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For more information on this project, contact Bob Washam, Environmental Health Director, or Wendy Roberts, PACE EH Coordinator at the Martin County Health Department.

MARTIN COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
May, 2005 PACE EH Report

To:              Daniel Parker, MSP, GAL
                    Assistant Division Director, Division of Environmental Health

From:         Wendy Roberts, PACE EH Coordinator

Date:          May 31, 2005

Subject:     May PACE EH Update
 

We had two meetings during the month of May. The first meeting was held on May 9, 2005. This was an interesting meeting to say the least. We invited the Assistant Director of Utilities, Kenneth Wilson, and the Fire Marshall, Jon Pasqualone to come and educate the Gomez CHEAT about the process for having water lines installed, where the current lines exist, any plans for extending the lines into the neighborhood, and for having fire hydrants installed in their community.

A number of unfamiliar faces started showing up at this meeting. A resident of the community that had never attended a meeting heard about the meeting and was particularly interested on the water lines issue. He apparently informed other members of a community just north of our community about the meeting, so eight residents of the Bayberry came the meeting. It was quite disruptive as the meeting was well underway. We did not know where they were from until Sheila stopped the meeting to let them know they were welcome to be a part of the meeting but that we have an agenda to follow and we were moving on. They were concerned about getting water lines in their neighborhood and Mr. Wilson had already gone through the process which they had missed since the all came near the end of his presentation. They said they heard the meeting started at seven o’clock, it was past seven at this point. They left shortly after along with the Utility Director and the Fire Chief outside.

Both officials were very informative and give the Gomez CHEAT a better understanding of the process of having water lines installed, as well as the requirements for fire hydrants. Chief Pasqualone understood the need for fire hydrants but he can not require placement. If this was a new development he would have a say in the installation of fire hydrants. One of the residents asked a question on issue if homeowner’s insurance and how having near a fire hydrant affects the price of insurance. In regards to homeowner’s insurance and an optimum rate, you must live within 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant and within five miles of a fire station. The closet fire hydrant in located near the library which is three streets away, in other words more than 1,000 ft from the resident’s homes. The issue of vacant houses was addressed to Chief Pasqualone, as to whether or not they might be able to use them for training purposes. He stated they are not actively seeking places to train. He mentioned the fact that the building department has no staff in place to and it is a long process to condemn a house.

Kenneth Wilson spoke about the possibility of having water lines installed in the community. He gave out a map of the community and highlighted where the water lines are currently located. There is a water line on US 1 as well as a sewer line; these are also on Gomez too. There are three possible options in order for the resident to have water lines installed.

1. The citizens pay for it. A majority of homeowners must agree to the construction.
2. A developer pays for it. If a developer came in to build they would have to pay for the water and sewer lines. The current residents would not be required to hook up to the lines. If a main line were to be installed in the community then fire hydrants are required.
3. Grant opportunities.

There are four fees involved when installing a water line. First, the cost of construction; second, the connection of the lines to the house. South Martin Regional Utility will finance the costs if you own a house in the area. The third cost is the property owner pays for the plumbing running from the meter to the house. The fourth fee is the monthly usage fee. Everyone pays the same monthly fee and pays extra for the extra water usage.

Nine wells will be randomly sampled in the community. There is funding through a grant which will enable Environmental Health to sample the wells. One of the team members, Annie Mae, volunteered to find people willing to have their water sampled. She will submit the necessary forms for the water to be sampled at the next meeting. The results will available in the next month or two. If the wells are found to be contaminated more action will follow.

Bob reported on the issue of the vacant houses and reiterated what Chief Pasqualone had previously stated about the building department not condemning houses at this time due to staff shortage. No homes in the neighborhood have been officially condemned as some of team members thought. FEMA had put stickers on the houses to serve as a warning of being an unsafe house. We decided to create a survey to inquire on the status of the vacant houses (see survey). The survey addressed the property owner and was used to document what the owner plans to do with their house.

Three of the team members volunteered to interview the owner’s to ascertain the status of the vacant house. They were to report their findings at the next meeting. Mr. William Morrison refuted the statement of houses not being officially condemned. He stated he has papers showing the condemned house(s). He said he would fax them to the health department. We have yet to see these papers.

We discussed writing a letter to the county commissioner, Lee Weberman, introducing him to the group, the mission statement and goal. All welcomed the idea. Sheila drafted a letter and brought it the second meeting of the month to have everyone read and sign it.

Our second meeting, held on May 23 had consistent attendance of thirteen team members. We invited a guest from the Sheriff’s Office, Laura Passanesi, Community Programs Practitioner. Ms. Passanesi presented some options to help with the issue of speeding on A1A and Pettway. First, she gave a survey for the team to fill out. The survey had three questions on it;

What crime do you feel is most prevalent in your community?
Do you feel there are any other problems within your community that may need to be addressed?
What is your overall opinion of the Sheriff’s Office and its employees?

Ms. Passanesi will present the surveys to her supervisor. With the results of the survey a deputy can be placed in the area if they know when and where the speeding is occurring. They can’t do anything about lower the speed limit from 45 to 35. The traffic and engineering department would have to be contacted about reducing the speed limit. They can conduct a traffic study and counters which could lead to a change in the speed limit on A1A. The Sheriff’s office can provide traffic trailer that can be put on the street to monitor traffic speed which gets people to slow down and make them aware of their speed. A concern of the residents is backing out of their driveway onto the street. Ms. Passanesi motioned the option of caution signs that can be put in drive-ways, they have flashers that let other drivers know the person is backing out. These are all short term solutions as Sheila pointed out we won’t be able to eliminate speeding altogether as there is no permanent solution.

Team members reported on the vacant houses. Hazel King attended the meeting to report on the house Charles Pettway owns. She is the guardian of Mr. Pettway. The house is in litigation but they plan to sell the property on Dixie Highway as soon as possible. She also reported that a house on Williams Drive burned down due to arson. The house also belongs to Charles Pettway.

Two of the owner’s plan to repair their house, but one needs money to do it and is waiting on a permit. The other owner needs to contact his cousin to repair the windows on the house. Another owner has plans to tear down the existing home and rebuild, they are waiting on permits. The county was contacted to find out if the owners had applied for a permit, they had no record of it. This information will be presented at the next meeting. One of the owners is trying to sell her property as it is too far gone for repairs.

The letter to Commissioner Weberman was passed around to team to make any suggestions and for them to sign. The letter was mailed out the following day. It is our hope that Commissioner Weberman will attend future meetings.

We are making steady progress on our four issues as we continue to research the issues and gather more information on what can be done to address the individual issues.

February, 2005

March, 2005

April, 2005