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Commissioners reduce $140,201.69 lien to $5,000 for Cheuleota property over unpermitted sign
Summary
The board unanimously approved a reduction of a long‑accrued code‑enforcement lien tied to an unpermitted sign on a vacant parcel in Cheuleota, after the current owner said the prior owner had removed signage and the property was brought into compliance in 2024.
The Seminole County Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to reduce a $140,201.69 code‑enforcement lien on a vacant Cheuleota parcel to $5,000.
Alexis Valley, code enforcement clerk, told the board the case began with a citation in January 2022 for unpermitted signage. The code enforcement board issued findings and deadlines in April and orders of noncompliance in January 2023; fines continued to accrue until an affidavit of compliance dated Aug. 22, 2024, which Valley said left an outstanding lien of $140,201.69 that included daily fines and administrative costs.
The current owner purchased the parcel in 2024 by quitclaim deed and submitted written authorization for an applicant to pursue a lien reduction. At the podium, the applicant, identified only as Nikolai, said the large lien resulted from a “big misunderstanding” and that his brother had taken the sign down but left it on the ground. “It was just big miscommunication at the end of day,” Nikolai said.
Commissioner Hurr expressed concern that repeated large reductions could weaken code enforcement and asked whether neighbors had suffered years of a commercial sign in a residential area. Commissioner Lockhart said she would support the reduction but agreed with Hurr’s point and said the county’s new code‑enforcement manager should bring fresh review of the program.
The applicant asked that the board return his $500 application fee; the motion that passed did not grant a refund. The board authorized the chairman to execute a satisfaction of lien upon payment of the approved reduced amount.
Action: the board approved reducing the lien to $5,000 and recorded the satisfaction upon payment. Commissioners voted unanimously on the motion.
