- April 23, 2024
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Ed Corcoran, a licensed Flagler County landscape contractor since 1990, was surprised to find out last week that he had to pay Palm Coast $115 to re-sod a plot of land.
After his company, Ed Corcoran Complete Lawn & Landscape Service, received a letter which was issued to every city landscaper, explaining that permits and proof of liability insurance are required to re-sod any piece of property more than 400 square feet, he stopped by city offices to ensure that he was up to code. He left after paying $40 for the permit and $75 for a one-time fee to be entered into the permitting database.
According to Permitting and Zoning Supervisor Barbara Bembry, though, this is not a new requirement.
“The city has always required a permit for any type of re-grading (or) clearing of property,” she said. “No one is fined if they don’t have a permit. They are given a notice … There is no penalty.”
But to Corcoran, the problem with the process is not the permitting itself; it’s the specificity toward sod, when other jobs, like leveling trees near houses or power lines, are potentially far more dangerous.
“Nobody from the city ever asks if you have liability insurance when you’re submitting a business license,” he said, citing his own insurance, which he’s had since starting his business. “I just believe they’re asking for it at the wrong time.”
The permitting also has an economic impact, he said.
To lay 400 square feet of sod, Corcoran would normally charge $175. But if landscapers have to make up permitting costs and get their work inspected afterward, sodding jobs might not be worth the time.
“Even though we’re in a down economy,” he said, “this is actually hurting growth.”
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