The City of Bonita Springs, Florida- Code Enforcement

Report Code Violations- Click Here

For information call 239-949-6257, Mon.-Fri. 8:00 am. to 5:00 pm.
Fax Number - 239-947-5145

City of Bonita Springs - Rental Permit

City of Bonita Springs Ordinance No. 07-22 requires that "every owner of a property in the City of Bonita Springs who is otherwise not exempt in Section Two and rents a dwelling, regardless of the term of the lease being transient (short term under six months) or a long term rental, is required to get a rental permit from the City Manager or designee prior to leasing, subleasing, renting or allowing the occupancy of such unit to another natural person or other natural persons, regardless of relationship to the owner (except incapacitated persons exemption)".

Download City of Bonita Springs Rental Application

City of Bonita Springs Ordinance No. 07-22

This completed application must be submitted with an annual permit fee of $100.00

Note: "The rental permit shall be valid from October 1 through September 30 for a three year period and shall not be prorated. A separate application form must be filed and a separate fee must be paid for each rental unit applied for."

Rental applications can be mail or dropped off:

Mailing Address:                            Physical Address:

9101 Bonita Beach Road                    27300 Old 41 RD- Liles Hotel
Bonita Springs FL, 34135                   Bonita Springs FL, 34135

Most Common Violations

The following is a list and brief description of the most common violations our Code Enforcement Department handles. If you have any of these violations, please understand that you must remove the violation from your property. If you have any questions, please call Code Enforcement at (239) 949- 6257.

FOR PROPERTY:

. Having junk, trash, debris or other waste materials on your property including discarded materials and horticultural waste;

. Having vehicles on your property that are non-operable (not road worthy), unlicensed/unregistered, junk, or in a state of disrepair;

. If your grass and weeds are over sixteen (16) inches in height you must have your property mowed and maintained;

. If your lot is overgrown with invasive plants, vines or other growth that is considered exotic (not native to Florida), your property must be cleared of these exotics and properly maintained to prevent re-growth;

. Vehicles must be parked on improved surfaces- either driveways or improved areas for parking (can be gravel)- for residences: driveways and parking areas cannot exceed thirty (30) percent of the front yard area/ forty (40) percent if the area is a circular driveway;

. Commercial vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of more then twelve thousand (12,000) pounds cannot be parked in residential areas;

. All structures must be maintained to be free from cracking, fading and peeling paint; must be free of mildew and other growth spores; must not have any broken or boarded windows; and maintained in a safe and sanitary condition;

. All structures require address numbers on the buildings that can be easily seen from adjacent roadways.

SIGNS:

The following signs are PROHIBITED:

. Any sign placed in any street right of way, on any street sign, across any sidewalk, in any street median; nailed or tacked to any trees, fire hydrants, utility boxes or any other public utility; any "snipe" sign; any roof signs; and any sign that creates a nuisance or a safety hazard.

ALL OTHER SIGNS REQUIRE PERMITS INCLUDING TEMPORARY SIGNS FOR SPECIAL EVENTS.

PERMITS ARE REQUIRED FOR:

. Sheds;
. Fences and walls, including gates;
. Additions, including screen enclosures and pool enclosures;
. Any work that involves anything structural, electrical or plumbing;
. Re-roofs, including shingle replacements;
. Any work conducted in right of ways;
. Connecting, installation of generators;
. Interior remodeling of commercial facilities;

If your hiring a contractor make sure they are licensed in this County and with the State. You can call Lee County Contractor Licensing to verify their status. You should do this prior to hiring the contractor and be careful of paying any contractor up front. Licensed contractors must have their license numbers on all paper work, and they should be more then willing to share their license number with you. The number for Lee County Contractor Licensing is 239- 344- 5895, or call us if you have any questions.

USE OF STREET RIGHT OF WAYS:

The use of any street right of way for any business is not permitted. This includes:

. Parking vehicles, boats or other items in right of ways "For Sale";
. Vending- selling from cars, trucks, or vans any retail or wholesale items including food;
. Placing of any signs for "Garage Sales" or "Open Houses", or any other event;
. Parking- especially if the area is posted with "NO PARKING" signs.

MINIMUM HOUSING REQUIREMENTS:

The City has adopted the 2006 International Property Maintenance Code to regulate the maintenance of all structures within the City and to insure minimum standards for living in residential structures. This code is very involved as it covers the maintenance of structures and equipment that affect your living standards. As a renter, you are entitled to safe, sanitary, and healthy living conditions. As a landlord, you are required to maintain the structures to provide healthy, safe and sanitary living conditions to your tenants. This code helps in establishing minimum standards for dwelling units. These standards include:

. Smoke/fire alarms/detectors in every sleeping room and hallway;
. Windows to provide proper light and ventilation;
. Windows and doors to provide proper ingress and egress;
. Doors and windows to be weather tight and have safety equipment (locks);
. Kitchens to have proper food preparation surfaces and utilities and be able to be maintained in a sanitary manner;
. Floors and walls to be free of cracks, holes and breaks;
. Bathrooms to have proper ventilation;
. All rooms to have proper square footage for proper occupancy-dwelling units must not be overcrowded;
. All plumbing and electric must be functioning properly and without hazards;
. Screens must be on all openable windows;
. All dwelling units must be free from infestation of rodents or other pests;
. All units must be free of trash, junk, debris and other items that create rodent harborage;
. The property must properly drain so that the foundation of the structure stays in good repair and in such a manner as it does not create a nuisance condition for neighboring properties.

The above is a brief synopsis of what the International Property Maintenance Code covers. It is designed to protect the health, safety and welfare of all persons in the community. If you have questions, please call us.

RENTAL PROPERTY PERMIT:

Rental units within the City limits require a rental permit issued through the Code Enforcement Department. This permit is required for units that are not governed by associations or property management groups governed by Florida State Statute Chapters 118, 119 and 120. In simple terms, if you live or own a complex that consist of six or more units and you function under a State recognized association, you do not have to get a rental permit. All other rental units require a rental permit.

The requirements for the rental permit are:

. A complete application must be filed with the City Code Enforcement Department with the required one hundred (100) dollar fee per unit;

. The unit must be inspected by a Code Enforcement Officer- this inspection is for minimum living standards as required in the International Property Maintenance Code; this is conducted with the property owner or his/her designee/manager present at the inspection- inspection results are discussed at the time of the inspection, including any corrections that must be made to bring the property into compliance;

. All violations of any City Ordinance or the International Property Maintenance Code must be brought into compliance before the permit is issued;

. Revocation or non issuance of the rental permit can lead to the prevention of the owner to rent the unit.

. For further information or concerns, contact City Code Enforcement at 239-949-6257.

NOISE:

The City does have a Noise Ordinance that regulates nuisances regarding specific events and times of day. This is a rather involved Ordinance. The most common violations of the Noise Ordinance are:

. Beginning construction prior to seven (7) in the morning and working beyond seven (7) in the evening;

. Loud radios, machines, drums, amplified music, etc. during the night is handled by the Lee County Sheriff's Department- contact them at (239) 477-1200.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is Code Enforcement?

Code Enforcement is the department that enforces City Ordinances, building codes, development regulations, zoning requirements, and State Statutes that affect the health, safety and welfare of our community. We are governed by State Statute and City Ordinances, and have the task of preventing neighborhoods from falling into blight. We preserve houses, blocks, neighborhoods and communities. We enforce codes and ordinances that protect our community from becoming unsafe, unhealthy and un- attractive. We work with every one in the community towards this goal and strive to provide the best education possible to help everyone make their community a better place to live, work, visit and play. We protect property values; we maintain a livable housing stock; we protect your property rights; and we help keep our community safe.

Your Code Enforcement Department consists of one Managerwho is in charge of the daily operation of the department; one Senior Administrative Assistant who manages the Hearing Cases, Liens, Collections and the Rental Property Permits. Two Administrative Assistants who handle call in and walk in complaints, reports, notices and work assignments and notices. Five Code Enforcement Officers. Your Code Enforcement Officers are assigned as follows:
  North of Terry Street- Two Officers
  South of Terry Street- Two Officers
  Commercial, Fences and Use permits- One Officer
Your Code Enforcement Officers work shifts and flex their schedules to cover a wide range of issues that occur twenty four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week- we do work weekends and nights.

Visit our " Code Enforcement Department" section on this web page.

What is the enforcement process?

The goal of Code Enforcement is voluntary compliance. Our officers are directed to work with every person to try to gain this voluntary compliance. Our officers start with informal methods to establish communication and build an understanding so that everyone can work towards compliance. If these efforts fail, our officers have the option to issue citations or formal notices of violations.

Our citations are similar to traffic tickets and are managed by the Circuit Court in Ft. Myers. Fines for citations can be as high as five hundred (500) dollars or they may involve court orders from the Judge.

Our "Notice of Violations" are a formal method used to put the property owner/violator on notice that if the situation is not corrected, they will be scheduled for a hearing. The City of Bonita Springs uses the Special Magistrate for their hearings. This special magistrate is called a Hearing Examiner. This is an individual assigned to hear cases, make findings as to whether the violations exist, make a conclusion of law and impose fines. These fines can be as high as two hundred and fifty (250) dollars per day on the property until the violation is corrected.

Repeat and re-curring violations carry higher fines and stiffer enforcement.

Again, our goal is compliance. We will make every effort possible to achieve this goal.

How do I report a Code Violation?

There are several ways you can report a possible code violation:

. Call in at (239) 949- 6257;
. Walk in: our office is at 27300 Old 41 Rd- the old Liles Hotel;
. E-mail- by using this web site;
. Write a letter describing the possible violation;
. Flag down an officer when you see one in your neighborhood.

It is important for you to know that we do accept anonymous complaints as all records of Code Enforcement are public records. But, if you have a complex issue, or an issue you want follow up from an officer on, we encourage you to leave your contact information. Even though your information will become public record, the assistance you can provide to our officers will be welcomed and can determine the effectiveness of the officer's case. A lot of Code Enforcement cases are complex, they require additional information to prove the violation exists, or the officer needs to know where the complainant is to establish that a violation exists. Our officers do not give complainant information in the field. Also, if there is no code violation, the officer can contact you and explain why. Ninety-nine (99) percent of Code Enforcement's job is education, so please ask questions.