Ordinance is what is called self-executed, supposedly handled by the City and Court system. He added Ordinance 249 involves Codes of a technical nature, such as building codes, electrical, health, gas, etc. but does not include Animal Ordinances. He added the Legislature was very explicit about animal control when it was passed and is not to be considered by the Code Enforcement Board. Mr. DiLeva said Council- man Prater, this past year, as a special Animal Control Legislative tool by Council, authorized this Board to handle animal cases and that is how he ended up involved in this case. He stated it was an eroergency case and he wlll De more than happy to supply tne informationi it_was durlng the aog-bit~ng days, etc. Attorney Henderson continuea he knows of no other Code .t:nforcement Board in the titate of Florida WhO handles animal cases, primarlly Decause the Legislature aid not want them to. He statea he would l~ke ~o say tnis nas Deen a hurry-up deal for them to be here tonight and received the~r notice Monday for a hearlng on Tnursday and believes it was an unreasonable tlme. -3- Cltizen code Enforcement Board MlnUteS of July 28, 198~ Meeting j o o '" Mrs. Ciccarello announced the Board would now go through the hearing as outlined. Mr~ DiLeva explained the actions he had taken in this case; going down to the Swains in April, taking pictures, speaking with them, etc. and going back at a later date. He stated at the later date you could drive by and not know it was there, but he was still in the City limits, and Mr. DiLeva told Mr. Swain he would have to bring a subpoena. A:ttot:ney' ~Hendersbn 'asked ,.'if I 1I-1rl.! Swain's actibns violate a reasonable use of someone else's property, and Mr. DiLeva stated he cannot speak for someone living next door. Discussion continued and Attorney Henderson asked how many complaints there were and Mr. DiLeva stated there was just one this time; that it wouldn't matter, just one would be enough; there were quite a few previously. Attorney Henderson had Mrs. Swain tell the Board the licenses she has obtained and that she had started this caring for animals and birds about three years ago, that she and her husband are on call twenty four hours a day; they haven't had a day off in three years; they had five rescue calls last Christmas day; that donations are received but the donations do not begin to touch the feed bill; they have put thousands of their own dollars into this. Quite a discussion continued by Mrs. Swain as to the exact nature of their work with the animals and birds with Mrs. Swain stating they have tried to find a suitable location. Attorney Henderson stated they have tried to help the Swains, also, in finding a suitable location. Mrs. Ciccarello asked if there were any further closing statements and Attorney Henderson asked if he could add these people are really performing a public service; we have tried to find a suitable location; that a large number of these animals being cared for are an endangered species; that we should all try to find a way to help these people before we make any kind of a decision. Mrs. Ciccarello then declared the hearing closed and said she would like to make a statement that Mr. Henderson has brought up a legal point as to whether the Board can decide this case or not and we do not have our City Attorney before us to advise us. Mrs. Ciccarello continued she believes Attorney Alvarez and Attorney Henderson should clear this point for us before we can act and she then opened the floor for discussion. Mrs. Cucanich asked Mrs. Swain if theyare.looking for a place and she stated they have applied for grants and have been turned down. She stated they would like to have land but do not have the money to buy. Mr. Williams then moved we table this case until we can talk with the City Attorney and determine if this should be before us or not, and table this until the next meeting, August 25, 1988. The motion was seconded by Mrs. Cucanich and CARRIED 7-0. 88-CC-35 - JAMES D. OWENS - 2417 Guava Drive, Sections 11-30 and 717.00 - Junkyard and Building Materials on property. No one was . present to testify and Mr. DiLeva stated he and Mr. Fischer had gone out there just this day and Mr. Owens was working with a bulldozer and said he would be finished by tomorrow morning. Mr. Fischer said he had had some difficulties mechanically and perhaps would need one or two more days. After discussion Mrs. McGhee moved Mr. Owens be given until August 5th to have the property cleared to its natural status and a "No Dumping" sign be erected. Mrs. Borner'.. :'.1 seconded the motion. 11rs .'Ad:he moved to amend the motion by attaching a fine. Mrs. Ciccarello asked Mrs. McGhee if she would like to amend her motion, and Mrs. McGhee amended the motion to include a $25.00 per day fine for every day after August 5th, with Mr. DiLeva reinspecting the property August 5th for compliance or not. The motion to amend was approved by the Board and amended motion CARRIED 7-0. 88-CC-36 - IRVING & NELLIE SIMMONDS - 21868 Monte Court, Cupertino, CA. Lots 2149 2150 Needle Palm. Mr. DiLeva stated the Simmonds have grass over two feet high and he notified them by a ten-day notice and Citizen Code Enforcmenet Board Minutes of July 28, 1988 -4- o o had received no notice, and had to take some action, so Mr. DiLeva would Like a letter that the City would cut the grass and a bill would be sent to them. Mr. Biggerstaff moved the City cut the grass and a bill be sent to the Simmonds, seconded by Mr. Williams. The motion CARRIED 7-0. There being no further business before the Board, Mrs. Adle moved the meeting adjourn, seconded by Mrs. Cucanich. The meeting adjourned at 8:20 p.m. Minutes submitted by Dorothy C. Garrity, Secretary Citizen Code Enforcement Board Minutes of July 28th, 1988 Meeting -5-