Comments on: When Art and Bureaucracy Clash

By: Mason Harryhausen

Mason Harryhausen — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:18:47 +0000

This is Camesuze Quetant’s address:
http://southflorida.blockshopper.com/property/3022050022010/19705_ne_10th_court/
Everyone should call code enforcment on her. I guarantee you she has way too many people living in the house among other violations. Interesting how a city official’s house bought in 2003 only owes $1200 a year in property taxes while the rest of us pay 4-5 times that, isn’t it?

By: Jay Fiedler

Jay Fiedler — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 23:58:59 +0000

Camesuze Quetant is the most insensitive Nazi waste of life you’ll ever come across. She camps in our neighborhood in a city car with her A\C on, getting paid with taxpayer’s dollars just watching houses. She then singles one or two people out to terrorize for the next month. Usually it’s old Haitian women without a dime to their name, or the new white people that moved to the neighborhood. Brand new non-permitted work can be going on right in front of her, and she’ll gladly overlook it. She only tickets based on the mood she’s in. She’ll mail out a violation one day, and not post or notify you at your property until several days later. There’s got to be a way to get rid of these people. I’ve met plenty of code enforcement folks who are actually quite reasonable and nice. Give an unhappy lout like Camesuze a badge, and there’s hell to pay. She’s truly a wart on the city of Miami and doesn’t care about anything but sitting in the A\C of her car everyday waiting to ruin your day.

By: david Rohn

david Rohn — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 15:03:17 +0000

Experiences with inspectors and police in Miami
One came to approve our new fence couldn t communicate in English, Spanish or French -finally kinda sorta used french -wanted to convert me to his church I went along with it taking a brochure saying my mother would like that,finally asking if we could check the fence it was ok til we got a letter from the city 6 months later telling us our permit had expired and we had to pay to renew it ,, Several phone calls and an early AM visit to bldg dept- the inspector had never entered his approval in the computer.Oh well he was probably hired out of political patronage and in any event can t be fired unless he becomes a “sex offender”
When the young art lover who opened the first gallery in Wynwood tried to get a license from the city he was told he d need 80 parking spaces- (that s 80 more than the Performing Arts Centrer has)
Now that the city smells$$ they lavish endless liquor licenses on the Goldman developers ( Hey ‘Joey’s doesn t have a parking lot does it?)
Another friend is trying to build a ‘green’ house using new technology- the inspectors have no idea what any of it is about and are putting him thru hell- down the road we’ll have to listen to how ‘green’ Miami is no doubt.
My own experience (aside from having been fined $500 for pruning a scarily large tree that looms over our house):
the time I was held at gunpoint by 8 police cas for 3 hours, handcuffed and shouted at” what do you think you re doing for tourism by doing something like this” (I d explained it was an art project- they retorted in disbelief ‘what school do you go to?) -Couldn t understand it was a project initiated by me and not related to a school
(I was Photographing myself in a Muslim chador pushing a double baby carriage with 2 dolls in it)
I tried to point out that” we have art tourism too-you know like the Basel Art Fairs” The police woman tilted her head and made a childlike wondering face( made me think of a dog when it hears a strange sound)- I think this poor woman had the equivalent of a 3rd grade education. ( having her hold a gun on me was very disturbing) Seems she and her colleagues thought I was a terrorist trying (I guess) to look unobtrusive while I pwerformed my mission of terror.
Miami ‘s art community needs to know we exist in a vacum of collapsed education and fear, and a value system that sees merit only in things that generate money.

By: david Rohn

david Rohn — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 14:36:54 +0000

: we were fined $500.for pruning our tree (more than 25%) and a friend is trying to build a green’ house -we’d looked into geo thermal cooling and knew from past experience we d have to do it on the sly- no way the Miami Bldg Inspectors have any idea of what that is or how to build it.And finding out would threaten them.(In the end it was WAAAAAY too expensive)
So this friend is having all sorts of trouble -the inspectors are mostly ignorant like the police and were hired for reasons that have nothing to do with competence. We had an inspector for a fence who wanted to convert me to his church- I went along with it saying ‘my mother would like that’ Of course conmmunicating with him was difficullt although I speak french Spanish and English- the French sorta kinda worked.-and finally got him to look at and approve the fence. Six months later we got a letter saying we had a fine and to renew our permit which had expired -several phone calls and an early morning trip to the bldg dept showed the inspector had never bothered to put the approval record in the computer.Complaining about these things is useless these people can t be fired -and were probably hired for political patronage.
Another friend who opened the first art gallery in Wynwood ( which the city now (smelling money) boosts in the form of giving many liquor licenses the the Goldman developers,)) was told he needed to provide 80 parking spaces ( hey that’s 80 more than the city provided for the Performing Arts Center).
The city only cooperates with innovation when it sees $$ for itself.
And I of course was detained by 8 police cars for 3 hours for taking pictures of myself in a Muslim women’s dress with a baby carriage with 2 dolls in it Seems the policewoman who drew her gun on me ( roughly the equivalent to a 3rd grade education)thought that a terrorist would do something like this to blend in. later another idiotic policewoman challenged me by saying ‘what do you think you’re doing for tourism by doing this?” ( guess they re taught law enforcement is about tourism) I told her that “there’s art tourism in Miami too, you know like the Basel Fairs”. She tilted her head to the side and made a wondering face like a dog who’s heard a strange noise..
Sounds like Clifton’s neighbors are like the ones who called the police on me – desperately afraid of anything that seems different, and righteously anxious to stamp it out. Seems like the education system has collapsed and an ignorant status quo wherby only things that generate money make sense, governs thinking.

By: Richard Haden

Richard Haden — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 00:54:56 +0000

Hard to de-code code enforcement.

By: I was there

I was there — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 20:22:51 +0000

In most Third World countries you just bribe the inspector and they go away.

By: I was there

I was there — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 20:18:18 +0000

The problem is getting caught in the web of Bureaucracy. Since the house is in a residential neighborhood, he is at the mercy of Camesuze Quetant, who many have issues with him using the yard to WORK instead of LIVE. Once they catch wind of him using the house for anything more than just living a docile existence they will fine him Up the Yazoo.
Yet this is Free Country! [not!]

By: domingo

domingo — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 18:29:31 +0000

have really really tall hedges so your neighbors cant see your yard