ORANGE PARK – Tammie Taft said she had to make a four-point turn just to get out of her driveway Monday morning to drive to work.

Bruce Houck said there are days when he can barely navigate between the line of cars parked on both sides of his quiet street.

Others talked about sanitation workers having to park at the end of the street and push containers down the street to the truck because there wasn’t enough room to do their jobs.

Town Manager Sarah Campbell said her office received a picture taken by a mailman after he left a note on the side window saying, “You’re blocking this person’s mailbox. You can’t park here. Mailman.”

The next day, the cars were back.

The standoff between residents of the street and Precision Dermatology & Skin Surgery dates back to 2018, said one of 12 residents of Blake Street who attended a special roundtable meeting Monday night hosted by Campbell, Mayor Randy Anderson, Town Attorney Jody Lane Brooks, Police Sgt. Randy Case and Fire Chief John Contestabile.

Their anger matched their angst because they said they didn’t understand why the surgery center would continue to ignore their concerns.

“We are not protected,” Houck said. “We are being violated. We’ve gone to them. We’ve talked to them.”

In fact, Taft said the center called the Orange Park Police Department on her when she pleaded with employees to stop blocking her driveway.

Campbell said she also talked with employees at the office. Like other residents who’ve approached the office, her requests to find a solution were ignored.

The residents said that Center owner Leonard Dr. Shvartzman, who lives in St. Johns County, told his employees to park in the street so patients could utilize the 27 parking spaces at the office. Campbell told residents Monday night the employees weren’t violating the town code since it was a public street.

“There is not a whole lot we can do legally,” Brooks said.
Campbell tried to clarify town ordinances. She said Precision Dermatology & Skin Surgery wasn’t in violation.

“The requirements for the business are set in the town code, and they’re based on the square footage of the building, which they meet,” Campbell said. “They have two buildings, and for what they do and the size of their buildings, they are required to have 22 (parking) spaces. They have 27, and so they’re exceeding what the code said by five spaces.

“But, their business has exceeded that. Clearly, between employees and patients, they have more than 27 vehicles. They are not violating our parking requirements.”

However, several of the parking spaces aren’t being utilized. When Clay Today visited the center on Tuesday, there were 11 open spaces.

Campbell offered several options like creating offset parking spaces and restricting parking on one side of the street. A plan to block the entrance onto Blake Street from Park Avenue and restrict parking to cars with a special decal was also discussed.

Anderson listened for more than 40 minutes before giving his opinion. What he said had residents cheering and clapping.

“I don’t live on Blake, but if I did, I’d be pissed,” he said.

“The problem is, they don’t care,” Allen said.

“We need to make them care,” Anderson said.

The Mayor said he would try to convince the center to be more “respectful” of the neighborhood.

“I will talk to the doctor,” he said.

Clay Today also left a business card with a receptionist to ask the doctor to return a call. By noon Wednesday, Shvartzman had not responded.

The group vowed to keep fighting to regain control of their street. Case said if any car is 15 feet from a fire hydrant, blocking a driveway in any manner or 20 feet from a crosswalk or intersection, he asked residents to call his department so the car can be ticketed.

That was little solace to the group.

“They are disrespectful,” Taft said. “They wouldn’t want me to park in front of their house. I don’t want them to be cited. I just want them to be mindful of our community. Right now, they have more rights than we do.”