Century Seeks To Expand Code Enforcement Agreement
February 8, 2011
The Town of Century is looking to expand the agreement that allows county code enforcement to operate in the town.
Two weeks ago, the council instructed Mayor Freddie McCall to contact Escambia County’s Code Enforcement and seek a cease and desist order against George William Philyaw and the alleged “business” he operates from his home at 120 Front Street.
But Sandra Slay, director of Escambia County Code Enforcement, said the current inter-local agreement between Century and Escambia County does not allow for the enforcement of issues like zoning, solid waste violations and stormwater.
The council voted Monday night to have attorneys for Century and Escambia County draft an amendment to their agreement to allow the county to pursue zoning violations.
At issue with 120 Front Street, according to the town, is whether or not Philyaw is operating a business on property that is zoned residential.
In July 2009, the council voted to deny Philyaw’s request to rezone his property from residential to commercial so he could operate what the town’s consultant, Debbie Nickles, called a “junkyard”. During his rezoning hearing, Philyaw told the town council that he simply collects metal for recycling until he has a “load” and then it is sold.
Pictured top: The property at 120 Front Street in Century. Pictured inset: Escambia County Code Enforcement Director Sandra Slay addresses the Century Town Council Monday night. Also pictured: Mayor Freddie McCall. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
13 Responses to “Century Seeks To Expand Code Enforcement Agreement”
Okay~ let me see, we live in a country where people are encouraged to support themselves; people who are homeless and panhandle are looked down upon. Those who worked to get what they have in life tend to not appreciate those who sit @ home drawing checks and making more babies to get even more checks and foodstamps and have all their medical expenses paid for while some of us retired folks are paying over $1200/month for insurance. And so, what is the problem here??? The man is trying to make a living to support his family. He owns this property. He’s gone by their instructions by putting up a privacy fence at his own expense, so as not to offend the neighbors or passerbyers . He was told he was legal, within the law, trying to clean up ‘mother earth’, so NOW, because one neighbor, who has a two story house nearby, who continues to spy from the top floor, who evidently has $$$ and ‘influence’ in high places, continues to try to come up with someway to make him move~don’t guess they want the property so no one will keep digging and end up ‘diggin’ up bones’~hmmm, makes one wonder!!! People disappear “without a trace”.
Thats what subdivisions are for, everybody has to conform in those, property owners rights dont even exsist anymore, remember when they tried to close down Mr. Neese? and he was there long before those so call resisdents
I think this is all getting very rediculous! Leave the man alone. He is trying to make an honest living to support his family, and all this amounts to is harrassment. You can NOT ‘vote’ someone out of their home even more so when they own their property!!! A “privacy fence” means ‘private’…no one should be looking over anyone’s fence from their home window; that’s nothing more than invasion of privacy~no different than looking in someone’s house windows!
…reporting them to the fire department for having a fire in a woodheater outside???…geez, GET A LIFE and leave the man and his family alone!!!
If you want his property so bad, then just pay for it and they may move somewhere else; harrasssing him is not going to get it!
There’s much worse property and issues the council should be addressing…like abandoned/falling in buildings, and the local drug houses…or then again, those people may be padding someone’s pocket to look the other way!
Why don’t you leave him alone….he is trying to provide a service to the community…while trying to feed his family….no I do not know this man but just use some common sense……he asked for re-zoning…and they didn’t want to do that…is someone after his protperty and want to get it from him without going about it the right way….hmmmm makes you wonder….
Leave him alone, sounds like he does a comunity service picking up and recycling.
this place looks bad. something needs to be done.
just leave the man alone he’s trying to make a living like all of us.
Maybe the town should focus on its own buildings as well. The old pharmacy on Mayo street has a tree growing out of it and the interior roof has collapsed. There’s a hole in the glass front door. It looks terrible every time I go by there to go to church or to the pharmacy. Bet if a citizen owned it there would be a real problem.
Wahoo, look at that offical police like uniform that Sandra Slay is sporting. I’m sure the people of Century are shaking in their boots right about now because the yard police are a comming!
I guess that inter-local thing wasn’t such a good thing if you have to amend it everytime you have an issue. One day we say stay out of our business and the next, come and help. Once, we had a city employee that owed $4000 in water bills. Then we tried to make a poor old lady on hwy 4 pay sewer fees even though she wasn’t on the sewer. Now we are harrassing this Mr.Philyaw because we are the boss. How does this City work? What does it do?
I think we should vote Philyaw out of our treehouse club.
OK, I am sorry about that. Let’s go with the voodoo doll.
Leave the poor guy alone? Really? Century need a deep cleaning starting there and ending on all other properties that look nasty.
I got a better idea. Why don’t we get a doll and name it Philyaw, Then stick needles in it until he gives up. Or just leave the poor guy alone.