The goal is to bring rules for unincorporated areas into line with what municipalities require.
By MICHAEL SANDLER
Published February 25, 2004
CLEARWATER - Prefer parking your car on the front lawn? It may be time to find a new spot.
Pinellas County commissioners are preparing to toughen the county's code enforcement policy to bring it more in line with the stricter codes and focused enforcement of municipalities.
The sweeping plan was presented Tuesday and would affect property in unincorporated areas of the county. Commissioners asked staff members to convert the changes into ordinances and bring them back to be voted on at a public hearing.
Among the more than 20 changes was a proposal that would require that landlords obtain a license for long-term rental housing, including single-family homes.
County officials said the changes are aimed at shoring up property values in the unincorporated area, and comes as the county government finds more of its unincorporated residents being tempted to annex into neighboring cities that offer more services.
"You shouldn't be able to tell the difference once you leave a city and enter the county," Commissioner Ken Welch said. "In some cases, the difference is drastic, and we are trying to address that."
Jake Stowers, an assistant county administrator, said the county's renewed effort to toughen code enforcement standards grew out of requests made by people living in the Lealman area.
The county, which serves approximately 284,000 people in the unincorporated area, responded by adding four more code enforcement officers last year, bumping the department up to 17 officers, a 30 percent staff increase. St. Petersburg, a city of 252,000 people, has 35 code officers.
Last year commissioners appointed a 14-member task force to review the entire code enforcement policy - from noise to lawn mowing - and make recommendations for changes. They came up with a long list that now is being proposed as county policy, including:
Adopting new rules for where people can park boats and RVs.
Limiting the size of RVs on residential property to a maximum of 38 feet.
Restricting lawn parking to one space parallel to the driveway.
Prohibiting staking and chaining dogs in front yards.
Increasing the minimum code violation fine from $32 to $100.
Will Davis, the county's director of environmental management, said most of the recommendations are standards already in place in neighboring cities.
Stowers said many new communities have their own tough standards written into deed restrictions enforced by homeowners' associations.
"I think you typically find (a need for more enforcement) in older communities, where you don't have strong homeowners' associations," Stowers said.
Stowers and Davis said adopting the new policies would not require hiring more code enforcement officers, although Welch, who represents part of Lealman, said the commission should consider that.
"We still need to continue adding officers. We are nowhere near the ratio of officers to citizens," Welch said.
While most of the recommendations are aimed at strengthening regulations, the commission is considering loosening its ban on commercial vehicles.
The task force recommended allowing each home to have one vehicle - a van, truck or trailer in tow - as long as it is less than 21 feet long, 8 feet wide and 8 feet high.
"Common sense sometimes prevails in local regulations," Stowers said. "We heard loud and clear, let's not come down on every commercial vehicle out there. Let's put parameters."
