To provide our citizens with the highest quality of service and to uphold and enforce Codes and Standards established to protect the Public Health, Safety and Welfare of all residents, business owners and visitors based upon priorities which are consistent with established standards. Courtesy and professionalism will serve as guiding principles which will permeate the character of the Code Enforcement office, thereby ensuring that our determination to deter blight within the City is tempered with sensitivity and compassion.
Code Compliance Procedures and Methods
Procedures
Once a complaint is received alleging a violation a case is opened and assigned, Chapter 162 of the Florida Statutes states that an officer must have reasonable cause to believe that a person has committed a civil infraction in violation of a code of ordinance, and that reasonable cause must be due to the officer’s personal investigation. The officer assigned to the case must, through his or her own personal investigation, first verify that a violation exists at the property.
If the officer is unable to verify a violation exists, the case is closed as unfounded.
After verifying that a violation does exist, the officer must make the determination as to how best to bring the property into compliance with the Ordinance.
Keep in mind the City’s desire to obtain voluntary compliance via education if at all possible. Each violation must be looked at on a case-by-case basis to determine which avenue would be the best to gain voluntary compliance in the least amount of time.
Since voluntary compliance is not always possible, each case must be worked with the understanding that it may end up in front of the City’s Special Magistrate.
Methods
If after notifying the person in charge of the property that there is a violation on the property, how to correct the violation and is given a reasonable amount of time to make the corrections.
Special Magistrate:
Special Magistrate is a quasi-judicial body whose creation is enabled by Chapter 162, Florida Statutes, which was enacted into law by the Florida Legislature in 1980.
The Special Magistrate hears the facts and determines under the law whether or not the alleged violator committed the alleged violation.
The City of Deland Special Magistrate is an attorney under contract with the City and is authorized to impose administrative fines and other noncriminal penalties to provide an equitable, expeditious, effective, and inexpensive method of enforcing any codes and ordinances in force within the city. The maximum fine the Special Magistrate can apply is $250.00 per day and $500.00 per day for a repeat violation.
A repeat violation is the same violator, the same violation. Not necessarily the same address.
Duties & Responsibilities
Code Enforcement Officers (CEO) are also employed by the Building Division. The officer enforces a broad range of land use ordinances to assure that a healthy, safe and attractive environment is maintained for DeLand's residents. Code enforcement services are provided in response to citizen complaints, but work efforts also include proactive enforcement and educational components designed to promote compliance with adopted regulations.