No fines added after final St. Regis hearing finds resort in violation

The town of Longboat Key’s magistrate Milan Brkich ruled the St. Regis Longboat Key violated the town’s sea turtle lighting ordinances, but no further fines or fees were added to the ruling. 

A special magistrate hearing — continued from the last hearing on Sept. 11 — allowed both the town’s code enforcement and representatives from the St. Regis Longboat Key to present new information about the violations which continued throughout the summer.

After the hearing was continued, Code Enforcement Officer David Woods met with the Director of Engineering for the St. Regis Longboat Key on Sept. 20 to inspect the lights together. 

In the town’s code, no specific spectrum or wavelength of light would cause a light to be in violation. The code states that any visible white light from the beach is a violation. 

Woods said during this meeting, the resort lobby lights were one of the main issues pointed out. Jenkins then configured the lobby lights to be a reddish tint, sufficient to the town’s code standards. 

According to Woods’ testimony, he visited the site again on Sept. 23. Some lights were still on, and the lobby lights were no longer red as previously agreed to. This was the last night that Woods was out to inspect the St. Regis property. 

There are also regulations for beach lighting outlined by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). Staff from the FWC visited the St. Regis and submitted a report which was added to the record at the Nov. 13 hearing. 

The report states that of 94 items (lights) on the property, 59 required action to comply with FWC standards. 

Another special magistrate hearing was scheduled for Oct. 9, but Hurricane Milton’s anticipated landfall shut down town operations that week. This postponed the continued St. Regis hearing until Nov. 13. 

Sea turtle nesting season officially ended on Oct. 31, but Hurricanes Helene and Milton likely put an earlier end to nesting activity on Longboat Key after storm surge washed over most of the island’s beaches. The end of the nesting season on Oct. 31 also means the town’s sea turtle lighting ordinances are no longer in effect.

Before the end of the season, the St. Regis accumulated $6,850 in fines for lighting violations that occurred from May 10 to Aug. 16. 

Woods stated the St. Regis was unable to come into full compliance with the town’s sea turtle lighting ordinances throughout the nesting season, and staff recommended finding the resort in violation of the ordinances without additional fines or fees. 

“The turtles we lost this past season are gone, and we don’t want that to happen again. It’s a very important issue in the community here and it’s a very important issue when it comes in front of me,” Brkich said. 

What’s next

Since the last hearing on Sept. 11, Patten said about 45 of the residences at St. Regis officially closed. 

With the residents now taking ownership of their units in the St. Regis, this may pose complicated enforcement issues for code enforcement in the future. The St. Regis resort is responsible for lighting in common indoor areas, restaurants, pools and outdoor spaces. But, now, unit owners are responsible for the lighting in their units.

Brenda Patten, who provides legal counsel for the resort and developer, said the St. Regis staff is continuously working to educate guests and new homeowners about the town’s turtle lighting ordinances. 

Upon closing on the condo units, Patten said residents are given a fact sheet that outlines the turtle lighting ordinances. This has been well-received so far, she said. 

Patten also continued to emphasize the goal of code enforcement is compliance and is not a punitive process. 

“I think what you’re seeing here is, with the assistance of Mr. Woods and the FWC and others, we are bringing this more and more into compliance,” Patten said. 

Brkich ruled the St. Regis violated the ordinances this summer, but followed town staff’s recommendation to not add additional fines. Patten’s presentation focused on explaining the complexities behind the St. Regis ownership. She planned on a longer presentation to dispute further fines but decided not to use that and conceded to Brkich’s ruling. 

Finding the resort in violation sets a precedent for the resort in the future and gives the resort a record of violating the town’s lighting ordinances. 

Next season, if similar issues arise, the special magistrate could move to enforce stricter and more severe fines. 

“I will be interested to see next year if your group there has gotten a handle on this,” Brkich said. “Because, if not, then you won’t want to come into my courtroom.”