fines - News - The Coastal Star2024-03-29T04:58:42Zhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/finesDelray Beach: Health department seeks $1.8 million for reclaimed water violationshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/delray-beach-health-department-fines-city-1-8-million-for-reclaim2021-06-03T22:40:50.000Z2021-06-03T22:40:50.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><strong>By Jane Smith</strong></p>
<p>Delray Beach may have to pay slightly more than $1.8 million for health violations in its reclaimed water program.</p>
<p>The violations go back to 2007, according to the proposed consent order from the Florida Department of Health Palm Beach County. A consent order is a legal agreement between the department and the city settling the violations.</p>
<p>As part of the agreement, the city will have to publish a public notice saying it “cannot assure utility customers that the drinking water produced and distributed met the standards of the Safe Drinking Water Act for the period from inception of the reclaimed water service beginning in 2007 to the time reclaimed water was deactivated on February 4, 2020.”</p>
<p>Laurie Menekou, a spokeswoman for the city’s utilities department, wrote on June 3 in a text, “The city received a proposal from the DOH which we are in the process of reviewing.”</p>
<p>Delray Beach and its lawyers “can, should they choose to, negotiate with the Department,” wrote Alexander Shaw, department spokesman, in a May 24 email.</p>
<p>Eight of the 11 violations warranted a penalty more than $5,000, according to the consent order.</p>
<p>The highest penalty was assessed for 581 missing backflow preventers for a total of more than $1.3 million.</p>
<p>Reclaimed water is highly treated wastewater that is suitable only for lawn irrigation. Backflow preventers are needed at each reclaimed water location to stop the reclaimed water from flowing back into the drinking water system.</p>
<p>The city cannot use what has already been spent on bringing the reclaimed water project into compliance as a part of any negotiations.</p>
<p>The Department of Health became involved when a South Ocean Boulevard resident called on Jan. 2, 2020, to say she was not fully informed of a cross connection discovered in December 2018. Cross connections happen when the drinking water pipes are erroneously hooked into the reclaimed water pipes.</p>
<div dir="ltr">In early January, a draft of the consent order proposed nearly $3 million fines for the city's botched reclaimed water system. Then it went through an elaborate review process with local Department of Environmental Protection leaders and the DEP secretary in Tallahassee. That process reduced the fines by about $1 million. The Health Department spokesman was not immediately available to explain the reduction.</div></div>Delray Beach: Water woes may bring $3M in fineshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/delray-beach-water-woes-may-bring-3m-in-fines2021-02-03T19:13:17.000Z2021-02-03T19:13:17.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming<div><p style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>State concludes city committed ‘willful’ violations</strong></span></p>
<p><strong>By Jane Smith</strong></p>
<p>Delray Beach officials have known for more than 12 years what was required to implement a safe reclaimed water project, according to July 2008 letters between the city’s Utilities Department and Florida Department of Health in Palm Beach County. <br /> In fact, the city’s water rules remain part of its code of ordinances today. These rules explain how the city will protect its public water supply while offering reclaimed water for irrigation. <br /> This knowledge and failure to implement its own plan may end up costing Delray Beach nearly $3 million in fines for not inspecting, maintaining and keeping records of its reclaimed water installations.<br /> The Department of Health called the violations “willful or intentional in nature” in its draft Jan. 7 letter to the Delray Beach interim city manager.<br /> The year 2008 was five city managers ago, when none of the current commissioners sat on the dais.<br /> The proposed fines couldn’t come at a worse time. Delray Beach had been plugging holes in its budget for nearly a year when the pandemic shut restaurants, bars and hotels in mid-March 2020. <br /> In September, the city balanced this financial year’s $151.4 million budget by taking $5.2 million from reserves to pay for one-time expenses, leaving about $38.5 million in reserves. At the same time, Delray Beach spent slightly more than $1 million from its Utilities Department budget to fix the reclaimed water program. <br />The Health Department is expected to complete its review and determine the fine amount in another month or so, which the city can appeal to an administrative judge.<br /> In the draft Jan. 7 letter, called a Civil Penalty Authorization Memo, the county director for the state Health Department said that Delray Beach had adopted a “Cross Connection/Backflow Prevention Program” on July 2, 2008. <br /> “The City then failed to follow its plan,” wrote Dr. Alina Alonso, the director. <br /> The letter also noted Delray Beach benefited financially by not implementing its plan to the detriment of its “residents’ health and welfare.”<br /> “The City benefited from saving money through the years by avoiding or delaying the costs of compliance,” Alexander Shaw, Health Department spokesman, said in a Jan. 28 email to The Coastal Star.<br /> The letter covers 11 potential violations.</p>
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<p><strong>Potential fines add up</strong><br /> The worst one of the 11: failure to provide adequate backflow prevention at 581 locations. Delray Beach will be fined $5,000 for each site or a total of $2.9 million, the Health Department proposes. To ensure the drinking water is safe, backflow preventers must be installed on each connection to stop reclaimed water from flowing back into the drinking water.<br /> Reclaimed water is highly treated wastewater that is suitable only for lawn irrigation.<br /> Eight other potential fines total $34,599.<br /> The letter states the city may be fined for not implementing its cross connection control program, failing to create a public education program about reclaimed water and failing to keep records on each reclaimed water installation.<br /> Two more violations covered failures to notify the public within 24 hours of a cross connection and to report the cross connection to the Health Department within 24 hours. <br /> The remaining three fines would be for failing to evaluate a customer’s property for cross connections and backflow preventers, failing to conduct periodic inspections of its reclaimed water sites and not color-coding the potable and reclaimed water pipes and fixtures.<br /> The letter also proposes fining the city $20,000 for four cross connection problems in the past three years. Cross connections happen when the drinking water supply lines are connected to the reclaimed water lines, and are considered major violations by state health officials.<br /> The city may also be fined $5,000 for lying or making misrepresentations to Health Department regulators about the reclaimed water system. The violation is not part of the Health Department guidelines, but it is included in the state Department of Environmental Protection rules and is considered major, according to the letter.<br />When the Health Department was asked if the city could use its slightly more than $1 million spent so far on fixing the reclaimed water problems to offset the fines, the department’s Shaw wrote: “The city can accurately state that it spent a lot of money to fix the problems, but the city’s expenditures were not spent to reduce the fines, they were spent to bring the reclaimed water program into compliance.”<br /> If the Department of Health insists on the hefty fines, “the city will research its options at that time,” Laurie Menekou, founder and president of Conceptual Communications, wrote in a Jan. 27 email as she answered a question about whether the city would seek to be reimbursed from contractors hired to install the reclaimed water system or to inspect the installations. <br /> Delray Beach hired Menekou’s firm for a flat fee of $59,995 on Dec. 21 to do crisis management public relations. All media questions about reclaimed water go to her.</p>
<p><strong>A notice for customers</strong> <br /> In mid-January, the Health Department leaders sent the draft letter of the proposed violations and a consent order to their Environmental Protection counterparts in West Palm Beach and Tallahassee for review. <br /> The consent order is an agreement between the Health Department and Delray Beach over its reclaimed water program. The order still has to be reviewed by a judge.<br /> As part of the proposed consent order, Delray Beach would be required to issue this public notice: “The City of Delray Beach cannot assure utility customers that the drinking water produced and distributed met the standards of the Safe Water Drinking Act for the period from inception of the reclaimed water service beginning in 2007 to the time reclaimed water was deactivated on February 4, 2020.”<br /> On Aug. 10, the city emailed its residents saying Delray Beach potable water is safe to drink and meets all quality standards set by the state Health and Environmental Protection departments and the U.S. EPA.<br />The city and the state health officials have been in discussions all along.<br /> Jennifer Alvarez, the interim city manager, told commissioners at their Jan. 19 meeting that Health Department leaders would talk again with the city before the violations are made final and that she promised to meet individually with the commissioners. <br /> “The Department, as a courtesy, will notify the city prior to emailing the consent order,” wrote Shaw, the department spokesman.</p>
<p><strong>‘Unable to refute’ charges</strong><br /> On Jan. 2, 2020, a South Ocean Boulevard homeowner called the department to say she was not adequately informed about a cross connection found at her house in December 2018.<br /> The complaint triggered a Health Department investigation into the city’s reclaimed water program that has lasted more than a year. <br /> On Feb. 4, 2020, the city was forced to turn off its reclaimed water system to avoid a citywide boil-water order triggered by the resident’s complaint. The system was turned back on in phases, with 90% of the service restored by the end of June.<br /> Delray Beach’s Utilities Department hired inspectors to review each reclaimed water location for cross connections.<br /> Then the city examined each site for backflow preventers. It found that 194 backflow devices had not been installed on the barrier island. <br /> Delray Beach has used outside contractors to design, build and inspect the reclaimed water system. In the last area of the barrier island where reclaimed water was installed, 21 of 156 locations did not have backflow preventers. <br /> Most of the city’s contracts called for the city to provide the backflow preventers and have a dedicated staff member inspect their installations. That employee, called a cross connection specialist, was supposed to work alongside a representative of the firm hired to do the final inspections.<br /> Various utilities employees had this inspection work as part of their job duties, but no one was hired solely to do the inspections. <br /> In early May, then-City Manager George Gretsas said the program was botched from its start in 2007. Eight weeks later, in late June, the City Commission suspended Gretsas for allegedly bullying an employee over the reclaimed water problems. <br /> The commission fired him in November over other misconduct charges. Gretsas has received more than $150,000 in salary and benefits since he was suspended in June.<br /> On July 1, the Health Department sent a warning letter to the city, listing 13 possible water violations. During a July 22 meeting between the Health Department and city leaders to discuss the regulatory concerns, “the city staff stated that while they were not at the city when all of the violations occurred, they were unable to refute any of the allegations in the warning letter,” according to the draft penalty letter. <br /> In April, the city hired a firm to do a forensic study of its reclaimed water system. The city paid $20,000 for a report that was supposed to include determining responsibility for installing and inspecting the backflow devices. <br /> The investigator, Fred Bloetscher, president of Public Utility Management & Planning Services Inc., did not find a culprit because of the limited records the city gave him. Instead, according to his Oct. 23 report, Bloetscher found that Delray Beach did not have a point person in charge and lacked “institutional control” over the reclaimed water system.<br /> “To complicate the problem, the City cannot test the majority of the current backflow devices because they … are buried,” Bloetscher wrote in a Jan. 27 email to The Coastal Star. “Backflow devices should be located above ground to prevent cross connections with stormwater/flooding.” <br /> Meanwhile, in the summer months of July through September, the Utilities Department paid a vendor $2,945 to remove reclaimed water meters from four oceanfront properties, including one Ocean Boulevard property where a cross connection was found in April. <br />The city passed an ordinance in 2007 making it mandatory to connect to reclaimed water if lines are laid nearby. It was unclear why these meters were removed.<br /> The city also has hired outside counsel as it goes through the Health Department investigation process. The Lewis, Longman & Walker law firm was hired in mid-December to advise and represent the city in the reclaimed water investigation and pending enforcement action by the Health Department and by the state DEP regarding alleged potable water system violations. The firm’s governmental rate is $325 an hour. Alfred Malefatto, an environmental law attorney in the firm’s West Palm Beach office, and Frederick Aschauer in the Tallahassee office will represent Delray Beach. Aschauer specializes in environmental regulation and agency enforcement of permits. </p></div>Boca Raton: County fines Camino Real contractorhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/boca-raton-county-fines-camino-real-contractor2019-07-31T14:28:11.000Z2019-07-31T14:28:11.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p class="p1"><span class="s1"><b>By Steve Plunkett</b></span></p>
<p class="p3">After missing a June 20 target for reopening the Camino Real bridge and then a less definite goal “towards the end of July,” Palm Beach County officials on July 30 had not committed to a new opening date.</p>
<p class="p3">Deputy County Engineer Tanya McConnell said contractor Kiewit Construction had two milestones to meet as part of its $8.9 million contract, one for the opening of the bridge and the other for completion of the project.</p>
<p class="p3">“The contractor has been put on notice that they are currently incurring $10,000 per day for the opening and about $3,000 per day for the overall contract,” McConnell said in an email to County Commissioner Robert Weinroth.</p>
<p class="p3">The work is still being inspected, McConnell said.</p>
<p class="p3">“We have a separate company doing the inspections called AE Engineering. We also have our county inspection staff in an oversight role,” she said.</p>
<p class="p3">The bridge closed to land traffic on April 12, 2018. Crews started working nights in mid-May to meet the anticipated June 20 reopening. </p></div>Ocean Ridge: House rental rules lack teeth, some sayhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-house-rental-rules-lack-teeth-some-say2013-07-03T18:09:22.000Z2013-07-03T18:09:22.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><strong>By Tim O’Meilia</strong><br /> <br />Owners who rent out their single-family homes in Ocean Ridge will now have to register each rental property at Town Hall for $50 annually.<br /> But some residents say the rental registration will do little to discourage short-term rentals in single-family neighborhoods. <br /> “It’s not going to do anything to the bad guys,” resident Bernd Schulte told the Town Commission at the June 3 meeting after members voted 4-0 to institute the registration requirement. “The good guys are going to register, but the bad guys aren’t. I think you’re wasting your time.”<br /> Residents have complained that weekly and even biweekly rentals disrupt single-family neighborhoods and that renters have no investment in the upkeep and security of the neighborhood.<br /> Town law allows homes to be rented for a minimum of 30 days and forbids homes from being occupied by more than five unrelated persons. <br /> The registration law does not apply to apartments or dwellings governed by a condominium association or cooperative.<br /> Violators could be fined up to $250 for a first offense and $500 for further violations. But some residents pointed out that one oceanfront estate rented for $8,000 a week and that a $250 fine would be little deterrent.<br /> “I would really like to see something that carries a strong penalty,” said resident Betty Bingham. She also wants the 30-day rental minimum expanded. “The issue is we’re not correcting the problem.”<br /> In March, Police Chief Chris Yannuzzi said 14 complaints of short-term rentals were made, but most at the same property. He said enforcement typically depends on neighbors filing a complaint.<br /> “This is still going to rely on our neighbors to complain,” Commissioner Gail Adams Aaskov said. “This all seems a little ridiculous,” said Debbie Brookes, whose husband, Ed, is a commissioner. “It’s only going to be enforced if they register. Basically, this ordinance doesn’t have any teeth.”<br /> <strong> In other business, the Town Commission:</strong><br />• Edged toward reversing decades-old plans to phase out the town’s only commercial strip, asking Town Manager Ken Schenck to negotiate the cost of a change in the town’s comprehensive plan to allow both commercial and residential uses at the 5011 building on North Ocean Boulevard at the town’s south border. The two-story, five-store and four-apartment property is scheduled to become residential-only in July 2014. Building owner Lisa Sivitilli agreed to bring plans to spruce up the strip for continued commercial use. The building houses a barber shop, real estate office, a triathlon shop, The Coastal Star and an empty store. The plan changes could cost $10,000.<br /> • Approved spending $213,000 from town reserves for drainage repairs to the Inlet Cay cul-de-sac.<br /> • Tentatively approved, by a 3-1 vote, a $1,000 bonus to retiring police Sgt. Eve Eubanks. Commissioner Ed Brookes said the bonus violates a policy set by the commission two years ago to give $100 bonuses for each year after 20 years to retiring employees. Eubanks was a 15-year employee. Ú</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Short-term home rentals becoming an issuehttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-short-term-home-rentals-becoming-an-issue2013-04-03T19:38:37.000Z2013-04-03T19:38:37.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><strong>By Tim O’Meilia</strong><br /> <br />The owners of single family homes for rent in Ocean Ridge may soon have to register with Town Hall, perhaps triggering annual fire and housing inspections. <br /> Town commissioners said they want to discourage the use of homes as short-term hotels in single family neighborhoods, a practice that annoys neighbors.<br /> Current town ordinances allow homes to be rented for a minimum of 30 days and forbid homes from being occupied by more than five unrelated persons. <br /> “It’s more of an enforcement issue,” said Commissioner Zoanne Hennigan at the April 1 Town Commission meeting. “I’m not sure what else we can do. Read the newspaper [ads], listen to the neighbors and enforce the 30-day rule.”<br /> Police Chief Chris Yannuzzi said police dealt with 14 complaints in March, although most of them were at a single address.<br /> “You can read the newspaper and see that people are renting for less than 30 days,” said Mayor Geoffrey Pugh.<br /> Commissioners asked Town Attorney Ken Spillias to draw up a proposed ordinance after he asked for further direction resulting from a discussion in March. <br /> The commission will have to decide later whether a fee will accompany the registration and how steep the fine may be for a violation. Spillias said a violation could lead to a fine and a failure to pay the fine could lead to a criminal misdemeanor and, finally, a court injunction. <br /> The new regulation would not apply to multifamily buildings, including apartments or condominiums. <br /> Spillias said other towns, such as Delray Beach and Hypoluxo, have grappled with regulating short-term rentals at great expense. Some have required inspections, issued decals to cars and asked for owners to supply copies of leases.<br /> “The staff you have now would not be able to deal with that kind of system,” Spillias said.<br /> Delray Beach, in particular, has had an ongoing discussion over drug rehabilitation halfway houses in residential areas. <br /> Spillias said that the experience of other towns has shown that the most effective enforcement mechanism is the complaints by neighbors. <br /> In other business, Commissioner Lynn Allison was sworn in for another three-year term. She was unopposed in the March election. <br /> Commissioners unanimously chose Pugh as mayor for another year. Allison was selected as vice mayor. </p></div>Boca Raton: Red-light cameras coming to 5 intersectionshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/boca-raton-redlight-cameras2010-11-03T20:55:56.000Z2010-11-03T20:55:56.000ZScott Simmonshttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/ScottSimmons<div>By Margie Plunkett<br /><br />Smile for the cameras when you drive through five busy intersections in Boca Raton that are targeted for installation of red light cameras. You might not be happy later: Get caught running a red light and you can count on getting a $158 ticket in the mail.<br />The cameras take multiple photos of vehicles going through the detection zone: as a vehicle approaches the red light, in the intersection and then of the license plate.<br />“There’s no confusion about who is running a red light,” said Assistant Chief of Police Edgar Morley.<br />The pictures of the violations are sent to the Police Department, where they’re reviewed and if confirmed, the vendor sends off a notice of violation.<br />The cumulative tickets could raise up to $800,000 in net revenue for the city, which won’t have any outlay for the equipment, Morley told commissioners at their Oct. 12 workshop. <br />The camera vendor does receive a fee for each “approach” where the cameras are mounted. There are typically four approaches at each intersection.<br />While the council members voted to install a system, a vendor must still be chosen. The system could go in as soon as 60 to 90 days after a vendor is selected. After the system is in place, drivers will have a 30-day warning period before the city starts issuing violations, Morley said.<br />The red light system is allowed by the Mark Wandall Traffic Safety Act, enacted last July 1.<br />You might want to get your excuses in order. There are a few ways to get off the hook after being caught on camera. One is to show the traffic ticket you were already issued at the time of the violation by the officer waiting on the other side of the intersection. Others include if you were in a funeral procession or if you were waved through the light by a traffic officer. <br /><br />Chosen Intersections<br />Boca Raton is proposing red light cameras at five notoriously busy intersections:<br />Eastbound/Westbound Glades Road and NW 15 Avenue<br />Northbound St. Andrews and Yamato Road<br />Southbound St. Andrews and Glades Road<br />Eastbound Clint Moore Road and Military Trail<br />Eastbound/Westbound Glades Road and St. Andrews Boulevard<br /><br />Who Shares the Fine?<br />How a $158 fine is distributed<br />Amount/Recipient<br />$70 Fla./General Fund<br />$10 Fla./Dept. of Health Administrative Trust Fund<br />$3 Fla./Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund<br />$75 Municipality <br />SOURCE: City of Boca Raton<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div>