An Indialantic developer said he regrets any damage caused from working on his riverside land without proper permits.
Last month, Melbourne code enforcement posted a “Stop Work” order on the land owned by Carlo Massaro at 1809 Riverview Drive in Melbourne, after officials discovered he had removed vegetation and redistributed soil, damaging the shoreline and bluff, vital in preventing erosion.
Massaro said he was just trying to clean up the area, but city permits are required before construction or alterations to land take place, and work along the water requires permission from the state.
“I would like to apologize for what happened with the city and state on the river bank,” Massaro said. “It wasn’t our intention to do anything wrong.”
The site was once home to the historic Elizabeth Eaton home before it burned down in 2016.
Cheryl Mall, spokeswoman for the city of Melbourne, said the developer was given until Sept. 14 to put up barriers to stop potential erosion along the river’s shoreline.
“The barriers have been placed, and the respondents are working with various agencies to ensure the shoreline and bluff are restored,” Mall said.
An Italian native, Massaro who owns Massaro International Construction in Indialantic, said he plans to build a European-style condominium on the land with imported material from Italy including tile and marble.
Community Development Director for the City of Melbourne Cindy Dittmer said the developer has complied with the temporary measures the city required to limit further damage from occurring to the bluff line and the shoreline of the Indian River.
“The developer is currently coordinating with St. Johns River Water Management District to prepare a remediation plan to restore these areas of damage,” Dittmer said.
“The remediation plan must be reviewed by other state agencies and the developer will also need to receive remediation plan approval from the city of Melbourne prior to any additional work occurring on site,” she added.
