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Redington Beach residents settle feud
By BOB MACPHERSON
Article published on Tuesday, May 27, 2008 |
REDINGTON BEACH – Redington Beach resident Louis Dubon is going to plant a tree. It’s not Arbor Day but the Gulf Boulevard resident will plant the tree to satisfy his neighbor, Lenka Malkova.
Two weeks ago Dubon and Malkova were at Town Hall, participants in a trial de novo (a new look) appeal of a variance given to Dubon by the town’s board of adjustment.
The variance allowed Dubon, who lives at 15572 Gulf Blvd., to place a standby generator 4 1/2 feet from his house.
Malkova filed an appeal citing excessive noise, emissions of carbon monoxide and an eyesore both to her and to people traveling on Gulf Boulevard.
She wants Dubon to do some landscaping around the generator to cut down on the noise the machine makes when it is operating. Dubon balked at Malkova’s request
At the May 6 meeting Mayor Nick Simons asked the two parties if they would be willing to sit down and attempt to work things out. Dubon and Malkova met on May 19 to attempt a compromise. The variance that Dubon received on April 17 was conditioned on Dubon placing some sort of bush or tree to muffle the generator’s noise.
Dubon complained that during the entire May 19 meeting the subject of the landscaping requirement never came up. Malkova’s lawyer Peter Meros countered that it was a condition of the variance that Dubon received and, therefore, he should have been aware of it.
“No, there is no need for landscaping,” Dubon said.
He said bushes or trees too close to the generator would not enable him to open the side doors of the unit and service it.
Meros appeared frustrated at Dubon’s response. “Why he wants to argue over two or three hundred dollars, I have no idea,” he said.
Dubon agreed to place the 34-inch high standby generator on a pad 4 to 6 inches above the ground. A 6-foot wall, he said, would buffer noise from the generator.
Dubon plans to test the generator 10 minutes once a week between noon and 5 p.m.
“I believe that Ms. Malkova has never heard a standby generator,” Dubon said. “An air conditioner runs at 75 decibels. This generator is 65 decibels, quieter then the street noise. Normal conversation is rated at 60 decibels.”
Meros argued that the board of adjustment’s finding required Dubon to plant some sort of foliage in the area immediately around the generator, a condition that still held.
“He did not appeal the variance,” Meros said. “A couple of small trees planted on the west side will still give him room to walk,” Meros said.
Again, the board of commissioners avoided making a decision when Simons urged the two parties to reach agreement over the landscaping issue. Dubon finally agreed to plant a 5-foot high tree 5 feet to the west of the generator between his house and wall.
Town looks at pedestrian safety
The town commission will ask the Florida Department of Transportation to establish a series of pedestrian crosswalks along Gulf Boulevard with blinking yellow signal lights to warn motorists of an impending crosswalk.
Commissioner Michelle Fox, whose duties involve oversight of public safety, said that it will be important to make sure what improvements are made will not lead to a false sense of security by pedestrians and motorists.
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Article published on Tuesday, May 27, 2008
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