ANNA MARIA – City officials are working on an amended noise ordinance that if adopted on final reading next month will result in $35 citations being issued for a first noise ordinance violation.
Repeat noise violations will result in significantly higher fines. If the noise violations occur at a vacation rental, the property owner and the property manager or rental agent will be notified and may be subject to future fines.
As a followup to the Anna Maria commission’s Aug. 8 discussion, these proposed changes were discussed in greater detail at the Thursday, Aug. 22 meeting.
When the amended ordinance is adopted on second reading next month, deputies from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Anna Maria Unit will no longer issue warnings if they determine a noise ordinance violation has occurred. They will instead issue a $35 ticket.
“It’s similar to parking tickets. We don’t give warnings on parking tickets. That option is taken away. If in fact, you decide it’s a violation, we want you to issue a $35 citation,” Mayor Dan Murphy told the commission.
If the violator is a vacation rental guest, the property owner and the property manager or rental will be notified.
If the same guest commits a second noise violation, a citation carrying a $200 fine will be issued, and similar $200 citations could be issued to the property owner and the property manager or rental agent.
If a third violation occurs, the violator would be issued a citation carrying a $500 fine, and similar citations would be issued to the property owner and the property manager or rental agent.
The current noise ordinance includes a $500 fine for the first violation. City Attorney Becky Vose has expressed her opinion that a $500 fine for a first offense makes deputies reluctant to issue citations.
The new fine amounts will be addressed in a yet-to-be-adopted city resolution because they can be more easily adjusted, as needed, than fines set forth in an ordinance.
Fining multiple parties
Regarding the city’s ability to fine property owners, property managers and rental agents, Vose said he spoke to Holmes Beach City Attorney Patricia Petruff about this.
The Holmes Beach commission previously considered fining a property owner for the actions of his vacation rental guests, but it was determined that wasn’t legal because the property owner wasn’t aware of his guests’ actions.
Vose said notifying property owners, manager and rental agents of a guests’ first noise ordinance citation will put them on notice and subject them to potential citations and fines as well.
“If these same renters do the same thing over again, I think it might very well be appropriate to also fine the owner because the owner obviously was not strong enough with the renter. And that would be particularly true with a third violation,” Vose said.
Vose said the enforcement cycle will begin again with each new set of guests.
At the Aug. 8 meeting, Vose said a property cited three times for a violation could be deemed a public nuisance. She’s previously stated a property deemed a public nuisance could lose its ability to function as a vacation rental.
Sheriff’s Office support
Sgt. Mike Jones previously told the commission most of the city’s noise complaints are resolved with a warning, but last week he said he supports this new approach.
“I think the $35 fine is a good way to start the process. I like the idea. I support it,” he told the commission.
Jones said this also will make it easier to track where the noise violations occur.
Commissioner Doug Copeland asked if deputies would still have some discretion as to what constitutes a violation.
Jones said kids playing in a swimming pool at 5 p.m. would probably not rise to the level of a noise violation, but people jumping off the balcony at 10:30 p.m. probably would.
The reports included in last week’s meeting packet noted deputies issued verbal warnings for noise complaints made at 804, 819 and 820 North Shore Drive, 228 Willow Ave., 420 and 422 Magnolia Drive, 207 and 214 Spring Ave. and 204 Oak Ave. All but one of those properties are vacation rentals.
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