Make no mistake, this is an expensive tree house.
There appears to be no end in sight for property owners looking to keep their beachfront tree house in Holmes Beach.
The Holmes Beach special magistrate for code enforcement issued a $50 per day from July 22, 2015, until the city finds the property “to be in compliance”— and as of May 24, the fine is $15,350.
While the fine is substantially less than requested by the city, the clock for the beachfront tree house continues to tick.
The mediator, Kelly M. Fernandez of Persson & Cohen, a city-contracted law firm in Lakewood Ranch, issued the May 23 decision against tree house owners Lynn Tran and Richard Hazen.
Tran and Hazen built the tree house at 103 29th Street in 2011 without city or state permits and, according to the owners, after city officials led them to believe a permit was not necessary.
The fine start date is the day the 2nd District Court of Appeal denied the owners’ motion for rehearing.
The 2nd DCA affirmed the circuit court ruling, which upheld a city code board decision ordering the owners to pay fines, comply with the code or remove the tree.
At a May 4 hearing, the city asked the magistrate to fine the owners $148,500 or $500 a day beginning Sept. 16, 2014, the date when the circuit court upheld the code board order.
The cost to build the tree house? Estimated at $50,000. The fine? $15,350 and growing. The cost for the legal battle… apparently, limitless.