Latest news with #LauderdaleLakes
CBS News
3 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
Businesses cite licensing, permitting delays as they exit Lauderdale Lakes for friendlier cities
Delays in licensing and permitting are driving some small businesses out of Lauderdale Lakes, according to property managers and tenants who said they have waited months or even years for city approval. "I haven't got my license yet," said Neil Seeram, owner of Everglades Door and Glass. Two years ago, Seeram's company moved into a 1,500-square-foot warehouse in the Lauderdale Lakes Business Park. He said he was prepared to pay the city whatever it took to secure an occupational license, which is required to operate a business. He applied but is still waiting. City staff allowed him to use the warehouse without the license, Seeram said. But his growing company struggled so much to get permits for upgrades that staying put felt impossible. The company is now moving to Sunrise, where Seeram said city staff issued an occupational license within one week of his application. "I couldn't wait fast enough so I can get out of here so I can do business without the stress," Seeram said. "As it is, business is stressful. But having to deal with the city (of Lauderdale Lakes) and everybody else, it's just a hassle." Josh Levy, Seeram's landlord and chief operating officer for Levy Realty Advisors, said his company has seen a pattern. "We've had a number of businesses that have left the park over the last few years for this same reason," Levy said. The Lauderdale Lakes property lies between I-95 and the Florida Turnpike and is also the focus of an ongoing dispute over fines. The city issued more than $700,000 in liens for code violations tied to Varoon Welding, a tenant. Vashish Ragohoonath, owner of Varoon Welding, said the violations stemmed from renovations done without a permit. More than a year later, he said his shop is up to code but still not cleared to fully reopen. "Every time that we submit something to the city, we gotta wait three, four months before we can get a replay and they add something every time we submit something," Ragohoonath said. He said the delays have cut his workforce to four employees—half the number he needs—and have pushed the business to the brink of closure. It is a risk Seeram said he is unwilling to take. "I'm good to go," Seeram said. "I'm moving in (to Sunrise) now." CBS News Miami contacted a spokesperson for the City of Lauderdale Lakes and Mayor Veronica Edwards Phillips. Both deferred comment to the city's director of development services, who did not respond to messages seeking comment. Last month, however, that director of development services convinced the city commission to invest in OpenGov software in order to streamline the permitting process and increase transparency.
CBS News
18-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Lauderdale Lakes adopted budget shows increased revenue through code enforcement
Code inspections, months-long delays and fines are causing frustrations for some residents of Lauderdale Lakes. CBS News Miami investigated the matter and uncovered budgeted plans to raise revenue through code enforcement as taxpayers fight six-figure liens caused by code compliance delays. "It's shocking," attorney Ari Pregen, who represents three taxpayers facing liens, said. Fines to generate revenue In the city's adopted budget for fiscal year 2025, the Lauderdale Lakes city manager said "revenues that support specific activities remained flat," the document said. The city manager added that "future years may not be able to absorb increases in expense with no adjustments to fees." "During the upcoming fiscal year, staff has been challenged to seek strategies to reduce expenses and/or create new revenue opportunities," the document said. Under General Fund revenues, staff projected $300,000 from code enforcement liens and another $4,000 from code compliance citations, according to the budget. That is a 161.6% increase, the document said. "Obviously, times are tough," Pregen said. "But what they're trying to do is illegal. We have the excessive fines clause for a reason. It prohibits excessive fines." City leaders fail to address questions CBS News Miami called Mayor Veronica Edwards Phillips for an explanation and left a voicemail. She did not return the message. This came after she and Commissioner Easton Harrison declined comment ata Chamber of Commerce event Thursday. CBS News Miami also emailed every member of the city commission for comment. None replied. A city spokesperson told CBS News Miami to present questions during public comment of Wednesday's commission meeting. No one on the commission answered those questions, either. "It's egregious," Alan Levy, broker and president of Levy Realty Advisors. said. "There's no excuse." Fines mount after days of waiting for inspections Three years ago, one of Levy's tenants remodeled an office and made a bathroom accessible without proper permits, Levy said. His company spent thousands to satisfy code compliance officers. However, it took more than 1,000 days to verify full compliance. During that time, fines accumulated and the company's lien is $740,000. Kenneth Bordeaux, 82, and his wife Mildred, 80, face $366,000 worth of liens on their duplex. The couple waited more than 220 days for inspectors to verify repairs to violations including a broken window handle and cracked electrical outlet cover. "I don't have much longer," Kenneth Bordeaux said Wednesday. "I bet my life on it." Now, their main source of income and the asset the couple hopes to pass on to their family is in limbo. "I feel like I'm just being beaten with a sledgehammer," Bordeaux said. "I don't understand it." A city spokesperson told CBS News Miami Thursday that "because the matters are pending litigation before a magistrate it would be inappropriate to comment." Pregen and his clients hope staff is willing to change soon.
CBS News
14-05-2025
- CBS News
Elderly couple faces $366,000 in fines over duplex code violations in Lauderdale Lakes
An elderly couple in their 80s is fighting the City of Lauderdale Lakes over more than $366,000 in code enforcement fines on their duplex, a property they said they depend on for income and hope to pass down to family. Fines pile up despite quick repairs, couple said Kenneth Bordeaux, 82, and his wife, Mildred, 80, said they repaired six code violations on the property shortly after inspectors began showing up in March of last year. The violations included issues like broken window handles, cracked electrical outlet covers, peeling paint and minor interior damage. Despite making the fixes, the Bordeauxs said inspectors did not verify compliance for more than 220 days. As a result, $1,500-per-day fines on each violation mounted, according to the couple's attorney, Ari Pregen. "You can't charge someone $65,000 for a broken window crank (or) $55,000 for a broken plate," Pregen told CBS News Miami. "It is absolutely mind-blowing to say we're going to hold your property hostage and we're not going to allow you to do what you want with your property: to pass it on to your next of kin and your loved ones because of window cranks and plastic covers." City offers 10% reduction, but couple says it's not enough The couple applied for a lien reduction, but inspectors offered only a 10% decrease, according to Pregen. Even with the reduction, the Bordeauxs say the remaining amount is unaffordable. "Everything is closed," Kenneth Bordeaux said. "I just want to get this lien over and done with." "I feel like I'm just being beat on with a sledgehammer and I don't understand it," he added. CBS News Miami contacted the city for comment. A spokesperson said the station needed to sign up to speak during public comment at a commission meeting. While commissioners listened to questions during Tuesday's meeting, they did not offer immediate responses. It remains unclear what action, if any, the city will take.
