Manatee County officials tighten up the developer’s rules a year after residents complained about the construction dust that first blows their neighborhoods.
Bradenton Herald reported a similar complaint last April when Foxbrook Subdivision residents said heavy dust from the new residential community caused breathing problems, poor driving and expensive cleaning costs.
After hearing from residents last year, county officials introduced rules requiring developers to develop dust control plans to limit the impact on their neighbors on construction. Builders should limit land clearing to 100 acres at a time, stop construction activities when wind speeds exceed 15 mph and place grass in clear areas.
If the developer can’t control the dust leaving the construction site, they will need to close the construction for the first violation, close the construction, pay a fine for the second crime, and create a revised dust control plan for the third violation.
However, residents of the Parish district said the rules didn’t make a big difference. Now, the commissioner is considering other options for controlling dust.
County adds new dust control rules
The county now requires contractors to have a camera with a live feed when developing more than 100 acres, traces the haul routes within the development and submits weekly reports of dust control measures. The Manatee County Commission approved the rules by 6-0 votes, with Commissioner Carol Anne Feltz absent.
Commissioner George Cruze said the rules previously approved by the board were unlikely to resolve the issue, but he said county officials are committed to finding a solution.
“We’re working on a better solution,” Kruze said. “We’re not going to take you to today’s fix. What we’re trying to do is to be able to better monitor what’s wrong while working on that fix.”
Construction dust is irritating Manatee County residents
Some residents, like Elizabeth Arnold, complained that developers and home builders weren’t doing enough to reduce the dust they blow from construction sites.
“The storm that caused all of this dust was predicted for about a week on the weather channel and news stations,” Arnold said. “We didn’t sneak up on the builders. They knew it was coming. I think their basic attitude is, “There’s a storm coming and it’s probably going to cause a lot of dust at first, but it’s going to solve our problem.”
Other residents like Dalton Nelson noted that the rules approved last year do not seem to work.
“Nine out of ten times, certain developers in the face of these fines will say, “Yeah, we’ll go ahead and get the fines. We’ll pay them. We’ll keep getting this project done. “They want a $400,000, $600,000, or $1 million home there rather than worrying about their little neighbor.”
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Manatee County Leaders are looking for dust solutions
Commissioner Tarsidic, who represents District 3, which includes residents near West Bradenton’s new residential community known as Siddiflower, said county officials would encourage developers to follow the rules.
“I think some of the land developers are willing to work with us,” Sidike said. “At the end, they sow a portion of the land. But the underlying problem is people who see this as the cost of doing business.”
County officials will come up with other solutions and look into what other communities are doing. They may ask the contractor to limit the work area by the total development of another owner or multiple owners and complete the construction phase before setting requirements for air quality and dust monitoring.
County officials will consider several options at future meetings.
