LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Code Enforcement Oxymoron

There is a lot of talk in county government about the idea of combining some county agencies to help save money. Combining agencies, reducing top heavy management and getting workers to respond to the real needs of the county they serve is of the utmost importance, especially today.

If any of you have ever reported a code violation to the Code Enforcement Office, you must have either given up in frustration or fixed the problem yourself. For example: If your neighbor's house, or the empty house on your street, is left in ill repair, you would expect to be able to call code enforcement and get someone to make sure the problem is taken care of in a reasonable time frame.

Well, if you haven't tried to use this "service," you might as well get your tools out and fix the problem yourself.

First of all, after receiving the call, the office will tell the caller that it may take up to two weeks for someone to respond. Then, after two weeks, if the owner of the reported property hasn't made an effort to fix the problem, code enforcement will give them another 20 days before they apply the notice to the legal system for action - whatever that means. I believe it means a citation that never gets paid.

So, if the grass and weeds next to your house are already three feet tall, don't count on anyone taking any physical action for at least another month or longer, if at all.

Now, I can understand how difficult it may be to get unwilling people to take care of their property, but if the place is abandoned, it shouldn't take much time to legally get someone to cut the grass and pick up wind-blown trash, rather that wait 30 to 45 days to take legal action. The county could save a lot of money by just hiring one or two lawn maintenance companies on retainer to cut the lawns on these abandoned houses and charge the legal owner the cost of doing so. At least that way, the rest of the taxpaying neighborhood doesn't have to live with the mess left behind by the people leaving the area.

One problem is with builders who haven't been able to sell the houses they built. Some of them go into hiding and leave a huge mess without caring about the rest of the people around the neighborhood. Even some of the banks won't take care of their property.

I would cut the grass myself, but I would probably be arrested for trespassing. Besides, when they cleared the lot, they left a lot of stumps in the ground. I'm not ruining my lawn mower.

Fred Greenwalt

Spring Hill

Tax Loophole Repeal Overdue

A 1959 Florida state law was intended to preserve agriculture. A loophole-laden "greenbelt law" allows developers to win farm subsidies (tax breaks) even when they are preparing land for subdivisions and strip malls. This practice, widespread across Florida, places an unfair tax burden on residential and commercial business property owners.

It was recently reported that Hillsborough election chief, Buddy Johnson, received an agriculture tax break after leasing 19.98 acres for $20 per year as grazing for a few cows, reducing the tax value of his property more than $560,000.

An August 21, 2005, Internet report by Miami Herald reporters listed several tax loophole abuses:

• Developer Armand Cordina and his partners pay ranchers to keep cows on their land in northeast Miami-Dade County so they can get agriculture tax breaks while building industrial warehouses. Cordina also requested Miami-Dade to declare a soggy wasteland, littered with downed trees, an environmentally contaminated "Brownfield," resulting in 2004 property tax savings $250,273.

• Developer Pan American purchased a lot to build warehouses; industrial zoning prohibits farming. He won a tax break after paying a rancher to graze some cows on his lot, resulting in a 2004 tax savings of $183,207.

• Sixteen cows were placed on 49 acres amid concrete pads and utility boxes where a developer plans to build homes priced at $1.5 million and up. Broward County appraiser's office denied the application for a tax break; however, a hearing officer overturned the decision. No appeal was filed, resulting in a 2004 tax savings of $140,168.

Of the top 60 tax break recipients in South Florida in 2004, more than two-thirds are not farmers.

An Associated Press report published April 3, 2006: "Orlando-Walt Disney World avoids $1.5 million in Osceola County taxes each year by leasing some of its land to a farmer and claiming almost 650 undeveloped acres as timberland and swamp marsh.

The tax loophole was placed in this law by Florida legislators to benefit land developers at the expense of millions of other Florida property owners. The developers who have not taken advantage of this tax loophole are to be commended.

Our economy is the worst it has been in decades. Anyone who doubts that we are in a recession also must believe in the tooth fairy. What could be a more appropriate time than now to repeal this tax loophole? Its repeal is long overdue. Gov. Crist should call a special session of the Legislature before the November 2008 elections for the sole purpose of repealing this tax loophole.

Darrell W. Weston

Beverly Hills

Replace Rall

I am an admitted conservative, but I can respect and enjoy any liberal point of view that is reasonably grounded in reality and intelligently presented.

Ted Rall does not qualify for my respectability and enjoyment!

I would guess that most conservatives like me must share my feelings. I would guess that most liberals must be just wondering. I acknowledge your requirement to be fair and balanced and provide your readers with opinions from a broad range of conservatives and liberals.

There are liberals, flaming liberals and there are crazy liberals. Ted Rall is a flaming, crazy liberal!

Please do your readers a favor and replace Ted Rall with a liberal who will significantly enhance the respectability and reputation of your newspaper.

Nick Dininni

Spring Hill