Florida homeowners frustrated with trash piles accumulating at vacant home: 'Nothing is getting done'

Florida homeowners frustrated with trash piles

The tropics are heating up, and neighbors in West Melbourne are worried their homes could be in danger because of a nuisance property with trash piles everywhere. Neighbors say a home on Vera Street has been a severe problem for about a year and needs to go now.

WEST MELBOURNE, Fla. - The tropics are heating up, and neighbors in West Melbourne are worried their homes could be in danger because of a nuisance property with trash piles everywhere.

Neighbors say a home on Vera Street has been a severe problem for about a year and needs to go now. FOX 35 News took their concerns to city leaders because several neighbors told us they had called code enforcement several times and were not getting anywhere.

The big concern right now is hurricanes and tropical storms for the neighborhood. People don’t know what exactly is in all the piles, but they’re worried they could cause significant damage to nearby homes.

"Wow! What happened here? "exclaimed K. Lewis, who has lived in the neighborhood for about 14 years and is still shocked by the sight.

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Questions and concerns are growing for the longtime homeowner because she must see the mess daily.

"I open the window, and that’s what I see," said the resident.

Her daughter also worries about the issue and how it could affect public safety.

"In the yard, there are so many projectiles. There are propane tanks. There are so many hazardous materials that if they were to get picked up and thrown at my house during the storm, it would cause catastrophic damage," said Stephanie Lewis, who recently posted about the issue on Facebook, trying to get some help.

West Melbourne residents say a home on Vera Street has been a severe problem for about a year because of piles of trash and needs to go now.

The mom and daughter have lived in the neighborhood for over a decade and say the property wasn’t always like this.

Neighbors say the old homeowner lost their home, and someone squatted there for a year. When that person left, neighbors say they left behind a huge mess.

"I’ve called code enforcement like several times, but they just say they’re taking care of it. Nothing is getting done," said Weedon, another concerned homeowner.

"We’ve called code enforcement so many times," echoed Stephanie. "Only for them to tell us they’ve sent a letter."

FOX 35 obtained a copy of the letter the city sent to a new homeowner about the piles of trash. West Melbourne’s city manager tells FOX 35 in a statement that: "while it looks like a pile of garbage to me, it is located on private property which makes it private property, thus the city must follow our city code to legally either fine, or remove the violation."

According to their records, the city has not issued any fines to the new homeowner who lives in Texas so far and has not received a response.

"It’s not taken care of. It’s just an eyesore," said Weedon. "There’s junk everywhere. There are probably bugs. It’s not good for the neighborhood. That’s for sure."

Neighbors need help and hope something is done before someone gets hurt.

"We’re concerned citizens. We have a right to live in a clean environment," said K. "Since the owner’s not responding, somebody has to take responsibility to clean this mess up because it’s dangerous."

FOX 35 did contact the new homeowner in Texas about these concerns but has not heard back yet.

The city says its next step is to hold a code enforcement hearing, at which point it can decide to start issuing fines and even removing the garbage. The date for that is set for September 19.

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