LAKE PARK, Fla. — If you’re frustrated about an issue in your community, we’re here to listen and help at our Let’s Hear It meetups.
At our Palm Beach Zoo Let’s Hear It, Mike Trim met Lake Park resident Dale Jeffs who said he’s being forced to repave his driveway.
He’s not the only one.
The Town of Lake Park is enforcing a code that’s been on the books since 1978, forcing homeowners with gravel driveways to repave them up to code.
They have two years to finish paving them with asphalt, concrete or concrete pavers in two years.
I went to the town mayor, seeking solutions.
Dale Jeffs is one of 44 Lake Park homeowners that got a letter, telling them to replace their gravel driveways.
I went to Jeff’s home.
“This is Chatahootchee. This is one of the most expensive driveways ever,” Jeffs told me from his Lake Park home he’s owned for more than 30 years.
Jeffs estimates replacing it will cost more than $10,000.
“I’m trying to retire. I’m not trying to take another mortgage on. I already had a mortgage for 30 some years, I’m done with that,” said Jeffs.
I took Jeffs’ issue to Mayor Roger Michaud.
Mayor Michaud told me, “I understand the public concern because there might be a perception that we never really enforced it.”
Michaud said residents recently applied for a permit to build a gravel driveway but were denied, due to the 1978 code.
That led to the right-now approach to get all driveways up to code.
“We understand that the economy right now is very stressful to the average resident. We’re looking to find ways which is where the grant comes in to help," Michaud said.
Forty-four affected homeowners have two years to replace their driveways and they can apply for a grant potentially covering 50% of the cost.
Homeowners have pay to replace the driveway first, then get reimbursed.
Jeffs said that will put people in a bind.
“There’s bound to be people in here that can’t afford it. There are people that are probably on fixed incomes. There are people that just don’t have the funds.”
The Town of Lake Park has $100,000 total in grant money for the 44 homeowners.
It’s first-come first-serve for that grant money that can pay for up to half of the repaved driveway.
When I asked Michaud as for why gravel driveways were banned in the first place, he said the town doesn’t have that specific reasoning in their records.
In some cases where residents meet “extreme” or “very low” income status, Town leadership says grant money can be used to pay for 100% of the driveway repaving.
The residents still have to apply for the grant.
