Bay County magistrate affirms abatement costs, sets compliance deadlines and reduces fines in multiple code-enforcement cases

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. — Bay County Special Magistrate Tiffany Sardo on July 10, 2025 accepted code-enforcement recommendations in a series of hearings that imposed abatement costs, adjusted fines and set compliance deadlines for several properties across the county.

Most immediately, the magistrate left in place a February 13 order for the property at 9407 Indian Bluff Road and gave the respondent 30 days to comply. Austin Bruce Savage, who identified himself as living at 300 Johnson Bayou Drive, told the magistrate he had removed “close to about 15,000 pounds of trash” from the structure and that an engineer was scheduled to walk the house around July 14. The magistrate said she was “completely inclined to keep that order in place and now give you the 30 days to get that taken care of,” and instructed code enforcement to report back; a compliance hearing was set for Aug. 14 at 1 p.m.

Why it matters: the magistrate’s rulings can require property owners to pay abatement costs that may become liens against the land and, if unpaid, may be placed on property tax rolls under Bay County’s enforcement procedures.

What the magistrate decided and other results

- 9407 Indian Bluff Road (Case 20241067): The magistrate ordered that the respondent be responsible for abatement costs the county had incurred as of July 10 — recorded by code enforcement as $3,300 plus statutory interest — and kept the February 13 order in force, giving the respondent 30 days to comply. Austin Bruce Savage described…