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Post-storm permit problems continue
Genevieve Curtis reports.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Eleven months after Hurricane Helene swept through the area, some St. Petersburg homeowners said they’re still waiting for the city to issue permits to repair their properties even as hurricane season ramps up again.
The backstory:
In March, city officials acknowledged a backlog of about 1,400 permits following the storm. At the time, the mayor promised all single-family permits would be processed by the end of that month, with a goal of a one-week turnaround going forward.
READ: 'We can’t rebuild': Ruskin family stuck after hurricanes and insurance chaos
Local perspective:
But for residents like Brianna Faenza, those promises haven’t materialized. Faenza said her contractor applied for a permit months ago, yet nothing has moved forward.
Faenza’s Jungle Terrace home took on a foot of water during Hurricane Helene. Her insurance adjuster considered her case straightforward, because she wasn’t rebuilding from scratch, just removing drywall. The insurance check came quickly, and a contractor was hired.
"Here we are 250 days later," Faenza said, noting that the permit still hasn’t been issued.
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In the meantime, she put her home on the market and moved to DeLand. Then in July, she said she was hit with a code violation for unpermitted work – despite still waiting for the city to approve the permit application.
What they're saying:
The city said it initiated code compliance cases at all homes damaged in Helene and Milton that lacked active permits. Faenza called the situation "insane."
"When you’re penalizing the people that are trying to get a permit and do things by the book, it’s just crazy to me," she said.
Dig deeper:
A look at the city’s online code enforcement map shows thousands of cases. In January alone, the city initiated roughly 14,000 cases.
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FOX 13 requested information this week on how many homeowners are still waiting for permits to rebuild and on Faenza’s case specifically. As of this report, the city has not provided answers. However, Faenza said she finally heard from officials shortly after FOX 13 reached out on her behalf.
"I’ve gone to the permitting office in person at least five times… nobody will get back to me," she said. "So just today, I had a lot of movement after you reached out."
The other side:
FOX 13 continues to press the city for information about the permit backlog and will update this story when officials respond.
The Source: Sources for this report include an interview with a homeowner, documents provided by the homeowner, city data online and past statements/coverage made by City of St. Pete.