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A divide over ruins on the bay

The owner says he wants to renovate the former Pirate's Cove restaurant, which the county might condemn.

By CATHERINE E. SHOICHET
Published September 5, 2005

	[Times photo: Ron Thompson]
	he owner of Pirate's Cove in Ozello says he will fight any attempt to condemn his buildings. George Decker of Blaine, Tenn., bought the 4-acre property in 2003 and says he is working to develop it.

OZELLO - The Pirate's Cove restaurant is a rotting shell of what it once was, with fallen beams and broken windows looking out onto Crystal Bay.

The popular drinking and dining spot fell victim to the no-name storm of 1993, which caused $300,000 in damage. Battered by several subsequent storms during the years, the restaurant and neighboring motel cabins nestled between Pirate Point and Mullet Loop closed. But the disintegration continued.

"The structure has degraded to the point where we need to take action," said Gary Maidhof, director of Development Services.

In an Aug. 29 memo to County Administrator Richard Wesch, Maidhof referred five buildings on the property for evaluation as unsafe structures.

"A recent visit by Building Division staff has found the structures in near collapse condition, and the apparent victim of vandalism and unauthorized occupation," Maidhof wrote.

That's news to the property's owner, George Decker of Blaine, Tenn. In 2003, Decker bought the 4-acre property for $300,000 from a friend. In June, the 74-year-old rare coin and currency dealer had a new red metal roof placed on the former restaurant.

He said he hopes to renovate the building and open a new restaurant there. The damage, he said, is nothing a little money can't fix.

"The building is not in bad enough shape for anybody to condemn it," Decker said. "There was more damage from hoodlums than from hurricanes."

After vandals broke the windows, Decker had the property surrounded by metal fencing. Spray-painted black-and-white signs warn would-be trespassers of a hefty $500 fine.

Decker said he soon would like to add air conditioning and replace the walls and windows.

As for the rest of the property, Decker said, he's still working with county officials and his attorney, Clark Stillwell, to figure out what he can do with it.

Citrus County, he said, is the toughest county he has ever tried to build in.

"I wanted to make it a very beautiful place, but they won't let me," Decker said. "I wanted to build 24 to 32 condos, but they wouldn't let me. I don't understand them being so tough."

A condo complex could not be built on the property, Maidhof said, because it is not served by the county's central sewer system.

"It's a valuable piece of property," Maidhof said. "Whatever gets developed has to be brought up to code."

The property has major redevelopment potential, Decker said.

"You don't find many places with 4 acres right on the water," he said.

Although he said he was eager to "play with it" and find a way to develop the parcel, he said he would be willing to sell if the price is right.

Almost a dozen people have offered to buy it, he said, but none of them have been willing to give him enough money. He turned down an offer of $1.4-million. The property is worth at least $2-million, he said.

The Pirate's Cove structures will be reviewed by an evaluation team, including officials from the county's building, fire prevention and environmental health divisions, Maidhof said.

If the team finds enough evidence to declare them unsafe structures, Maidhof said, he will send a letter to the property's owner, allowing him to fix the problems or remove the structure himself.

Under a strengthened nuisance ordinance that goes into effect Oct. 1, the county's Code Enforcement Board could place liens on the property, and the county could order a contractor to clean it up.

But Decker said he was prepared to fight any efforts by the county to declare the structures unsafe.

--Catherine E. Shoichet can be reached at cshoichet@sptimes.com or 860-7309.

[Last modified September 5, 2005, 01:15:10]