The homeowner responsible for excessive seagrape trimming in Holmes Beach is looking to settle the matter with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
An Aug. 7 letter and proposed consent order to Jose Vivero of Tampa outlines fines, signs, lighting and experts needed to address the illegal cutting that bared 10-12 trees in April near Manatee Public Beach.
DEP’s water resource manager Jim Martinello set forth the agency positions in the case of DEP vs. Gallicia Enterprises, Vivero’s corporate entity for his 4301 Second Ave. property.
According to Martinello’s letter, the DEP and Vivero “agreed in principal” during a June 1 conference call to the proposed corrective measures. Martinello requests that Vivero sign and return the order no later than Aug. 21.
Under the order, Vivero would be required to pay a $1,000 fine, $500 for an 11-by-14-inch sea turtle lighting sign, and for a certified arborist to provide a detailed management plan and quarterly reports to facilitate and ensure a robust system of branches.
The order also requires Vivero hire a lighting consultant to recommend exterior fixtures that comply with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission guidelines and to install the approved fixtures.
Vivero paid Miguel Guevara of Sunset Tree Service of Sarasota in April to cut the coastal vegetation in order to improve the Gulf view for Vivero’s rental property.
Sunset Tree was identified in the DEP consent order as acting on behalf of Vivero in the excessive cutting of mature seagrape trees.
In July, the DEP was still determining how to deal with Sunset Tree. The company was the same company who illegally cut Holmes Beach mangroves on 28th Street in 2012.
The seagrape trimming took place on public property as well as adjacent private property that is owned by a neighbor.
Vivero had asked the city for permission to cut the trees and had twice been told no, according to Holmes Beach officials.
A call to Vivero’s attorney, Gregory Hagopian of Gallagher & Hagopian of Bradenton, was not returned by The Islander press time.
A state permit is required for seagrape trimming on beachfront property and, if permits are obtained, then only cuts to one-third of the tree’s height are allowed.
The impacted seagrape trees measured about 30-50 feet wide and 20 feet tall before a chain saw chopped them to about half their height, according to DEP and Holmes Beach Police Department reports.
HBPD Chief Bill Tokajer referred the case to the DEP and the 12th Judicial Circuit State Attorney Office, seeking Vivero’s arrest on the charge of trespass after warning.
To resolve a possible criminal case against Vivero, Holmes Beach Mayor Bob Johnson last month recommended a pre-trial intervention agreement.
Johnson’s July 29 letter to Assistant State Attorney Heather Doyle seeks $5,241 to reimburse the city for four new trees, their planting and watering; the cost of the code and police officer investigation and attorney’s fees.
The mayor’s correspondence also includes an invoice from Oceanside Oasis, 102 43rd St., Holmes Beach, for $694.38 in new turtle-friendly lighting, and states the adjacent neighbor “has been damaged by Mr. Vivero’s actions.”
Doyle said Aug. 7 the case is “open and pending,” and she expects to make a filing decision by the end of the month.
About the city’s reimbursement proposal, Suzi Fox, Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring director, said “it’s more than fair.”
“I hope there’s a lesson to be learned here,” she added, saying people need to heed state and city environmental laws.
“People need to remember to think about the wildlife — the wildlife has no voice in it,” Fox said.