OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Neighbors say the stench from an Osceola County business is making them feel sick.
The state has fined the company responsible, Kite Technology USA, but the problem continues.
New documents show county code enforcement also found numerous violations at the business and sent them a cease-and-desist letter.
According to the company website, the treatment facility, located on Smith Street in Kissimmee, receives and processes liquid waste from haulers throughout the state of Florida, specifically waste from septic systems and grease trap water.
When Osceola County code inspectors visited the facility in March, they found eight code violations, including unpermitted excavation and construction, illegal discharges into the county’s stormwater system, and operating without a valid business tax receipt, which is essentially the document allowing a business to legally operate in Osceola County.
According to a warning letter sent to Kite Technology, the company had until May 11th to correct the problems and needed to stop business operations immediately.
A spokesperson for Osceola County said the company submitted a plan for corrective action, but the case is ongoing.
“While the company submitted what it purported to be an updated plan, staff determined, and the owner’s contractor agreed, that the submission was insufficient to address the violations,” said the county spokesperson.
Nearby businesses and homeowners have been tracking the stench since September. They want to see the company shut down.
“It makes you want to puke,” said one man who lives on Smith Street.
He told Channel 9 he no longer cooks outside and keeps his door shut to keep the stench out.
County officials told Channel 9 they were moving the case through the code enforcement process and that staff would work to bring the case to the code enforcement board if the violations are not addressed.
That board could choose to fine Kite Technology up to $5,000 per violation, each day that the violation continues, if the violation is irreparable.
Channel 9 previously reported that just weeks ago, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection also fined Kite Technology $2,500 for odor issues and ordered the company to enclose the facility to address the smell.
Months earlier, the state fined the company more than $30,000 for stormwater violations and violations related to how liquid waste was handled at the site.
Long before then, Kite Technology was on the state’s radar. It previously operated in a warehouse on Michigan St. in Kissimmee which burned down in March.
At the time the company was paying off a nearly $20,000 fine after state inspectors uncovered waste splashing on the ground, residue built up on floors, and potholes filled with grease.
Kite Technology’s company website states, “Our commitment to compliance ensures that businesses can operate with confidence, knowing their waste is managed responsibly.”
Channel 9 has asked Kite Technology about that commitment, but company officials have not responded to any of Channel 9’s multiple requests for comment.
As neighboring businesses and homeowners have amplified calls to shut the business down, the county said that is not a possibility at this time.
A county spokesperson stated, “The company is permitted to undertake necessary operations to come into compliance with the Notice of Violation and to remediate all local or state violations. Locking down the facility is not an available remedy at this juncture and would otherwise preclude the company from any attempts to remediate the violations provided, including any state violations regarding odor.”
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