TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — On March 8, the City denied City Walk's permit to operate a shelter on Mahan Road with unanimous support. The shelter continued operating. Now, the City of Tallahassee says they have five days to stop or be fined.
City Walk Urban Mission opened its doors to a new emergency shelter in December and has faced problems with the City as well as neighboring residents and businesses ever since.
Homeowners have said they don't feel safe with the shelter there and businesses say they've seen an increase in crime, making people uncomfortable.
The City says a recent inspection of the City Walk Urban Mission located on Mahan Road found that certain conditions do not comply with City Code.
According to Tallahassee, City Walk lacks the following:
- Permit required: To correct, obtain all applicable permits for the location by a licensed contractor
- Inspections required: To correct, obtain all applicable approvals on all missed and required inspections
- Authority and jurisdiction; no development shall be undertaken without prior authorization pursuant to this chapter: To correct, cease the Transition Residential Facility use.
City Walk was given five days to correct the violations and be reinspected or risk having a lien placed on the property.
The City set a virtual court hearing for City Walk Urban Mission based on the City's findings of violations committed by the shelter.
The shelter filed an appeal and said they will continue to house their clients at their Mahan Drive shelter until the appeal process is finished.
That means they could face daily fines as high as $500.
"Should you be found in violation of the Municipal Code, the Code Magistrate may impose a fine up to $250 per day, per violation for each day that the violation continues beyond the compliance date established by the Code Magistrate in the Final Order. If the Code Enforcement Board or Code Magistrate has previously declared you to be a repeat violator, the Code Magistrate may impose a fine of up to o$500 per day, per violation for each day the violation continues beyond the compliance date established by the Code Magistrate."
The court hearing will be held on April 1, 2021.
