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Barbecue video goes viral, draws scrutiny on Pinellas County code enforcement

 
More than a dozen complaints were made this year about a barbecue grill at this home, prompting a county official to talk to the owner. Watch at tampabay.com/video.
More than a dozen complaints were made this year about a barbecue grill at this home, prompting a county official to talk to the owner. Watch at tampabay.com/video.
Published July 28, 2015

ST. PETERSBURG

Outrage flared across the Internet last week after a Facebook video of a Pinellas County bureaucrat warning two residents about a backyard barbecue went viral.

In less than a week, the video racked up nearly 4.2 million views, escalating what would have been a run-of-the-mill code complaint into an Internet meme symbolizing government overreach for millions. As social media lit up, county officials held a Monday news conference to explain their side.

"Our clear message is there is no ban on barbecue grilling in Pinellas County, and no citations or fines have been issued," Ajaya Satyal, county air quality manager, said.

Amid the social media frenzy, it's not clear if anyone heard.

"BBQ SMOKE IS ILLEGAL IN FLORIDA? OR JUST YOUR EVERY DAY HARASSMENT?" shouted a headline on a website called govtookmyrights.com, which re-posted the video.

The latest cause célèbre for antigovernment cranks stemmed from a long-simmering dispute between brothers Dwayne and Chris Matt and their neighbor, Sue Godfirnon. For months, Godfirnon had complained to the county about smoke billowing from the Matts' barbecue grill and onto her property on Alcola Way.

On Wednesday, Joe Graham, an environmental specialist for Pinellas County, entered the fray by responding to Godfirnon's latest complaint.

A friend of the Matt brothers, Scotty Jordan, recorded the exchange between Graham and Chris Matt and posted the video on Facebook.

The video, all five minutes and 42 seconds of it, quickly gained traction.

"This is obviously harassment and people like the one making complaints about these guys are the exact reason laws and ordinances get passed that further restrict our life, liberty and pursuit of happiness," the editor of govtookmyrights.com wrote. "It is obvious that the woman is just trying to make their life miserable with all the different complaints."

That's exactly what the Matt brothers say is going on.

"I'm just thankful that somebody is finally going to hear what we've been going through," Dwayne Matt, a 45-year-old funeral home owner, said about the video going viral.

The Matts live in the ranch-style home formerly owned by their parents, now deceased. They say Godfirnon, an elementary school teacher with the Pinellas district, has been harassing them for the past few years, mostly about the smoke but also about parking and loud music.

"We've been here for over 40 years and never had a problem with any neighbors on this street," Dwayne Matt said.

Godfirnon, who didn't return a call or answer her door Monday, has flooded the county with photos and videos to make her case that she's being poisoned. Several videos show white plumes of smoke billowing from under a canopy in a back yard obscured by a white privacy fence. In at least one video, the smoke is clearly wafting toward her home. One photo shows a carbon monoxide detector in her home showing a reading of 170 parts per million, a high enough concentration that can cause headaches, fatigue and nausea.

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"This smoke permeates my house, and causes me to have health problems, including chest pains and asthma attacks," she wrote in a February email. "I am virtually a prisoner in my own home."

Godfirnon said she can't go outside to enjoy her pool. She said she had to take ribs off her own grill for July 4 and finish them in the oven because the smoke was so thick. She claims she's the one being harassed.

In June, the county mailed an advisory letter to Dwayne Matt that detailed the county and state regulations regarding open burning and offered suggestions to minimize the impact of smoke and odor on neighbors.

After Godfirnon called last week — roughly her 14th complaint — Graham showed up with a clipboard and, while the camera rolled, read from the county ordinance. It defines an objectionable outdoor odor as one that "is or may be harmful or injurious to human health or welfare, which unreasonably interferes with the comfortable use and enjoyment of life or property, or which creates a nuisance odor."

He said he took three photos of smoke coming from the property.

"Everybody can cook out except me, that's what it looks like," Chris Matt shot back.

"I am simply suggesting that it appears from my observations off your site here that you have smoke leaving," Graham said in the video. "That's prohibited."

Graham handled the call by the book and kept his cool, said his boss, Satyal. He said the department handles about 140 calls a year and about 5 percent to 10 percent are for smoke from grills. He attempted to emphasize a point that was lost on Internet commentators: There is no ordinance regulating barbecue grilling.

So, what kind of grill is it? The Matts declined to let a flock of reporters who showed up to their house Monday see it. But a county complaint report shows photos of two barrel-shaped grills, one about the size of a typical grill, the other roughly the size of a 55-gallon drum.

In March, the city of St. Petersburg cited the Matts for a large grill on a trailer emblazoned with a commercial sign parked in their driveway, which is prohibited in a residential area, said Rob Gerdes, the city's code enforcement operations manager. The brothers moved the grill to settle the matter, Gerdes said.

Large grills are allowed on residential property as long as the owner isn't selling the food. It's up to the county to regulate the smoke.

The county ordinance says a violator can be issued a citation and punished with up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine. Satyal said he's hopeful it won't come to that.

Chris Matt, a 41-year-old barber, said he's going to keep grilling. "I'm just trying to cook for my family."

The county just wants the buzz to die down.

"All we're really looking for is to decrease (Godfirnon's) negative impacts and try to educate the grill owner about things they might be able to do to minimize the impact," said Paul Cozzie, director of parks and conservation resources. "But it blows up in today's social media."

Times news researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report. Contact Tony Marrero at tmarrero@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8779. Follow @tmarrerotimes.