Court steps into clutter

The rising sea of junk around a home becomes a criminal matter, prompting a yard sale to eliminate the nuisance.

By BRIDGET HALL GRUMET

© St. Petersburg Times, published October 27, 2000

INVERNESS -- It's all a matter of perspective.

The sea of items in Paul Gibson's yard -- broken furniture, old yard equipment, boxes of nails and potted plant containers -- could be considered a hazard.

At least that's how the courts described the mess when Gibson, 69, pleaded no contest in July to maintaining a public nuisance, a second-degree misdemeanor.

But put price tags on those items and signs on the lawn, and suddenly you've got a yard sale.

That's the plan for Saturday, when Gibson will hold a yard sale outside his home at 661 N Woodlake Ave., just north of Inverness, to clean up his yard as his probation agreement requires. The sale starts at 7 a.m.

"I don't need any money off of this," Gibson said, noting that he would part with most items for a quarter or a dollar. "I just want to find a home for this stuff."

For the past 26 years, Gibson has rescued countless items from curb sides and trash bins, determined to find them a second home.

Finding people who could use a chipped bird bath or a trampoline frame without a mat was harder than Gibson thought, however, and most of the items piled up around his house.

The Code Enforcement Board first contacted Gibson about the clutter in 1992, and over the years he racked up $13,850 in fines for failing to clean up his yard.

When those enforcement efforts failed, Gibson's case was turned over this year to the State Attorney's Office. It was the first time a Citrus code enforcement issue has led to criminal prosecution.

Under the plea agreement Gibson took this summer, he has until Dec. 17 to get the items out of his yard or into a county-approved storage shed.

The industrial-size garbage bin in Gibson's yard has already been filled with several loads of trash that have gone to the dump, he said. The land on the north side of his home is mostly clear now, and the salvageable items sit on the south end of the property.

Gibson's probation officers came up with the idea of holding a yard sale, saying his unique problem called for a unique solution.

"This is actually one of the first situations like this that we've gotten our hands on," said Jennie Griggs, court representative for the Salvation Army Correctional Services. "We're volunteering to help him get it organized, to make sure he's taken care of."

Griggs hopes that local scrap metal companies will be interested in the metal items Gibson has accumulated. Eventually, she hopes a charitable organization will help Gibson by building him a storage shed for the items he wants to keep.

"It's not a mess," Griggs said optimistically. "It just needs to be organized."

In order to keep his yard neat, however, Gibson will have to curb his compulsive trash-collecting ways, something the neighbors doubt he can do.

"Yeah, he throws a little in the Dumpster, and then he brings back two loads from the dump," said James Hoyt, the neighbor across the street.

Gibson admits he is still not "reformed," but says he will try to pick up less.

"I'm a misfit. This is a wasteful society, and I am thrifty," Gibson said. "But I will try to look at things more critically and not pick up everything I see."

As for his yard sale, Gibson is not sure what the demand will be for a battered snow ski or the mini-refrigerator that needs a few parts. But the probation workers assured Gibson that yard sale shoppers will see a use for these items, just as he did when he picked them up.

"I'm sure some crafts person would love to put a flower arrangement around that," probation counselor Karen Ellis said, pointing to a small wooden windmill.

Gibson climbed through the clutter and came across a wrought iron chair that was missing a seat cushion. The frame itself needed to be straightened out and given a fresh coat of white paint.

"If the person has the right attitude, that could be a good chair," Gibson said. "On the other hand, that's junk -- take it to the landfill."

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