Magistrate orders compliance in multiple Martin County code cases; carport dispute continued to March

Martin County’s code magistrate ordered owners of multiple properties to come into compliance with county code by specified dates after a hearing on Jan. 15, 2025, and set fines and costs for failures to comply.

The hearing covered more than a dozen enforcement cases brought by Martin County code investigators. The magistrate accepted the county’s evidence in most matters and entered orders requiring respondents to correct violations such as unpermitted structures, expired permits, nuisance trash and vegetation, and operation by unlicensed contractors.

In one of the opening matters, code investigator Chris Counselor said, “What I observed was that a carport had already been completed without a permit,” describing the property at 3364 S.E. Ellendale Street in Stuart. The magistrate said he had sufficient evidence to find a violation but paused that case to allow county staff and the respondent more time to resolve pending zoning and alternative-compliance review. “I’m gonna move this to the March hearing,” the magistrate told the parties.

Deputy Growth Management Director Peter Walden explained the county’s process for the neighborhood/CRA alternative-compliance route and told the magistrate that the growth-management director “does have that ability for everything other than building height and that type of thing,” meaning staff can grant alternative compliance in some circumstances but, in this case, had not approved the carport.

Among other rulings, the magistrate upheld a citation for an unlicensed contractor at 5273 S.E. Tall Pines Way and sustained citations or issued compliance deadlines in cases involving trailers or pilings left on lots, high grass on vacant parcels, expired or unissued building permits, and unpermitted accessory structures. Where respondents had entered stipulated agreements, the magistrate recorded the agreed compliance dates and administrative…