Code Enforcement and tree cutting in the Grove
The $500 amount is the highest amount for fines right now based on City laws. If four of the five City Commissioners vote to raise it, it can be raised. The Council is considering asking the City Commission to raise the fines.
Basically you can do what you want if you are willing to pay a fine. Code Enforcement doesn't really care if trees are destroyed in the Grove. If you are willing to pay, you can destroy any tree canopy.
Code Enforcement left the whole Village Council scratching their heads. As Council Member Felice Dubin brought up: If someone is denied a permit, they can screw the city, knock down the trees and pay a fine, no fuss, no muss. So if you are building a multi-million dollar house, paying a fine of a thousand dollars or two is just the cost of doing business.
Code Enforcement says there are mulitple fines issued, like $250.00 per day, which had one resident paying $80,000 in fines, but this is rare but maybe a deterrant.
As for response time, when calling, you must use the words, "in progress" to get immediate action. It is advised that you call direct numbers depending on the day of the week and the time of day.
To report illegal tree removal in progress:
Monday - Friday 8 am - 5 pm - call the Code Enforcement office South - 305-329-4770
Saturday - 8 - 5 am - You'll be diverted to the cel phone of the Officer on duty: 305-416-2087
All other times not covered above - contact police non-emergeny number 305-579-6111
Please have these numbers in your cel phone. If you do not have them handy, contact 311 as a last resort, but you must explain that the tree cutting is "IN PROGRESS" - they will then contact Code or Police depending on time of day.
To report problems with 311 contact Kathy Kern at 305 416 1763 or kkern@miamigov.com
After the fact -- after it's too late, and a tree has been destroyed, then you call 311.
posted by Tom Falco at 12:05 PM
YOU MAY NOT LIFT THE PHOTOS & TEXT. IT'S COPYRIGHTED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY. YOU CAN HOWEVER SHARE A STORY ON SOCIAL MEDIA BY USING THE LINKS HERE.
For linking to this one story, just click on the time it was posted & just this story will open for sharing - only through social media. Not copying and pasting.
6 Comments:
thanks for the info, Grapevine, yet another example as to how money talks and The Grove gets hurt, tree by tree. thanks to the folks from the Village Council for raising this issue.
Quickly, I think the fine for BRAKING THE LAW in this case, chopping down trees, some of them historic, should be proportional to the criminal perpetrator's means:
10% of the property value, or something like that. Now that would make these (wealthy) violators think twice before they yank those chain saws, and illegally deteriorate the everyone's neighborhood.
Takes 20 years for a good tree to grow and for everyone to enjoy
CORRECTION
a permit is required to cut 25% or more of a tree
Well, if it's 25% then somebody better get on the phone. They are tearing up those trees on Grand Avenue today on the sidwalk across from Mayfair.
well, we're still in hurricane season, FPL and all needs to clear the electricity poles and all I suppose? or is it for new buildings.. trimming trees is not killing trees, actually it can help shape and revitalize them, don't know what they are doing at Grand Av, hopefully Tom is taking pictures!
So... what's the post office paying?
In my opinion the problem that does not get addressed is the process of getting a permit. Activist group have influenced a process that makes it time consuming, bureaucratic and inefficient for the typical landowner. Sure a developer has the means and I would understand the process may have been built with them in mind, but for typical residents it does not work. I personally tried to apply for a permit a few years back, after 5 visits to the NET office, my application was accepted to only be called back and be request to do an official tree survey. Part of it was everyone had a different opinion on what would be accepted. Either way I searched far and wide for a company that would provide these tree surveys and found very few and of course at no cheap rates. Plus no one would provide me with resources to find one. If anyone has requested the packet for a tree removal it is quite an impressive manual of forms. You want to stop residents from cutting a tree and then paying a fine. Look at the complete process not just the fine.
Post a Comment
<< Home