Liens for delinquent stormwater charges.

Cape Coral Code of Ordinances § 22-11

in effect

§ 22-11 - Liens for delinquent stormwater charges. The following procedure shall be used by the city to establish liens for delinquent stormwater user fees. (a) Initiation of lien process. From time to time the Stormwater Director may compile a list of properties whose stormwater user fees have remained delinquent for more than 30 days. That list of delinquent stormwater user fees shall constitute a preliminary roll and the Stormwater Director shall present that roll to the Council at a duly advertised and noticed hearing. (b) Notice. Approximately four weeks prior to the hearing, the Clerk shall publish, once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation, a notice of the time and place of the hearing when the Council will meet to hear and consider any objections or defenses to the imposition of a lien against the delinquent properties. The date of the meeting so noticed shall not be less than 15 days from the date of publication of the second notice. The Stormwater Director shall also send individual notices of the date and time of the hearing to all owners of record of property proposed to be liened not less than 15 days prior to the date of the hearing. (c) Public hearing. The owner of record of any property proposed to be liened for delinquent stormwater user fees, or any person having an interest therein, may appear at the public hearing and voice any objections to the proposed lien or the amount thereof. Objections may also be submitted in writing either prior to or at the time of the public hearing. At the hearing, the City Council may modify or correct any proposed lien amount, provided that no lien amount may be increased over the amount in the proposed roll. After consideration of all objections, the Council shall, by resolution, approve the roll and from the date of the adoption of the resolution the amounts shall constitute a lien against the property. The lien shall be of the same nature and to the same extent as a lien for general county and municipal taxes falling due in the same year or years the stormwater charges were due. The lien shall be superior in dignity to all other liens, titles and claims, until paid. (d) Limitation on time to contest lien. Any person aggrieved by the action of the Council in adopting the delinquent stormwater user fee roll must commence an action in Circuit Court within 30 days of the date the resolution is adopted. Unless the action is begun within this 30 day period, all objections of that person to the imposition of the lien shall be deemed to have been waived. (e) Prepayment and recording of lien. For a period of 30 days after the date of adoption of the resolution of the Council imposing the lien, the delinquent user fees may be paid without additional penalty. Properties for which payments are received or postmarked within 30 days from the date the resolution is adopted will be deleted from the roll prior to recording. After the expiration of the prepayment period, a certified copy of the resolution and roll shall be recorded in the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court in Lee County. (f) Release of lien. Owners who have paid the delinquent amount in full after the recording of the resolution and roll shall be entitled, upon request, to a release of lien from the city. The recording of the release of lien and any charges therefor shall be the responsibility of the property owner. (g) Foreclosure. Liens for delinquent stormwater user fees may be foreclosed in the same manner as liens for special assessments. Owners of property against whom a foreclosure action is commenced shall be liable for all fees, costs and expenses incurred by the city or its agents, including reasonable attorney's fees and the same may be assessed as cost in the foreclosure action. (h) Validity. Any informality or irregularity in the proceedings to impose a lien for delinquent stormwater user fees shall not affect the validity of the same after the resolution imposing the lien has been adopted, and no deviation from the procedures prescribed hereunder shall affect the validity of the lien unless it can be clearly shown that the party objecting was materially injured thereby. (i) Other means. Nothing herein shall prohibit the city from utilizing other means to collect delinquent stormwater user fees including, but not limited to, an action for damages filed with the appropriate court in Lee County. (Ord. 42-04, 4-19-2004)

Source: City of Cape Coral, Florida, Code of Ordinances, City Charter and Land Development Code (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/fl/cape_coral/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=CH22STMAUT_S22-11LIDESTCHFetched: 11/4/2026