Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/356321
Asked how long the business owners would have to pay the total, Bossard replied that he had not checked the appropriate statute yet. On July 25, he and Wittmer said they felt the period was 30 days from the date the order is entered into the legal record. Kevin Burns, the county Code Enforcement officer who handled the case, asked Wittmer to impose a one-time fine of $250 and a subse- quent fine of $150 per day from May 21 until the date of compliance for each item on the punch list that was not completed within the time frame she set on March 21. However, Wittmer told Burns and Bossard that she had envisioned a customized penalty because of the different target dates. Bossard responded that the overarching con- sideration was that the business still was operating without a Certificate of Occupancy, but Burns conceded, "It's an unorthodox case. … We want to motivate an end to the situa- tion …" "We were encouraged that they've taken some steps to get this done," Bossard added. "I'm very pleased with the progress everyone has made," Wittmer said. At various points during testimony provided by county employees and also Sarasota realtor Mike Seery, who described himself as acting on behalf of the business as a friend of the owner, Aker worked to show that misleading comments and insufficient information from Howard Berna, environmental supervisor for Sarasota County (left), talks with Assistant County Attorney Scott Bossard on July 25. Photo by Rachel Hackney Sarasota News Leader August 1, 2014 Page 60