Sinkhole tracking working
BROOKSVILLE –
Last summer, county commissioners adopted a tough new sinkhole ordinance designed to better track claims and protect prospective homeowners.
The beefed-up tracking has worked, says Kevin Johnston, valuation services supervisor with the Hernando County Property Appraiser’s Office.
But the ordinance has done nothing to curtail the number of claims. In fact, they’ve increased.
“It hasn’t slowed them down,” Johnston said.
Since July 1, the property appraiser’s office has added 1,773 confirmed sinkhole activity claims to its database.
And only four months into this year, there already have been 816 confirmed sinkhole activity reports, he said.
Johnston estimates a $155 million loss in market value for 2012, resulting from sinkhole claims in the residential and commercial sectors. That number is expected to increase to at least $175 million by the time the tax rolls are certified in June.
The Hernando County Property Appraiser’s Office closed out 2011 with 1,655 reports of sinkhole activity, Johnston said. That compares with 877 during 2010 and 402 in 2009.
Not repairing those homes tends to devalue other houses in the immediate area, which further compounds the problem.
An even more startling statistic: From 2005-11, a total of $283 million has come off the tax rolls because of sinkholes.
County Commission Chairman Wayne Dukes said the intent of the new ordinance was not to stop sinkholes but to better track them so residents wouldn’t be stuck with a home that may or may not have sinkhole activity on the property.
The problem continues to escalate, he said.
State legislators last year recognized that bogus sinkhole claims was eating away at county budgets. So they amended existing law to make sure homeowners repair legitimate sinkholes on their property.
“It has helped but it hasn’t stopped the numbers,” Dukes said. “It’s forced people more so now than in years past to fix their house.”
The new ordinance requires the issuance of a permit by the county prior to any investigation. All such investigations and remediation activities are required to be monitored by a state-licensed engineer or geologist, who must submit a final report to the building department outlining their findings.
The whole idea was supposed to make for a more consistent and complete process from the whole process — from investigation to remediation.
Formerly, there was no mechanism in place to record or track such investigations. That opened the door to bogus sinkhole claims that cost taxpayers money.
In related news, former County Administrator David Hamilton, who filed for tax relief last summer because of suspected sinkhole activity, has not begun repairs on his property.
The county building department shows no permit was pulled to begin sinkhole repairs at 10331 Audie Brook Drive, in the Seven Hills area of Spring Hill.
Johnston said he’s seen sinkhole claims drag on for years as homeowners deal with insurance companies.
“I’ve seen people get remedy within three months and sometimes it takes two years,” Johnston said.
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