Biden and his Tahoe rental manuever

Biden Spent Eye-Popping Sum on Vacation – Sparks Investigation

An investigation is underway after President Joe Biden rented a vacation home for a staggering $18 million for six days at taxpayers’ expense.

The White House defended Biden by claiming this is a “fair market value.”

What did it cost for Secret Service protection?

Hunter Biden, who is under federal investigation for money laundering, tax evasion, and a gun felony, was also present at the mansion.

Joe and Jill Biden have an entire net worth of roughly $9 million, but they’re living far more lavishly on the taxpayers’ dime.

Read about it...

And Tom Steyer could face a fine of up to $20,000, according to Douglas County policy. It’s unclear how this is a sufficient penalty given the $17 million+ profit on the deal.

Biden spends 40% of his time on vacations and has no time to visit East Palestine, Ohio.

Never a dull moment in an Airbnb rental in Lake Worth

Lake Worth Beach man accused of catching wife and coworker in bed together, bashing him with aluminum bat

'Don’t come near my f***ing wife again!'

A Lake Worth man battered his cheating wife's lover with an aluminum bat after catching them together in an Airbnb, according to police.

John Dimmig, 33, is accused of assaulting a man at an Airbnb rental in Lake Worth Beach, Florida. Dimmig is charged with attempted murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, and burglary with battery.

Blood all over the place.

"I felt like he was out to kill me,” the victim told deputies.

Read more..

Lake Worth Short-Term Rentals

Lake Worth Beach prepares for possible crack down on illegal short-term rentals

LAKE WORTH BEACH is taking a serious look at reviving a seldom-enforced municipal law that could effectively shut down hundreds of Airbnbs, Vrbos and other short-term rental properties across the city.

But before staff starts cracking down, city commissioners want a better understanding of how they would go about effectively enforcing the law — and whether that will require neighbors to rat out neighbors, which may make many residents uncomfortable.

At a special meeting Feb. 9, commissioners said they like short-term rentals and would prefer having the ability to regulate where and how they operate in Lake Worth Beach.

But they can’t do that because of a 2011 state law that gives broad protections to short-term rentals and prevents local municipalities from banning them or limiting the length and frequency of stays.

Read Joe Capozzi's article and find out how Lake Worth might be able to go around the state law.

Short-Term Rentals need to be Regulated

Short-term vacation rentals are illegal in Lake Worth Beach

So, why won’t the city crack down?

THE WHOOPING AND yelling by the women around the pool had been going on for an hour when suddenly the noise morphed into a primordial chant usually heard at strip clubs, loud enough to breach the windows of nearby houses.

“Take it off! Take it off!’’

Was I dreaming?

It was 1:30 in the morning and another good time was being had next door by the latest occupants of the “party house’’ in Lake Worth Beach’s College Park neighborhood.

Read the rest of the story... by Joe Capozzi and read the laws on short-term rentals.

Vacation Rentals - Suit in Miami

If you didn't have it in your code of ordinances before 2011, you can't ban vacation rentals, so says the suit in Miami.

This is the same year that the city of Lake Worth refers to when it talks about mooting our Heights referendum that restricted heights in our downtown. The lawsuit in Miami was brought on by some homeowners and Airbnb joined the suit. It largely centers around the commission’s decision and a state law passed in 2011 which prohibits cities and municipalities from banning vacation rental homes unless those laws already existed.

Miami outlawed Airbnb as an illegal nuisance but the petitioners say "not so," and even are citing First Amendment rights. Basically they say that you should be able to do anything you want with your own property (property rights) and screw city codes. All of these rentals escalated since the Sober Homes scam came into existence.

Read about it...

Ok, Glen, figure it out. We paid you $748k last year. You went to town on the Heights.

Vacation Rentals

The bill (HB 425), sponsored by Rep. Mike La Rosa, R-St. Cloud, prevents local governments from imposing new restrictions on vacation homes. Local ordinances that were in effect on June 1, 2011, could remain, but restrictions adopted after that date, including laws based on a 2014 legislative compromise, would be declared "void and unenforceable" by the state and wiped off the books.

The parade of bill opponents included the Florida Association of Counties, Florida League of Cities, Flagler County, the Greater Miami and the Beaches Hotel Associations, and the cities of Bradenton Beach, Daytona Beach, Holmes Beach and Lake Worth.

Read more...

The House will be in Session today. » 1:30 PM - Upon Adjournment

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Bills
HB 425

HB 425 - Vacation Rentals
General Bill by La Rosa (CO-SPONSORS) Eagle; Raulerson; Santiago; White Vacation Rentals: Provides that local laws, ordinances, & regulations adopted after certain date may not restrict use of, prohibit, or regulate vacation rentals based solely on classification, use, or occupancy.
Effective Date: upon becoming a law
Last Event: Now in Commerce Committee on Tuesday, March 28, 2017 6:11 PM

Vacation Rentals - Lake Worth

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Excerpt from Point of View, an Op Ed piece in today's Palm Beach Post--

After reading all the reporting on sober homes (“Sober home invasion,” May 1), another item that is being completely ignored by residents is the growing issue of vacation rental properties. The home next door to me was purchased by a Boca Raton resident, to be used as a daily rental.

I sent emails to the Lake Worth City Commission and mayor, to inquire about the city’s position on such issues, and received only two responses: from Commissioners Christopher McVoy and Ryan Maier. Not surprisingly, the other three did not respond. I do not always agree with the two respondents, but they always respond.

Read the article...

Doing the Right thing - Protecting single family neighborhoods

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I knew it would happen sooner or later...in today's Palm Beach Post, the editorial addresses all the concerns that we have regarding protecting our single family neighborhoods. It is hard enough when you have to deal with local politics and fight some of them all the way just to keep your neighborhood single family. Every neighborhood association in Lake Worth should 100% support this concept.

More sober houses and vacation rentals are popping up. Investors are buying entire blocks or even entire condo communities and converting them to housing for recovering addicts.  Vacation rentals are changing our neighborhoods into overnight hotels and competing against licensed places of lodging. These investors are motivated by greed and pay no attention to our zoning rules and could care less about our laws.

Read about it... and the Palm Beach Post's opinion that government must protect and preserve the local neighborhoods.

Vacation rentals

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What's going on regarding vacation rentals? All has been quiet around Lake Worth where we have a big concern. It seems that if the city didn't have a law in effect before June 1, 2011, you're screwed.  Reminds me of the heights amendment?

CS/HB 307: Regulation of Public Lodging Establishments & Public Food Service Establishments

GENERAL BILL by Local and Federal Affairs Committee ; Hutson ; Campbell ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Cummings ; Edwards ; Hood ; Hooper ; Kerner ; Mayfield ; Moraitis ; Peters ; Raschein

Regulation of Public Lodging Establishments & Public Food Service Establishments; Revises permitted scope of local laws, ordinances, & regulations regarding vacation rentals.
Effective Date: 7/1/2014
Last Action: 4/29/2014 House - Laid on Table, refer to SB 356 -HJ 841
Location: Laid on Table

SB 356: Regulation of Public Lodging Establishments and Public Food Service Establishments

GENERAL BILL by Thrasher ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Altman ; Ring ; Sobel ; Sachs

Regulation of Public Lodging Establishments and Public Food Service Establishments; Revising the permitted scope of local laws, ordinances, and regulations regarding vacation rentals, etc. Effective Date: 7/1/2014
Last Action: 6/5/2014 - Signed by Officers and presented to Governor
Location: Presented to Governor

(b) A local law, ordinance, or regulation may not restrict the use of vacation rentals, prohibit vacation rentals, or  regulate the duration or frequency of rental of vacation rentals  based solely on their classification, use, or occupancy. This paragraph
 does not apply to any local law, ordinance, or 30 regulation adopted on or before June 1, 2011.
(c) Paragraph (b) does not apply to any local law, 32 ordinance, or regulation exclusively relating to property  valuation as a criterion for vacation rental if the local law,  ordinance, or regulation is required to be approved by the state  land planning agency pursuant to an area of critical state 36 concern designation. Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.

Vacation Rentals - Mini Hotels

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This past Spring, vacation rentals were on the minds of many residents in Lake Worth.  Owners of these properties appeared before the city commission wanting the city to change its laws for them. Several commissioners were leaning their way just so they would not get into litigation that was being threatened by these owners. Our laws say no less than 60 days and the commission was even considering 2 weeks in order to appease these people. An estimated 50 properties are being used as vacation rentals and not licensed to do so, competing with legitimate businesses. The commission has been totally silent on the issue ever since--these properties thrive.

Seven months ago, the City said, "The present issue for the City is to decide whether to enforce its current prohibition on short term vacation rentals and begin code compliance proceedings against those establishments advertising themselves as such, which include as many as fifty (50) properties in Lake Worth. Well, guess what?  All this capitulation and/or procrastination by this commission which has become the norm in our city (scared of LAWSUITS mentality) might be decided by the Florida Legislature.

New bill targets vacation rentals: Groups of vacationers that each year turn vacation rentals into “mini-hotels” might be out of luck if lawmakers pass legislation filed by a duo of St. Johns County lawmakers. Spearheaded by a Hammock Beach Club Condominium Association in Flagler County, the idea is to again allow local governments to regulate vacation rental laws. A 2011, state law gave that control to state government…Read more.

Vacation rentals - possible flea bag motels?

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Basically, we as residents are only concerned about the health and welfare of our city and our immediate environment--not these businesses whose owners think they have the right to do what they please. Vacation rentals have popped up in our city and are operating illegally. We don't worry about the possibility of damage to their homes or guests who rent their places that even the low-end motels wouldn't even want. We only care that it will, overall, affect our neighborhoods. We don't want them in our backyard.

We have 50 vacation rental businesses operating illegally now. What could happen in our neighborhoods if we change our laws to accommodate more of them and reward people who have had no respect for our current ordinances? Anyone could buy up houses under the pretense of "vacation rentals" and rent to any Tom, Dick or Suzie. This city does not have the resources to enforce our code as it is.

Not only could we open up this "bed of bugs" but we could be subjecting our residential homeowners to all sorts of unsavory possibilities.  We don't want, as a far-out example but a real possibility nevertheless, the opening of a house of ill repute Vacation Rental in our city.

I always remember former commissioner Nadine Burns saying, "You have to look at the BIG picture."  We must take that advice and think of all the future possibilities of short-term rentals and how these rentals could "morph" into something very undesirable.  "Morph" was another one of her great descriptive adjectives. Short-term rentals could destroy our goal of rising from the ashes and becoming the destination city that we all want this to be. Remember the old adage, "Give them an inch and they will take a mile."

Protect our residential neighborhoods. Protect Lake Worth's legacy that has been known for 100 years for its single family and friendly neighborhoods. Do not allow the real possibility of changing Lake Worth to a city known as "flea bag motel." Keep house rentals to the 60 day minimum.

Vacation Rental folks will sue to get their way in Lake Worth

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It's bad enough when people come into our city and openly violate our laws and tell us to stick it. Now the vacation rental folks have an Advocacy Group. They also want to sue us if they can't do what they want. Not too friendly of a group. This is what they have to say--

Attorneys representing the city of Lake Worth, FL and a group of vacation rental owners are working together to determine the best method to regulate rentals. Lake Worth is being known as the BIG COMPROMISER

The city believes the current law prevents rentals of less than 60 days, while the owners believe that the regulation is unclear with regards to vacation rentals. The city and owners would prefer to find a compromise without legal action.
People who want their way ALWAYS THREATEN TO SUE.

Read the rest of their message to get their way and have commercial businesses in our residential neighborhoods..

What would work for me is for our officials to adhere to our laws and all people coming into our city do the same.

Lake Worth Code Violations and Vacation Rentals

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 211 N M STREET

I attended the Magistrate hearing on Lake Worth coded properties last Thursday. There were over 40 properties that were discussed which were a drop in the bucket. Diane James-Bigot of Boynton Beach, Florida is the new magistrate. A big majority of them were rental properties with no rental license or current inspection.

The property above belongs to the daughter of Carol Lewis, Eden house owner. Mrs. Lewis, if you recall, wants the city to change its rental policy (we don't have a separate or special vacation rental policy) to accommodate her and others who are commercializing our neighborhoods by buying houses and renting them out by the night or the week in our residential neighborhoods. They all have been violating our code for some time but who the heck cares, right?

Her daughter also violated our Code in not getting a permit to do work on the above property. She got fined $350.75 with a review in 90 days. Mrs. Lewis, speaking for her daughter who was not present, said that if she had known she would have paid attention to our laws and got the proper permitting. Right. She didn't pay attention to our rental policy either...she did not abide by our laws in that respect. Why are we not fining vacation rental owners? We continue to coddle rule breakers.

Now the city is looking to compromise our 60 day policy for these law breakers. People wanting their own way know that the city shakes in its boots at the very thought of a lawsuit. Pam Triolo and Andy Amoroso say changing our policy to a two week minimum is okay--a 75% reduction in our present policy. That is "fair" and a compromise in their opinion?

Read more... how these commercial business owners as well as our commissioners do not respect our ordinances or for that matter, all the rest of us with a different opinion as to how our city should look and operate.

Lake Worth should not change code to allow short-term rentals

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HOT TOPICS
Palm Beach Post

May 31, 2013

I would like to respond to the commentary “Short-term rental ban would hurt city.”
The writers have established themselves as investors who bought properties in Lake Worth with the sole intent to rent. The city code limits short-term vacation to 60 days. Many homes, though, are being rented out by the day, week or month. The investors doing this, of course, favor changing the code.

The writers claim that opponents of the change used “fear-mongering” and the specter of Ted Bundy at a city commission workshop. This was not the case. I said to the commission, “I did not move into a home on a beautiful residential street to live next to a Motel 6.” Other opinions were given, few in favor of changing the code.

Read more... on what a single family homeowner wrote to the Palm Beach Post on vacation rentals.

Lake Worth - The Pushover

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Usually you think of the "good" guys wearing white. In this case, we should question what is going on regarding two important issues that affect our city: portable trailer units on Dixie Highway for the charter school and people coming into our city breaking our laws and renting out houses short-term. As typical, the public is kept in the dark.

Tuesday night the chamber was packed and many were lawyers for the above causes who want to get their way in Lake Worth--the Charter School with trailers on Dixie highway and those who bought houses and opened them up as a commercial enterprise in residential neighborhoods against our ordinance. They both have picked apart our rules and zoning and feel they have the right to do whatever.

The Academy for "Positive" Learning was on the Agenda but was postponed. I keep the name "positive" in quotes because these people agreed to remove those portables in 16 months. Now they have no intention of doing so. It was obvious that the mayor was briefed on the subject prior to the meeting and she gave an explanation that two weeks ago they were ONLY there to vote on the community appearance of the trailers--that they got side-tracked, etc. She said that they had new information so the item was being tabled, never telling us what the new information was. You got that funny feeling by the look on her face that whatever new information they had favored the school and maybe its portables.  Our attorney, at the break, was talking jovially with the lawyers who represented the Academy who all seemed confident.

Vacation rentals had been pulled off the agenda as our attorney, Glen Torcivia, said that he had been in communication with the attorneys for the Consortium of Vacation Rentals and their attorneys. This item is being delayed for 60 days. The commission allowed the public to speak to the issue even though it was NOT on the agenda and no motion had been made. Protocol and rules don't even apply to the Commission. We had to sit there and listen to an attorney giving us the reason why they want to continue to do what they want to do.  We had to listen, once again, to one of the owners who has rallied her troops to get her way and she's not shy about it.

Legally, it seems, anyone can challenge anything and get his way in Lake Worth. He can be the biggest flim flam man who ever hit the town and the commission votes to give him $1.6 million. Are we that impotent as a city? How long has this city been working on zoning and LDR's and all the ordinances that affect the quality of life we have here?

Cowering in Fear

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Read the PB Post article on vacation rentals postponement by Lake Worth city attorney.

Vacation Rentals in Lake Worth

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1023 N 'L' Street

Prices on owner's Facebook page just a few days ago--
nightly prices have now been deleted--

Per night (USD) $175 - $250

Per week $1,085 - $1,505

Per month $3,750 - $5,320

• Bedrooms...3
• Sleeps...8
• Minimum Stay 2 nights

This is one of the "vacation rentals" operating in our city...a business that was opened in an historic residential district AGAINST our ordinances...against our laws. The owner of the property, Carol Lewis calls her house a "HOTEL" but she is operating it like transient housing.

See her Facebook page where she calls it a "hotel."

I have a big problem when people buy property in our city, knowing the laws but still want to do what they want.  And now, they want our city commission to change the rule just for them so that they can have a commercial transient housing business in our neighborhoods.

True, this property is well maintained but think of the problem that will be created down the road when others come in and do the same thing under the guise of "vacation rentals" and do not take care of the property.  Houses of ill-repute right next door to you...day laborers coming and going. Don't we have enough people breaking our laws? Anything is possible and if the can of worms is opened, every bad nightmare is probable. We can't take care of our hundreds of code issues now.

The commission, instead of thinking about the money it will make on a business license and bed tax or even stretching the issue to protect "property rights," needs to do the best thing for our city and that's to enforce the laws on the books and PROTECT ALL THE REST OF US. We don't need to cater to the very small minority or change our laws that are already fair, for those who want to use this city for their own special interests.

This issue was to be decided by the commission tonight but instead, our city attorney will talk about it at the end of the night during his segment of the agenda. The City is paranoid about lawsuits and this vacation rental owner has suggested just that. Hopefully, the city will do the right thing.

Short-term Rentals in Lake Worth

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Vacation rental advocates write article supporting their case:  They are right and we are losers or so they imply.

Read more... about the people who have come into our city and have broken our laws. They are threatening a lawsuit if they can't get their way and say "Lake Worth will lose if the commission restricts short-term rentals."

Kicking the Can No 2 - Lake Worth City Commission

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Kicking the Can down the Road No. 2

The next item under New Business was a discussion on short term rental options under our current Zoning code which only allows rentals of property for 60 days or more. In 2011, the Florida Legislature adopted changes to the Florida Statutes referencing short term vacation rentals affording their establishment within any City where prohibitions against them or regulations for them did not already exist. Per the Statute change, if a municipality did not have regulations within its code regarding vacation rentals prior to June 1, 2011, then none could be adopted nor could any changes be made to those that were in affect prior to this date.

Well, guess what? We have an ordinance that was established BEFORE the Florida Statutes and therefore we are grandfathered in. But now we have certain property owners (investors) who have come into our city to buy up houses to rent them out by the week or even the day and as a few from the public said, maybe next it will be by the hour. Prostitutes won't have to be hanging out on Federal Highway anymore. Vacation rental owners have threatened to sue the city. Is a law a law? Why is this city afraid to do the right thing?  Why do certain people, who know our laws, try to ignore them or change them once they are here? Why was this even on the agenda for discussion? Management paranoia and lawyers having to justify their existence.

The City says, "The present issue for the City is to decide whether to enforce its current prohibition on short term vacation rentals and begin code compliance proceedings against those establishments advertising themselves as such, which include as many as fifty (50) properties. Our ordinance has been fine until some investors decided to buy up properties on the cheap and use them as businesses in residential zonings. More and more properties are being scarfed up by corporations and hedge funds to do that very thing.

Then the city gives us the same ole mumbo jumbo and throws in "Oh we're afraid of lawsuits paranoia" and say, "If the City’s special magistrate upholds the City’s interpretation and decides that the operation of a short term vacation rental is a violation of the City’s code, the short term vacation rental owner will likely appeal such a decision to the Circuit Court. The Circuit Court, sitting in its appellate capacity, will then be asked to decide whether the City’s interpretation conforms with the essential requirements of law. If the City’s special magistrate and/or the Circuit Court finds the City’s interpretation is not correct, the City’s short term vacation rentals prohibition will be extremely limited."

The city is whacked out about potential lawsuits. They don't want any--even if RIGHT is on their side of the law.

This too will come back for more discussion on May 21.

Vacation Rentals - Don't lower the bar

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Tuesday night's commission agenda finally has something on it for a change. There are only two items on the Consent Agenda but there are 5 presentations and we can only hope that they don't take an hour.

One of the more controversial items is under New Business regarding short term rental units. It seems that some homeowners in this city are renting out their single family houses and treating them as if they are motels. People are coming and going all of the time.

In 2011, the Florida Legislature changed the Florida Statutes referencing short term vacation rentals allowing them to operate within any City where prohibitions against them or regulations for them did not already exist prior to June 1, 2011. Our code defines a Single Family Dwelling as “A detached building designed for or occupied exclusively by one (1) family, but not including transient facilities, nor more than one (1) kitchen”. The City also has interpreted that transient facilities are those that are leased, rented or otherwise held up as public accommodations for periods of less than sixty (60) days.

Right now we have about 50 single family units that are being rented out as if they are motels. Lake Worth's rules were in place prior to the Florida Statute and therefore, we should enforce our own code. We do not need one more rental in this city. In fact, our city code is more generous than what we have where I live. The policy in my condo is not less than 3 months and not more than 6 months.

John Rinaldi, Chair of the P&Z,  says:
Investors are coming into the city in Residential neighborhoods, getting a rental license and renting them (houses) out on a nightly basis. Some are charging as little as $60 a night and others are $175 or more a night. Our code limits house rental to no less than 60 days. Vacation Rental owners have threatened to sue the city if we enforce our code.  State law has deregulated vacation rentals but allowed towns with laws on the books like Key West to keep their rules. You can't make any changes to the laws that are grandfathered without losing the right to regulate. So the city is faced with either enforcing our 60  day law or totally deregulating rentals. If we go the route of deregulation anyone in the city can rent their home for as little as one night. Currently there are over 30 homes doing this. The property across the street from the Mango Inn rents for 3 nights. These are lodging businesses in our historic neighborhoods that are free to do what they want.

Our legal team is, once again, suggesting that if we don't cave in and allow owners to rent as they please, we could be faced with law suits. So? There will always be people wanting to sue. The Commission should not be dissuaded by this threat and should vote to enforce our laws on the books. We had a former commission that had no balls and allowed the billboard company to threaten us with a suit if we did not allow them to erect 6 billboards at I-95 going against our codes. Our attorney then caved in. No more. Do the right thing for Lake Worth. Just because you own a property does not mean you can do as you please.