CHARLOTTE COUNTY - NO New ATV Law

CHARLOTTE COUNTY
ATV law is turned down
By NEIL HUGHES STAFF WRITER

MURDOCK — In fear of a contested decision, members of the Charlotte County Commission decided they will not give the Sheriff’s Office more authority in cracking down on illegal offroading of all-terrain vehicles.
Charlotte County is looking to avoid an outcome like in North Port, where a 2006 ATVrelated ordinance has stirred debate for years.
Commissioner Robert Skidmore cited the problems in North Port in opposing the request from the CCSO at a commission meeting Tuesday.
“I don’t think the ordinance is the right way to solve this issue,” Skidmore said.
The Sheriff’s Office is looking for greater authority to stop ATV use by trespassers on private properties. Capt. Donna Roguska said at Tuesday’s meeting that the problem usually starts around springtime every year.
“We have drinking, we have ATV accidents, we have people who are severely injured,” she said. “Occasionally you have a death.”
The biggest problem has been in eastern Charlotte County, where people from the region come to ride their ATVs. Roguska said riders have advertised on the Internet that Charlotte County has pits and mud that make for exceptional riding.
The request for an ordinance stemmed from an absentee land owner who lived in China. Neighbors of the property called the Sheriff’s Office to complain about noise, but deputies do not have the authority to step onto private property without authorization from the owner.
The Sheriff’s Office had asked the county to require ATV riders on private property to carry a note from the property owner stating that the activity was allowed. Such an ordinance would be similar to the one passed in North Port in 2006.
In March, the North Port City Commission voted 3-2 to keep the controversial ordinance, though the commissioners railed against the way the law was written, and gave staff several mandates. The vote came toward the end of a three-and-a-half-hour meeting attended by several hundred residents.
City Attorney Rob Robinson has been working on a rewrite of the ATV ordinance since the North Port City Commission decided not to repeal it in March. The commission will hold an ATV ordinance workshop at 6 p.m. July 14 to review it.
In Charlotte County, Skidmore said he’s spoken with local judges who might be reluctant to strictly enforce such a law.
“There’s a lot of uneasiness on the part of the enforcers,” he said.
With that in mind, Commissioner thingy Loftus said he would like to see more of the ordinance worked out before he could support it.
Chairwoman Tricia Duffy said safety and well-being should be a priority for the commissioners.
“I think we have an obligation to protect the residents out there that are being affected by this,” Duffy said. “It’s a very dangerous situation.”
E-mail: nhughes@ sun-herald.com