COCONUT CREEK, Fla. – What do you do if your neighbor decides to make their back yard beachfront property and it starts affecting your property? Local 10 News investigative reporter Christina Vazquez breaks down what you need to know when dealing with your city's code enforcement team and your homeowners association.
"Beachfront property is what he hoped to do," said Linda Beaulieu from her Coconut Creek back yard.
Beaulieu's home is miles from the ocean in the city of Coconut Creek, but her neighbor's creation of a back yard beachfront is creating a problem for her and her lakefront neighbors.
"It's been a concern to us because it effects our property," Beaulieu said.
Beaulieu called the city code enforcement team and her homeowners association, and then she "Called Christina."
"I don't want anything to happen to my property and you can see already where the erosion is," Beaulieu said.
The damage is substantial. Tree roots and underground PVC piping is clearly exposed and the patio is crumbling and falling toward the lake. In some areas, more than a foot of soil is washed away.
The erosion of soil is now dangerously close to the property owner's foundation and creeping toward Beaulieu's property line.
"There's been erosion effecting me," Beaulieu said while tapping her foot on a fence post that was once buried in the ground.
"How did he physically remove all this land," Vazquez asked.
"Just a daily hourly hosing of city water. He would hose for hours," Beaulieu said.
The property is owned by Thomas Cotton, and it's not the first time Cotton turned his back yard into a beach. It was repaired once before.
"In the most recent case, it's been almost a year that we have been seeking compliance," Shelia Rose, director of Sustainable Development for the city of Coconut Creek, said .
This time, the city declared Cotton's home a nuisance property, enabling the city to step in and make repairs to keep his neighbors' properties intact.
"We do have a process that's referred to as a nuisance abatement process, that where a property is causing damage to adjacent properties or where its hazardous to public health and safety the city can go on the property and repair the damage," Rose said.
According to the city of Coconut Creek, Cotton has racked up more than $25,000 in code enforcement fines.
Local 10 News reached out to Cotton, who currently resides at The North Broward Detention Center awaiting trial on a probation violation. He sent us a handwritten letter stating, "Sorry Locked up. No comment. Refer any inquires to my attorney."
The Call Christina team reached out to Cotton's attorney who was listed for him on court records, but she said Cotton fired her.
It's been a long process, but the city and the Winston Park Foundation have begun the restoration process to Cotton's property.
"There will be a lien on the property and us there is a possibility we would attempt foreclosure. The more proactive residents can be and contacting their code enforcement officer about a situation that may be brewing, the earlier we can contact a homeowner," Rose said.
The city of Coconut Creek said that bringing a property into code compliance can take a bit of time. The city must allow owners due process, guaranteeing all legal rights afforded by law to the property owner. That means when bringing a homeowner into compliance, the city cannot ignore the laws infringing on a person's constitutional rights of life and liberty.
"You have to remember that there is a person that lives next to you," Beaulieu said. "And that person deserves to be treated humanely. But you also have to remember that you have to protect yourself in the process."