Another vacation rental property is in hot water with the city of Anna Maria.
Special magistrate Gerald Buhr, an attorney from the Tampa-based Saxon Gilmore & Carraway law firm, ruled July 26 that property at 205 S. Bay Blvd. is a public nuisance after reviewing three citations against renters for noise violations in six months and testimony from affected neighbors.
City code deems three or more violations at a single property within a rolling 12-month period evidence of a public nuisance.
The designation allows the city to pursue litigation against property owners and managers for injunctions for relief.
In May, Buhr declared property at 313 Magnolia Ave. a public nuisance in response to five noise violations there by renters from June 2021-March 2022.
City commissioners reached consensus later that month to pursue litigation against the owner, Mangoes on Magnolia LLC, seeking a court-ordered one-year suspension of rental activity.
The rental property at 205 S. Bay Blvd. is owned by Beach to Bay Investments and managed by AMI Locals.
Developer Shawn Kaleta is president of Beach to Bay Investments and manager of AMI Locals.
City code enforcement manager Sandy Olson presented the case against the property, where three noise violations occurred from Sept. 5, 2021 to March 5.
Olson asked the property be declared a public nuisance and for costs of $150 in administrative fees, $63.68 for postage and $100 for court reporter costs.
Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Adesh Ragoonanan, who issued citations at the property, testified that the noise he experienced late at night there included loud music, talking and screaming.
Two nearby property owners also testified against the property, including full-time residents Tara O’Brien and Chris Siddall.
O’Brien of 520 Magnolia Ave., said noise from the property regularly impacted her household members’ ability to sleep despite being located three houses away and around a corner.
She said one recent incident around 1 a.m. involved a DJ performing for a wedding party.
Siddall, owner at 523 Spring Ave., said he’s called the MCSO “innumerable” times to report noise at the property, including an estimated 8-10 times this year. He said, while he’s only complained about nighttime noise, the noise issues also creep into the day.
“The shouting, the screaming, the yelling that comes from that property — it’s out of control,” Siddall said. “It’s not Vegas.”
Attorney Louis Najmy of the Bradenton-based Najmy-Thompson law firm represented Beach to Bay Investments and AMI Locals at the hearing.
Najmy said he wouldn’t contest the validity of the violations but said his clients are cooperative and working to prevent further issues — something he said they’d accomplished since the last violation.
Eric Pullen, AMI Locals property manager, said the company has implemented measures to communicate the noise ordinance to guests, including on booking platforms and the guest portal, as well as informing guests about the rules via pre-arrival phone calls.
“We’re working to try to be a good neighbor,” Pullen said. “There’s no other company out here on the island that’s taken the steps we’ve taken.”
Najmy added that AMI Locals manages hundreds of rental properties throughout the city and this was the only one that’s had noise violations.
City attorney Becky Vose said the property’s 18-person occupancy, which it maintains due to a Bert Harris victory against the city, set the property apart from others and may encourage people to book it as a “party house.”
Buhr said he found the city’s evidence substantial, declared the property a public nuisance and awarded the city it’s requested $313.68 in fees from the defendants.
Mayor Dan Murphy said July 28 that he was “very pleased” with the ruling, calling the vacation rental the “second worst house in the city” for noise violations.
He said it was “up to the city” — city commissioners — on how they would like to proceed with the matter, but didn’t discuss potential legal action.