Special magistrate finds Beachfront Auto Care in violation, orders compliance review

The special magistrate found there was “substantial competent evidence” that Beachfront Auto Care had violated Key West’s code and entered a formal finding after the business acknowledged the violations. Alma Montana, a city code-enforcement officer, told the hearing that inspectors observed golf carts stored at 626 Josephine Road and that no conditional‑use application had been filed with planning despite repeated outreach and meetings with licensing staff.

“On June 9 the golf carts had not been removed from the property and there was no application in our system,” Montana said, recounting inspections and notices served. Representative Fabian Barona told the magistrate the business had retained counsel and was now taking steps to apply for the required conditional‑use permit.

The magistrate said he would treat the matter as proceeding to a compliance hearing; city staff asked for a short compliance window and the magistrate set a compliance-review hearing in mid‑September to determine whether an application had been filed. The city asked that the business begin the application process immediately; the magistrate warned that per‑day fines would run if the property remained noncompliant.