OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Osceola County commissioners may not be so forgiving in the future when it comes to code enforcement fines.
Commissioners want to review a policy that gives property owners a reduction in fines after the problem is fixed.
"My concern is that the message we're sending is it's OK to not follow our code enforcement rules," Commissioner Viviana Janer said during the Nov. 9 board meeting.
Channel 9 reviewed documents from board meetings over the past four months and did the math. Records show commissioners approved seven requests for reductions that forgave roughly $968,000 in fines and liens. Most of the fines added up over a period of months, if not years. The county can still collect some of the fines from those violators but the total is generally just a fraction of what the properties have accumulated.
"I think we're reducing them way, way too low," Janer said.
Neighbors along Grandview Boulevard near Kissimmee said one property was in great shape until a few years ago when the people inside moved out.
"Trophies, masks, Halloween stuff. I mean, there was a lot of stuff that was just piled up over there on the tennis court," said neighbor Mike McDaniel.
The junk led the county to place a lien on the property as code enforcement fines grew to about $143,000 over a year and a half. But records show commissioners approved a request to reduce the fines to about $4,000 in October after the debris was hauled away.
McDaniel said reducing the fines may be necessary to help sell foreclosed properties.
"The house is going to sit empty. Nobody is going to take on that burden," he said.
Commissioners asked county staff to come back with options by January.
"I would like to see compliance again, that's what we hope to get first," said Commissioner Michael Harford.