HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 05.17.2023
Contractor Licensing Board Minutes – Draft
May 17, 2023, at 8:30 a.m. St. Lucie County Administration Board of County Commissioners
Commission Chambers
PRESENT STAFF PRESENT
Contractor Licensing Supervisor…………………………………………………… Danielle Williams Building Official………..……………………………………………….……………. Doug Harvey Assistant County Attorney………………………………………………………….. Katherine Barbieri Code Compliance Manager……………………………………………………….. Monica Graziani Contractor Licensing Investigator………………………………………………… Mike Cicio Board Recorder……………………………………………………………………... Roxann Johnson A. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 8:30 a.m. B. ROLL CALL OF BOARD MEMBERS: The roll was called. C. ELECTION OF OFFFICERS: REVISIT VOTE FOR VICE CHAIRMAN VICE CHAIRMAN: Mr. DiFrancesco made a motion to nominate Mr. Tony Jerger for Vice Chairman. Mrs. Taylor seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. Chairman Leonard asked for a roll call vote. Mrs. Taylor – Yes, Mr. Sampson – Yes, Mr. DiFrancesco – Yes, Mr. Langel – Yes, Chairman Leonard – Yes, Mr. Pride – Yes, Mr. Priest – Yes, Mr. Morris – Yes, Mr. Kauffman – Yes. The motion carried unanimously. D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: January 18, 2023 Contractors Examining Board Meeting March 15, 2023 Contractors Examining Board Meeting Motion was made by Mr. Pride to approve the Minutes of the January 18, 2023 and March 15, 2023. Mr. Priest seconded and the motion carried unanimously. E. SWEARING IN OF STAFF: The following staff members were sworn in by the Recording Secretary: Danielle Williams, Douglas Harvey and Mike Cicio.
Chairman.…………………………..................................................................... Travis Leonard
Secretary…………………………………………………………………………… Michael DiFrancesco
Vice Chairman……………………………………………………………………… Tony Jerger
……………………...………………………………………………………………… Michael Pride
Chris Langel
………………...……………………………………………………………………… Sheila McCarthy-Taylor
……………………………………………………………………………………….. Adam Sampson
………………………………………………………………………………………. Roger Priest
………………………………………………………………………………………. Gary Morris
………………………………………………………………………………………… Michael Kauffmann Jr.
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F. PUBLIC COMMENT: Chairman Leonard asked the audience if anyone present wanted to speak to the Board under public comment. There being none the Board moved on to Applications to be approved. G. APPLICATIONS TO BE APPROVED BY CONSENT VOTE: Motion was made by Mr. DiFrancesco to approve the applicants recommended by Consent vote. Mr. Langel seconded and the motion carried unanimously. The names were read into the record: Qualifier Business Name Type of Contractor Testing Agency
APPLICATIONS RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL BY RECIPROCITY: Motion was made by Mr. DiFrancesco to approve the applicants recommended by Reciprocity vote. Mr. Langel seconded and the motion carried unanimously. Qualifier Business Name Type of Contractor Richard P. Peterson Sr. Peterson Sprinkler Services LLC Irrigation Sprinkler Contractor
Yves J. Thelusca G Y & T Electric LLC Electrical Contractor
APPLICATIONS APPROVED ADMINISTRATIVELY BASED ON RECIPROCITY FROM THE CITY OF PORT ST. LUCIE OR THE CITY OF FORT PIERCE: The applicant’s name was read into the record. THE FOLLOWING APPLICATIONS ARE RECOMMENDED FOR REVIEW BY THE BOARD:
H. DISCIPLINARY CASE: 1) Case No. 2207-0000015 – Jamison T. Brownie and/or Brownie Structural Movers LLC Chairman Leonard stated next on our agenda is Disciplinary Case No. one for Case No. 2207-0000015 against Jamison T. Brownie and/or Brownie Structural Movers LLC. He asked Staff to update the Board on the case. Officer Cicio addressed the Board and stated for the record, he is submitting the following documents:
Itzan D. Pupo N/A Journeyman Electrician Prov
Dwayne A. Sapp Tropiscapes Enterprises LLC dba Tropiscapes Irrigation Sprinkler Contractor Prov
Collin Forbes Caribbean Connect Electric LLC Electrical Contractor Prov
Qualifier Business Name Type of Contractor
Alexander A. Acosta Coastal Construction Group Corp. Residential Contractor
Qualifier Business Name Type of Contractor
None.
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1. Six (6) photos taken by me, on January 13, 2022, during an onsite inspection at the property address of
3695 S 25th St, Ft Pierce. These photos were taken for a previous case presented to this board. He is also
presenting four (4) photos and two short videos provided to me by Attorney Michael Gervais. 2. A copy of a Notice to Appear for the May 17, 2023, Contractor Licensing Board with proof of posted service.
the notice to appear was posted at the po box location of brownie structural movers llc on February 2, 2023.
3. Division of Corporation, contractor license and workers’ compensation information for Brownie Structural
Movers LLC.
4. Two (2) issued and served subpoenas, one (1) issued and served to George Kessel of Cook Shell
Contractors LLC on January 31, 2023, and one (1) issued and served to Martin Carona of Cook Shell Contractors LLC on March 31, 2023. Division of Corporations information is included.
5. A copy of the building permit application dated April 9, 2019, to elevate structure out of the flood zone and
install a new floor system. The contractor of record is listed to be Brownie Structural Movers (Jamison
Brownie). This application was signed by property owner Yves Gervais with notary on March 25th, 2019,
and by Jamison Brownie on April 9th, 2019. He is submitting copies of the permit review along with
scheduled inspections. 6. a copy of the complaint affidavit along with letter to the board filed with the county by the property owner’s
son, Michael Gervais, on behalf of the property owners Yves and Jamie Gervais on July 13, 2022. Exhibits
submitted with the complaint affidavit are:
(i) EXHIBIT 1 – scope of work to be performed by brownie structural movers which includes filling all reinforced cells and columns with 3000 psi grout. (ii) EXHIBIT 2 – contract between Yves & Jamie Gervais and Brownie Structural Movers LLC executed on October 9, 2018, for the contracted amount of $79,600. (iii) EXHIBIT 3 – invoices and monies paid to brownie structural movers llc including an invoice dated May 6, 2021, which included “supplied an additional three (3) courses of block and labor to install” for the amount of $3,480 and check image 284 from the personal bank account of Jamie and Yves Gervais for a total amount of $28,280.00 written on May 26, 2021.
(iv) EXHIBIT 4 – Inspection card. (v) EXHIBIT 5 – permit printout showing permit 1904-0240 applied for on April 9, 2019. this permit was changed to owner/builder on November 8, 2021. (vi) EXHIBIT 6 – screenshot of a text message from Jamison Brownie to property owners stating that they have a passed inspection. (vii) EXHIBIT 7 – Attorney package from the Law Office of Susman Godfrey L.L. Officer Cicio stated on July 13, 2022, a complaint affidavit was filed by Mr. Michael Gervais on behalf of property owners Yves Gervais, Jamie Gervais and Leila West against Brownie Structural Movers LLC, Jamison T. Brownie, for work performed at the address of 3695 S. 25th St., Ft. Pierce, FL. Mr. Brownie was notified of this complaint on July 28, 2022, and a copy was emailed to him at his request to the email provided. Officer Cicio stated after commencing his investigation, he found that the permit on file, building residential renovation permit 1904-0240, had been converted to an owner/builder permit on November 8, 2021. this permit, originally applied and issued to Jamison Brownie with Brownie Structural Movers on Aug 20, 2020, was to elevate the structure out of a flood zone and install a new floor system, same footprint and to construct decks with steps at north side and southwest side. Officer Cicio stated Brownie Structural Movers LLC was hired to lift the house and install a new stem wall and footer system. Gitter Done Home Maintenance Tc Inc was listed as a sub-contractor on this permit and was contracted to install the new floor system and interior work. Brownie Structural Movers contract with Mr. and Mrs. Gervais was for a total of $79,600.00 which has been paid in full. the basis of this contractor complaint against brownie structural movers llc was due to the multiple failed inspections by Brownie Structural Movers LLC which were ultimately passed. Officer Cicio stated on October 25, 2022, he was provided pictures and short videos from Mr. Michael Gervais of a discovery made during an inspection performed by Cook Shell Contractors LLC. during an inspection performed by Mr. Martin Carona, It appears that Brownie Structural Movers LLC or a sub-contractor of, used sand to cover rebar in an undetermined number of cells on some of the south and possible west side of the structure. Officer Cicio stated he made contact with Mr. Brownie on October 25, 2022, and inquired about the sand discovered in the cells. Mr. brownie did not offer any explanation at that time, however, i did email him photos on October 25, 2022 asking for him to review and reply. He stated he has since received feedback from Mr. brownie within the past few weeks. Mr. Brownie claimed that his witnesses observed the property owner, Yves Gervais, filling the cells with sand. Officer Cicio stated upon initial investigation, it was found that brownie structural movers llc violated: Prohibited Activities:
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SLC 10-26 (8) - Fraudulently depart from, or disregard, plans or specifications in material respect, without consent of the owner or his duly authorized representative. Officer Cicio stated in this section, brownie structural movers llc agreed to raise the ceiling in this structure by adding an additional three courses of block around the perimeter of the house. this was done without an approved revision and the property did receive a stop work order for modifying the work from the approved plans. a revision for this change was made and approved by plan review. Also, in this section as previously stated, an inspection by employees of Cook Shell Contractors was performed after Brownie Structural Movers claimed to have finished their contractual obligation, which resulted in the discovery of sand in cells containing reinforcing structural steel. SLC 10-26 (9) - Commit any fraudulent act as a contractor as a result of which another is financially injured. Officer Cicio stated due to pre-existing structural integrity issues, the property owners hired another contractor to install buttresses around the perimeter of the house. this expense absorbed by the property owners is an additional expense beyond the agreed to contractual prices. Mr. and Mrs. Gervais are also paying rent for living accommodations while their home is under construction. Revocation or Suspension of Certificate of Competency: SLC 10-67 (3) – Disregards and violates an applicable state or local building code, regulation, or law. SLC 10-67 (10) – Commits fraud or deceit or other misconduct in the practice of contracting. Officer Cicio stated due to the finding of sand in cells containing structural rebar during an inspection by cook shell contractors, and the presumed fact that this sand would have been placed in those cells during the construction phase of lifting the ceiling height, it is believed that Brownie Structural Movers LLC violated both sections of this code. Brownie Structural Movers LLC was paid to provide and install three additional courses of block which was placed at or above the level where this sand was discovered. Officer Cicio stated Jamison T. Brownie is a state licensed general contractor, license number CGC1519113, which was effective October 20, 2010. Mr. Brownie does currently possess an active license through the Florida Department of Business and professional regulations (DBPR). Mr. Brownie is registered with St Lucie County, County certification number 26601, which was originally effective November 22, 2010, and changed on March 4, 2021, due to a business name change. Officer Cicio stated based upon the facts in this case, staff is recommending that the board (1) suspend the permitting privileges for Jamison T. Brownie/Brownie Structural Movers LLC for a period not to exceed 365 days; two (2) require that a written request be made to the board to reinstate Brownie Structural Movers LLC (Jamison T. Brownie) permitting privileges after the one-year suspension. Officer Cicio stated staff also recommends that the board forward a copy of the Board’s order to the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulations (DBPR) and the surrounding municipalities. Officer Cicio stated for the Board 's knowledge he has property owners here with legal representation, Michael Gervais. He stated Mr. Kessel and Mr. Corona from Cook Shell Contractors, the individuals subpoenaed, and we do have Mr. Brownie here with his legal counsel. Chairman Leonard asked Mr. Brownie to come to the podium and be sworn in by the Recording Secretary. Mr. Jamison T. Brownie was sworn in by the Recording Secretary Chairman Leonard: Mr. Brownie is that your legal counsel next to you? Mr. Brownie: Yes sir. Chairman Leonard: Would you like to have him speak for you or would you like to speak for yourself? Mr. Brownie: I will speak. Chairman Leonard: Mr. Brownie, thank you for being here. You see the facts here in front of us and you have been here a
long time. Mr. Brownie: Yes. Mr. Brownie: As far as the sand, it was brought to me after the fact when I was speaking with John about it and they told me Mister Gervais would go around after work hours or even during work hours and clean up and put stuff down in the cells. I do
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have pictures of the job site showing clean outs, so when we did get our inspections, there was no sand in the cell everything was approved. To even think I would put sand in reinforced cells is ridiculous. It actually would probably cost more money to do that than to actually pump concrete in there. Mr. Brownie: To even think I would put sand in reinforced cells is ridiculous. It actually would probably cost more money to do that than to actually pump concrete in there. Chairman Leonard: I saw on the record that you had failed inspections and then passed inspections. Mr. Brownie: Correct. Mr. Brownie: As we were lifting the structure Mrs. Gervais requested that we lifted it up 2 feet higher, so she could have 10ft ceilings and I told her, I said now is the time to do that absolutely, but our plans don't reflect that. The plans that everybody signed off on, just showed 8 ft ceilings. I said we'll go ahead and lift it up, we'll have to get the plans changed, but to not slow the project down, I'm going to continue blocking and try for an inspection. Mr. Brownie: It was failed, the inspector caught it that it didn't match, and it wasn’t going to be a big deal to change it because we were in the process of changing it with the architect. So, we failed that inspection, that's the one Michael Gervais is kind of hanging his hat on you know a failed inspection going away from the plans. Mr. Brownie: There is nothing malicious, we did only what the requested, we had the plans redrawn, no cost to them, didn't charge them for redrawing the plans, my time, sitting with the architect and none of that. The plans got approved and inspection passed. Mr. Brownie: All inspections on my end had passed, but we did have some failed ones, but they got rectified. Chairman Leonard: Inside Officer Cicio’s report it also stated that there wasn't steel place in the cells that needed to be there. Are you aware of that? Mr. Brownie: No, I had the plans redrawn to reflect the current conditions of it and that's what the architect drew because I told him his stuff does not match existing conditions, so he redrew it. We resubmitted it. It got approved and passed inspections. Chairman Leonard: So, do you feel confident comfortable now that you guys put the steel in the right place and did the right thing? Mr. Brownie: Oh, absolutely because we had to drill an epoxy into the existing port cells and there's only so many existing port cells. I paint everything, mark every location, every filled cell. We drilled an epoxy, top and bottom to lock it in, then there was a little bit of contradiction on the plan. Mr. Brownie: The architect engineer wanted the ledger board around the perimeter for the floor joist to be redheaded. I believe it was 32 or 48 inches on center, there wasn't enough port cells for that, and he didn't call out for that so I even went above and beyond and poured cells at every location, so when John was doing the floor framing he had something to lock the wedge anchor into. If not, it was just going to be a hollow cell and that was not going to do anything. Chairman Leonard: Thank you Mr. Brownie. Does any of the Board members have any questions for Mr. Brownie? Mr. DiFrancesco: You made mention that the clients asked you about raising the structure from 8ft ceiling to 10ft. So, when you did that. did you do that work without a revision? In other words, did you did tell her that you had to do your drawings first? Did you tell her that you had to bring it to the County and get it revised with the County? Mr. Brownie: Yes, I told her. We were in the process of elevating the structure, and I told her I said we were going to have to get the plan revised to reflect the additional height inside because we were going from 8 to 10ft. Mr. DiFrancesco: At what point did you do that did you do that? Did you do that after you failed the inspection, or did you put the revision in after you failed the inspection? Did you put the revision in before? Mr. Brownie: We were working on the plans, I can't remember. Well, we failed the inspection, so the plans were not completed and turned in at that time. No, no I was already in the process of having the architect redraw the plans. Mr. DiFrancesco: Ok, so they weren't approved yet in the County. In other words, the revision was not submitted to the County yet. Mr. Brownie: No sir.
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Mr. Brownie: I did that because the clients were displaced from their home and if we were going to wait for all that they would be out the house an additional two months. There was further discussion among the Board, Staff, and Mr. Brownie regarding the case. Chairman Leonard: I would like to see Mr. Kessel from Cook Shell Contractors. Mr. George Kessel from Cook Shell Contractors was sworn in by the Recording Secretary Chairman Leonard: Mr. Kessel, thank you for being here. Mr. Kessel: Yes. Chairman Leonard: How long have you been a licensed contractor? Mr. Kessel: I am not a licensed contractor myself; I work for Cook Shell Contractors. Chairman Leonard: Okay. So, you’re a foreman? So, you are not a licensed contractor? Mr. Kessel: I am a General Manager. Chairman Leonard: And you're in here because you were the contractor that went out and saw Mr. and Mrs. Gervais home and identified that the cells had sand in them? Mr. Kessel: Well, we weren't there to inspect the home. The only reason we even got involved with that job is Joe McCarthy’s engineer/architect. He had asked a favor for us to come out. I'm not really even sure how they determined but I guess there was a problem with the window jam saying they didn't have rebar in it or it wasn't adequate and his fix was to add those columns that you see in the picture on the exterior of the house and the detail was that he had to drill and epoxy these hook bars every 16 inches into the filled sells. Mr. Kessel: They were full, but they said they supposedly didn’t have rebar. I don’t know. I’m just going by what they said. So, we were out there doing that work, and that's when we came around the one corner of the house. Mr. Kessel: Mark was there, I wasn’t there. But the cells that lined up with window jams where we were supposed to be putting those columns, when he was breaking the holes, they were pouring sand out of them. So, how that happened, I don’t know. Chairman Leonard: How many shells have you built in your lifetime? Mr. Kessel: Shells? Lots of them. I don’t know. Hundreds of them. Chairman Leonard: Would you ever put sand in a cell? Mr. Kessel: No. Chairman Leonard: I don’t think any other actual contractor would. Mr. Kessel: No. There is really no reason to. Chairman Leonard: Yes, it doesn’t serve any purpose. Thank you, Mr. Kessel. Does any of the Board have any questions for Mr. Kessel? Mr. DiFrancesco: I do. Mr. Kessel, did you check every cell? Mr. Kessel: Well, the only ones we were concerned with are the ones lining up with the window jams because that’s where he said needed the extra strength. Like I said that was just his request and his drawings. Mr. DiFrancesco: So, did you check every cell? Mr. Kessel: Yes. Well, we went around and drilled every one. Mr. DiFrancesco: Did every one have sand in them? Mr. Kessel: It was only the ones I believe on the south end of the house, and he might have found one or two others. Mr. DiFrancesco: So, would you say one window, two windows, three windows?
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Mr. Kessel: Probably, three or four. Mr. DiFrancesco: Did you drill up high to see how far? Because sometimes the concrete gets stuck in there. Mr. Kessel: I don’t remember. Mr. DiFrancesco: How many sand did you get out of them? A bucket, a barrel? Mr. Kessel: Well, if you look at those pictures, you can see the piles at the bottom. Mr. DiFrancesco: Yes, I saw that. Mr. Kessel: Like I said, I wasn’t there the day when they were actually pouring the sand out, but I saw the video. Mr. DiFrancesco: Did you see steel in there? Mr. Kessel: I don’t recall seeing steel in there. Mr. DiFrancesco: Was there cleanouts on the bottom? There had to be, they had to pass inspection. Mr. Kessel: You would have to ask Martin. He was the one that there when that was happening. Mr. Difrancesco: And he’s not here today? Mr. Kessel: He’s here. He’s right over there. Chairman Leonard: Martin, could you please come up to be podium and be sworn in by the Recording Secretary? Thank you. Mr. Martin Corona was sworn in by the Recording Secretary Chairman Leonard: Question for you. How many cells did you check on the cells? Mr. Corona: We checked the whole house. We drilled the whole house because the boss told me we got to drill the rebar with epoxy six inches and also, we had to put the rebar supporting the window. We had to have a hook and straight. Chairman Leonard: I understand that. How many cells did you drill, and did you check for sand? Mr. Corona: We checked the whole house. Maybe twenty or thirty. Chairman Leonard: How many had sand in them? Mr. Corona: Only the southside. Three windows. Chairman Leonard: Southside, three windows. Mr. Corona: Yes. Chairman Leonard: Okay. Thank you. Mr. DiFrancesco: Were these windows existing or was it a new block? Mr. Corona: Yes, new block. There was further discussion among the Board, Staff, Mr. Kessel and Mr. Corona regarding the case. Chairman Leonard asked if the property owners would like to come up to the podium to speak to the Board. Mr. Michael Gervais was sworn in by the Recording Secretary Chairman Leonard: Welcome back from California. Sorry you have to be here again. Mr. Gervais: I want to thank the County’s Investigator for the time and attention to this matter. I want to thank you all for your time and attention today.
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Mr. Gervais: My name is Michael Gervais. You may recall that I previously appeared before this Board, I believe about a year ago. It was in early 2022 for a complaint filed against John Schnieder and his company Gitter Done Construction. Gitter Done was penalized for its actions associated with this property, with the suspension of permitting privileges for a year. Mr. Gervais: Gitter Done as you heard was only the subcontractor for the permit for this home. The permit holder is Brownie Structural Movers. I thought that the worst thing that Brownie Structural Movers had done was refer my parents to Gitter Done. Unfortunately, I was proven incorrect. We have discovered a number of violations that I believe are egregious. That’s why we are here today. Mr. Gervais: You may recall from my prior testimony that my parents house was flooded during hurricane Irma in 2017. There was a storm surge which they had about three (3) feet of water in their home. This led them to explore ways to elevate their home out of the flood zone, so that they wouldn’t have to deal with that again, given the risk of there home being in a flood zone. Mr. Gervais: So, they contacted Brownie Structural Movers to elevate their home, per applicable codes. They paid Brownie Structural Movers over eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) to complete this work and pass the County’s inspection. Unfortunately, Brownie Structural Movers caused significant structural and safety issues by among other things, filling up the foundation of their home with sand and concrete. By failing to put the rebar in places where the County believed that rebar was necessary. Mr. Gervais: And I want to talk about that, but I want to first talk about accountability. It’s why we are here today. You are tasked with ensuring that the building codes and regulations are followed and that they mean something beyond the paper that it is written on. Mr. Gervais: By holding contractors accountable, you deter others from cutting corners and breaking the rules. You have an important power. It’s an awesome power and I think it’s important because when bad acts go unpunished, it only encourages more bad acts. Mr. Gervais: The building codes are a back stop. They ensure that none of us have to think twice about the safety of the buildings that we live in, that we go to work in or that our children go to school in. That is the promise of building according to code that you have some reassurance of building safely. Mr. Gervais: Unfortunately, my parents did not get that reassurance when they hired Brownie Structural Movers. As I stated shortly after my parents purchased their home, it flooded during the storm surge of Hurricane Irma. They learned that this home has a history of flooding during storm surges. They determined that it was important for their piece of mind and for their safety and for the safety of their family and friends to elevate their home above the flood zone. In short, my parents saw it as their responsibility as homeowners to make the home safer by elevating above the flood zone. Mr. Gervais: Being on a fixed income, they are retired, they applied for government programs to help them elevate their home. Unfortunately, their applications were denied. So, they found a licensed contractor, Brownie Structural Movers, who has a history of doing this type of work in this area. Mr. Gervais: They pulled roughly eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) from their savings and paid Brownie to do the work according to code. And eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) is a very significant amount of money even for those not on a fixed income. But they believed it was the responsible thing to do as homeowners to elevate their home out of the flood zone. Mr. Gervais: After their home was red tagged, my parents repeatedly tried to contact Brownie Structural Movers to fix the issue, so it passed the County’s inspection, and he ignored them. Frankly, he still has not responded to them either formally or informally. After attempting for months to get in contact with Brownie Structural Movers, my parents asked for my help. Mr. Gervais: I sent a demand letter to Brownie Structural Movers in May 2022, he ignored that demand letter. I followed up two (2) weeks later. No response. I followed up, a week afterwards and finally Mr. Brownie responded. Those communications are included in the complaint. The materials that have been submitted and they included Mr. Brownie’s admission on June 22, 2022, that he knowingly deviated from the plans. Mr. Gervais: Now there are a few different paths that Mr. Brownie could have taken at this point. He chose not to take those paths. One path was to work with my parents to get the work completed as required per building codes, to pass inspection and move on. Mr. Brownie chose not to take this path. Mr. Gervais: Another path was to cover the expenses for my parents to have somebody else to come in and complete the work so that it would pass inspection and move on. Again, Mr. Brownie chose not to take this path. So, how did Mr. Brownie choose to respond to the demand letter? He called me to curse me out and threaten me. And I apologize for the language I am going to use, but I want the record to be accurate. I want it to be unequivocally clear the language that Mr. Brownie chose to use.
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Mr. Gervais: Mr. Brownie called me a faggot. He called me an ambulance chaser. He said I was trying to extort him. He told me that he was aware of my involvement in filing the complaint against John Schneider and Gitter Done that resulted in Mr. Schneider having his permitting privileges suspended and he threatened me saying that I better not file a complaint with the County because it’s his livelihood. Mr. Gervais: So, Mr. Brownie chose not to take responsibility and instead attempted to bully his way out being held accountable. Fortunately, we have this Board who still can hold him accountable. Given the unproductive nature of the conversation, I ended the call and sent an additional demand letter on June 22, 2022, for Brownie Structural Movers to fix it’s flawed work or pay someone else to fix it’s flawed work. Mr. Gervais: Brownie Structural Movers never responded to that letter. As you know, we filed the complaint shortly thereafter on July 13, 2022. Even that we didn’t receive any indication that Brownie Structural Movers was going to fix it’s own work, my parents moved in mitigating the harm caused by Brownie’s mistakes. They hired an architect to figure out a solution that would meet the County’s requirements. Mr. Gervais: During the course of fixing Mr. Brownie’s mistakes, my parents discovered new issues that were not included in the complaint filed with the County. When the company my parents hire to fix Brownie’s mistakes work had to drill into the foundation, sand began pouring out like water. Mr. Gervais: Obviously, this is an alarming development, given the real structural and safety issues of having a home with a history of flooding and having this foundation filled with sand. Given there was a pending complaint against Brownie Structural Movers, my parents self-recorded this violation, the discovery of sand in the foundation with the County investigator. Mr. Gervais: Not only did they self-report this additional code violation, they also paid a company to remove the sand and fill the foundation with concrete. Once again, my parents, who are on a limited, fixed income, were forced to spend more of their savings to fix problems caused by Brownie Structural Movers and as you know from my prior testimony, my parents have been dealing with this for years. Mr. Gervais: I believe Mr. Cicio said the permit was applied for in 2019 and we are now here in 2023 and my parents are still not in their home. It is sincerely disappointing that I have to appear before this Board once again. Mr. Gervais: As much as I appreciate the time and attention that you are giving this matter, I wish we did not need to be here. But we are here out of a profound moral obligation because my parents and I strongly believe in accountability. Moreover, we are concerned about the safety of other buildings in this county. Who knows, where else, Brownie Structural Movers has cut corners in prior projects. Mr. Gervais: I say this sincerely to the extent this county has any investigatory capability; I urge you to use it and investigate prior projects where Brownie Structural Movers has been involved may have concealed any construction defects. It’s better to find out now which projects are unsafe or structurally unsound before it’s too late. Mr. Gervais: I want my parents house to be built the right way. That’s why I’m here today. My parents want their house built the right way. That’s why they hired a licensed contractor in the first place and ultimately why they reported that contractor when their home did not pass inspection and I believe this county wants my parents’ house built the right way, which is why it stopped work when it discovered issues, so those issued could be remediated. Mr. Gervais: Unfortunately, the licensed contractor on this project, Brownie Structural Movers, who pulled the permit and is ultimately responsible for making sure things are done the right way, did not do so here. Licensed contractors are given permitting privileges and it is a privilege, that is earned and when you are caught cutting corners, and you abuse that privilege, you should be held accountable and have that privilege taken away. Mr. Gervais: I believe that Brownie Structural Movers has abused its privilege. This Committee, you are the guardians of the building code. You are tasked with punishing contractors who don’t follow them. I ask that you use your power today to hold Brownie Structural Movers accountable. Mr. Gervais: I believe I heard Mr. Brownie state that there was a witness who reportedly saw my father fill the foundation with sand and that is a ludicrous suggestion. It defies logic, that my father, seventy-seven (77) years old, is going to pay a contractor to do work and then go in the dark of night, to go fill the foundation with sand. Self-sabotage and then come to this county and report it. I mean, it makes no sense whatsoever. Mr. Gervais: I believe he said it was John, who is the witness, and John is the same individual who my parents previously filed a complaint against and has previously filed a lawsuit against. So, I do question his motives, if it is indeed John Schneider, who is their witness. With that, I will end my remarks and I can answer any questions. Chairman Leonard: Thank you Michael. I appreciate you being here.
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Chairman Leonard: Michael, you would say that taking someone’s permitting privileges away, their livelihood away is a big deal, correct? Mr. Gervais: Yes, it is a big deal. Chairman Leonard: Let me ask you a question. Do you think that maybe vandalism occurred on this property and there wasn’t ill intent on one side of the property? Do you think it could have been possible a neighborhood kid or somebody else put some sand in there? Mr. Gervais: If that is the case, it would be really surprising to me that the contractor did not discover it. Chairman Leonard: Mr. Harvey, he did pass inspection after getting the revision for the extra courses of block? Building Official, Doug Harvey: Yes sir. If I may add, it’s not unusual in the course of construction for us to work with the designer, the contractor, in order to try and keep a project moving to allow something to be done while a revision is occurring, even though we are not able to sign off on that revision at that moment. If it’s something that can be differed, we will generally allow some to go ahead and perform work in order to keep a project on schedule, while a revision is going through the system. Building Official, Doug Harvey: This really a multifaceted issue that we have on this project. If I may add just a piece of information. Chairman Leonard: Please. Building Official, Doug Harvey: I have been to the project, and I raised the question about the structural integrity. Because ordinarily, when a project is raised, there is generally nothing going on inside. We raise the structure; we reattach the utilities and life goes on. In this particular case, there was a request to raise the ceilings on the inside of the structure and based on that, part of this occurred prior to tenor with the county, to be upfront. I kind of walked in the middle of it, but I have been to the property and as a part of raising the ceilings, the complete interior was removed on this property without a permit. And that’s a case that you’ve previously heard that interior work was done with no permits, we had no plans at that time. Building Official, Doug Harvey: As the structure was elevated, we did inspect the inside of the structure and it was found that adjacent to some of the windows in particular, has been stated, that primarily on the southeast and south portion of the project there were what should have been solid, reinforced concrete columns to take the brunt of forces and some of those columns were honeycombed, they were actually missing concrete, in portions of them, there were air pockets, and we also found a couple that did not have steel. Building Official, Doug Harvey: With that in mind, we would not have even found that, had the structure just been raised and reconnected to the utilities. I believe that that is what created what you saw on the exterior of the butterises that were placed all around the building because Mr. McCarty did have a concern and that was the solution for it. Building Official, Doug Harvey: I personally inspected those butterises prior to them being poured and there was connection between the interior and exterior. There was steel in those butterises. I had asked the Gervais prior to placing the concrete in a couple of places to go ahead and move the steel so that we would have concrete cover around the steel where it was burning the forms. Building Official, Doug Harvey: So, that was done in order to reinforce the structure and part of that was caused by raising the structure where we now had a larger wall, we had a higher wind load, and then the discovery that all of the columns, the reinforcement for the structural integrity of the structure literally did not exist, which again, we would not have known if the structure had not been opened up. Building Official, Doug Harvey: So, for what it’s worth, the work that was above where the three (3) courses of block were put in, I think that it’s now been repaired to a safe level, which is what was necessary. I don’t really believe that putting that block in caused that to occur, but it did expose it. Chairman Leonard: Thank you Mr. Harvey, I really appreciate that. There was further discussion among the Board and Staff regarding the case. John Schneider: My name is John Schneider, and my license was suspended one year ago by this Board. I would like to come up and speak with the Board regarding my license and this case. Chairman Leonard: If you are going to speak to the Board, you are going to have to be sworn in by the Recording Secretary. Mr. John Schneider was sworn in by the Recording Secretary Mr. Shneider gave testimony on his case that came before the Board in 2022 and this case.
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Chairman Leonard thanked Mr. Schneider for his testimony and attending the meeting. There was further discussion among the Board, Staff, Mr. Michael Gervais, Mr. Brownie, Mr. Kessel, Mr. Carona, and Yves and Jamie Gervais regarding the case. Chairman Leonard: Does anybody have any questions of Staff? Any further discussion? If not, I am ready for a motion. Mr. DiFrancesco: Mr. Chairman, I would like to make a motion. I don’t feel there was any malicious act was really performed here. I think it was more of a contractor failing to supervise his job. I would like to make a motion to put the contractor on probation for a period of six (6) months and I think that would suffice. I don’t feel taking his license for three hundred and sixty-five (365) days is going to help anything. I think his scope of work was done. I do believe he had to come in behind somebody else and I know it’s not an easy task. Mr. DiFrancesco: It was a lot of he said, she said from what I hear and what I see, so I would like to make a recommendation that we just give him six (6) months’ probation. Chairman Leonard: So, you have a motion for six months’ probation? Mr. DiFrancesco: Yes sir. Mr. Pride: Mr. Chair, what would the probation look like? I mean, what does he have to do? Mr. DiFrancesco: Basically, if he is brought before this Board for any other reason, he loses his license for three hundred and sixty-five (365) days. Mr. Pride: But he can still pull permits? Mr. DiFrancesco: Yes, he can still pull permits. Assistant County Attorney, Katherine Barbieri: Mr. Chair, you approved the probation procedure at the last meeting. I apologize, we did not bring it with us, but it was something like that. Staff would go out randomly and check the inspections and things like that. We apologize for not having it with us. Chairman Leonard: I remember that. We did that at the last Board meeting. I remember that there would be greater eyes put on that contractor for that period of six (6) months. Assistant County Attorney, Katherine Barbieri: Yes sir. Mr. DiFrancesco: If we find that he is not supervising his jobs like he should, we take his license. Mr. Jerger: Under those circumstances, I will second it. Chairman Leonard: We have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Chairman Leonard: I would like to add that we put a letter in his file. We have a contractor that his family has been around this town for a very, very long time, but he has not been a contractor for a very long time, and I hope Mr. Brownie has learned a lot from this which I’m sure he has. Mr. DiFrancesco made a motion to place Mr. Jamison T. Brownie and/or Brownie Structural Movers LLC on six (6) months’ probation and a letter will be placed in Mr. Brownie’s file. Mr. Jerger seconded and the motion carried. Chairman Leonard asked for a roll call vote. Mrs. Taylor – Yes, Mr. Sampson – Yes, Mr. DiFrancesco – Yes, Mr. Jerger – Yes, Mr. Langel – Yes, Chairman Leonard – No, Mr. Pride – No, Mr. Priest – Abstained, Mr. Morris – Yes, Mr. Kauffmann – Yes. The motion carried. Chairman Leonard thanked everyone for their time and attending the meeting. J. OLD BUSINESS: None. K. NEW BUSINESS: None. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 10:42 a.m.
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The next Contractor Examining Board Hearing will be held on WEDNESDAY, July 19, 2023, AT 8:30 A.M.
Respectfully submitted, ------------------------------------------------ Michael DiFrancesco, Board Secretary Or Travis Leonard, Chairman