A hearing was held for the concrete-filled drainage pipe that flooded the Longwood neighborhood. Here’s what happened

LONGWOOD, Fla. – A woman who confesses this pouring concrete into the sewer pipe in his neighborhood Despite the flooding his neighbors have endured for months, he has until Jan. 8 to fix the problem.

On Thursday, the homeowner returned to a code enforcement hearing where a special judge decided to modify an earlier decision and give him more time to repair the drainage system. fined him $250 per day.

(TIMELINE: The concrete-filled drainpipe saga in Longwood)

The judge noted the landlord’s willingness to work with the county and that the steps he had taken so far before deciding on the Jan. 8 compliance date would now apply.

“I can see what’s going on. I don’t deny it and I’m still moving forward,” he said. “Believe me, I want this to be done as much as everyone else wants it to be done.”

In March, the homeowner went door to door and sent a letter to neighbors explaining his plans to plug the pipe. He claimed there were problems with it and that it was causing subsidence on his property. The letter stated that if someone didn’t do something about it or compensate him, then he would fill it with concrete.

The next month, district staff watched as a mixer truck pulled into the neighborhood and poured concrete into manholes and pipes.

District staff then went to the neighborhood and saw that the streets were flooded. Some neighbors also spoke to News 6 about the problems they face driving and walking in their neighborhoods and concerns that floodwaters are damaging roads and homes.

Before Hurricane Helene moved into Florida in September, the homeowner rented a pump to redirect water into the retention basin, where it was supposed to flow instead of into the street. This alleviated some of the flooding in the neighborhood following heavy rains in the summer and fall.

When a judge overseeing a civil lawsuit between the woman and the Shadow Bay Club Homeowners Association ordered the woman to find a permanent solution in October, she hired an engineer to come up with a plan for repairs.

During Thursday’s law enforcement hearing, a law enforcement officer reviewed the timeline of what has happened since then. It includes meetings with county staff, site visits and construction plans. After the first construction company he hired for repairs canceled their contract because their insurance wouldn’t cover work on private property, he eventually signed with another company on Halloween.

He told the special judge at the hearing that he needed to take out a second mortgage to pay off all the bills he was piling up.

“But I’m doing this,” she said, holding back tears.

Neighbors say his actions are destroying their community.

“It caused people a lot of pain and distress. Some people couldn’t even get their oxygen. “He put people’s lives in danger and gets away with $250 a day?” said Pam Sabia. “He should be ashamed of himself. He’s caused heartache to so many people. It’s not fair.”

Pam Sabia has lived in Shadow Bay for 38 years. He says he and his neighbors are now drowning in legal fees on top of the damage already done.

“We have already saved $70,000 in legal fees. Our club has to pay the price for something we did not do. It was all his fault,” Sabia said. “This whole system doesn’t work.”

Sabia said at a recent HOA meeting, residents were informed that all their fees would increase.

“The homeowners association will triple our dues. Triple!” Sabia said. “And there are a lot of people in our development who are just living off social security, and they were crying at the meeting. They said, ‘We can’t pay this.’”

A special judge initially gave the homeowner who blocked the pipe until Oct. 1 to fix it or face a $250-per-day fine. Now that that order has been changed to Jan. 8, he has more than a month to complete the repair work.

If he fails to comply by the 8th, the special judge said all penalties from the previous order will come into effect. The agenda for Thursday’s hearing shows the amount alone was $11,250.

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