My role is to be a liaison between South Beach residents and the Code Enforcement Division of the City of Fort Pierce. I am also a volunteer researcher with Code Enforcement. The goal of code enforcement is to maintain compliance with City Codes adopted by the City Commission that establish minimum standards for health, safety, and general welfare as well as to regulate conditions to prevent the creation of substandard living conditions within the City.
Code Enforcement Officers work hard to support our community here in South Beach. 238 Violations were issued here in 2019 – and this does not count the many warnings issued. The top 5 categories were:
#1, Doing business without a tax /conditional use required, which is related to short term/vacation rentals;
#2, Landscape/lot clearing, which is related to landscape maintenance and mowing needed;
#3, Expired permit/permit required/unlicensed contractor; this item had a significant increase over 2018!
#4, Outside storage/accessory structures/fences/containers;
#5, External property and structure maintenance required.
Other Violations included interior issues, nuisance, non-operable vehicles, safety (covered windows), and parking. If you have questions about City Codes, all codes are on the City website, or you can call the department. Welcome brochures are available that explain some of the most common code requirements in our community. I would like to take this opportunity to remind you all of a few of these:
- Rental of any property for less than 6 months requires a Business Tax Receipt issued by the City. A BTR requires an approved Conditional Use Permit plus sales and tourism tax receipts in all residential districts. The State has many additional requirements to rent for less than 30 days, including a DBPR license and a long list of building and accessibility requirements.
- If you are doing any improvements to your property, please check with the Building Dept. to determine if a permit and/or a licensed contractor is required.
Vehicles cannot park on streets, sidewalks, right of ways, or on front lawns within the City and must be licensed. - Walton Rocks is the only pet-friendly beach and park in St. Lucie County, and pets must be on a leash and cleaned up after within the entire City.
- Fireworks are illegal in the City – this includes beaches and parks.
- Golf carts must be licensed to legally drive them in the City. This is a State requirement.
If you have issues concerning Code Enforcement, feel free to talk to me or a Code Officer, or use the City’s app, SeeClickFix, which can be found on the City website or in your app store. We need all of you to be eyes and ears to maintain this beautiful community – if you see something, say something. Please get involved in ensuring that our neighborhoods maintain high standards. Thank you!