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It is up to her to find a way to dispose of waste. Other than that, unless they can prove that anything she does is a threat the public health they should leave her alone.
Why in the world does anyone desire to live off-grid and still reside within a city ?
Certainly city laws are more stringent than if you lived out in a rural area.
There are a few reasons. One is the attached new fees that keep getting added to your Hydro bill.
Fees that have nothing to do with your use of hydro.
Cities constantly looking for new revenue streams while not looking at balancing their cost side.
If you can build and live off grid, why not? A lower carbon footprint and your lifestyle actually somewhat under your own control? What an amazing All-American concept.
Wow, this is shocking even to someone who's as cynical about the American plutocracy as I am. And of course it happens in the most right wing "small gov't" states. What hypocrisy.
This time, it’s Robin Speronis that’s come under fire. She lives off the grid in Florida, completely independent of the city’s water and electric system. A few weeks ago, officials ruled her off-grid home illegal. Officials cited the International Property Maintenance Code, which mandates that homes be connected to an electricity grid and a running water source. That’s just like saying our dependency on corporations isn’t even a choice.
If this lady wants to live this way, she can move to the unincorporated part of the county and no one would bother her.
Cape Coma is one big HOA and she knew that when she moved there and knew that when she decided to live 'off grid'. I'm not against her living this way, but in this city, she doesn't have a choice.
Wow, this is shocking even to someone who's as cynical about the American plutocracy as I am. And of course it happens in the most right wing "small gov't" states. What hypocrisy.
Since when is Florida one of "the most right wing" states? Florida went "blue" the last two presidential elections.
Sorry, this is a bogus story, already thoroughly discussed on several forums here several months ago when it actually happened.
Robin Speronis is a fraud artist, literally a convicted felon for previous real estate fraud, only 2 years into a 10 year probation.
She claims the duplex she's living in was sold to her for $10 by an elderly woman who counterclaims she never sold it. The transfer papers appear to have been forged, so technically Speronis is a squatter. And the utilities to the property were turned off for non-payment. Then, due to neighbor's complaints the city posted the property as uninhabitable. That's when she cooked up the "off the grid" story to gain public sympathy. But most of what she said about it was a fabrication. Her "solar system" in fact is a small folding 300 watt panel, suitable for charging a laptop battery. Her "rainwater catchment system" is a 50 gallon rain barrel under a downspout.
This area in Florida has had a high number of foreclosures, and a lot of squatting in abandoned buildings, so the city's concern, and the neighbor's concern with sanitation is entirely understandable. They came to an agreement with her to open a city water account and pay for minimal use, about $10 a week as I recall, in order to legally use the sewer system.
That is all. You can move along now. Nothing to see here.
It is up to her to find a way to dispose of waste. Other than that, unless they can prove that anything she does is a threat the public health they should leave her alone.
It's not up to her. She lives in an incorporated area and she has to obey the laws. She can't decide to dump her sewage wherever she wants.
It's not up to her. She lives in an incorporated area and she has to obey the laws. She can't decide to dump her sewage wherever she wants.
This is a due process issue which is why it even makes the news. It isn't about off grid living, that just happens to be the situation that triggered it.
Ok, say the fees to connect are small. Some people will say no big deal. Yet it is a big deal if you aren't getting anything for it or don't have the option to avoid it. If the utility isn't owned by the public it has no right of taxation and the right to tax can't be given to private concerns. If the tax is turned into a fee so that the private company can impose collection, then that is a circumvention of the constitution because the company is acting as the government, through manipulation of the tax code.
Saying one should move also doesn't wash. If it does, that means anything can be used as a way to make you move. Maybe it is the color of the paint on your house. An HOA is not the same thing as the government and the government can't operate as an HOA which if this case really goes anywhere will be quickly determined and corrected. What happens if one moves to a rural area and the county adopts the same criteria for grid connection as the surrounding cities? Then move to where?
The real issue is due process revolving around "can you live off grid"? It should not matter city or county, if you are self sufficient when it comes to basic necessities should you be forced to pay for grid services even if you contribute by not imposing a burden on the grid services?
As a general question, what if the "grid" power comes from coal and you have an alternative means to provide your own electricity, say solar or wind turbine? Are we saying that individuals can't adopt their own means of self sufficiency and that using power from the dirtiest sources as a requirement is ok?
If that is true, we have more than a few hypocrites claiming green this and that, right her.
Mack - There is more than one issue here. Most places in Florida the water company is the government. Second, you are billed for sewer based on water coming in. No water coming in, but sewage going out means you are using a service and not paying for it. Funny thing, I would like sewer and can't get it....
Second, the off grid part is being put into the mix as a defense against keeping ones property up (despite the alleged fraud).
Third, there are cities in Florida that regulate the color you can paint your house, the trees/shrubs you can plant or remove from your yard. I don't like it, but it is what it is, and I choose to not live there. (look at Coral Gables, FL for an example) USUALLY, if you have something in place and the government changes it, you get grandfathered in. This happened to my grandfather (ironicly) with his plumbing business. He parked his commercial trucks at home - this was allowed back in the 1940's when he moved down here. However, in the 1970's that was changed. So today, the 'new' owners of the house couldn't do that. This is how you get out of the move to the next place to live by the rules you want to live by only to have those rules changed.
Trust me, this Cape Coral person, is NOT suitable as the poster child for off--grid living vs. government.
It isn't a due process issue. Without a sewer and water connection in most towns you won't get a certificate of occupancy, which means you can't live in the house. For all you "rugged individualist" it is pretty much tough luck.
That isn't what this case is about. The woman is a squatter illegally in the house.
Using a city sewage system but refusing to pay for it, has nothing to do with off-grid living.
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Why? And why not.
