Why is a St. Johns County man reporting hundreds of people for the same yard paver violation?

Who is the Paver Guy in St. Johns County? | firstcoastnews.com Why is a St. Johns County man reporting hundreds of people for the same yard paver violation? Nicknamed "The Paver Guy," First Coast News asks why he's on a mission to report people to code enforcement and how the violation can lead to drainage issues. Author: Jessica Clark Published: 8:25 PM EDT May 1, 2024 Updated: 8:25 PM EDT May 1, 2024 ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla — Hundreds of people are being reported to code enforcement in St. Johns County for a little-known rule about yard pavers. And one man is behind it all. Brittany Flores lives in the Silverleaf neighborhood. She just found out she has been reported to St. Johns County code enforcement. The violation? The pavers in her side yard are too close to the property line. The code enforcement officer at her door told her they need to be fewer than "three feet from the property line." It's a rule she didn’t know ever existed. The man who reported her to the county doesn’t know her. And she told First Coast News, he now has a nickname: The Paver Guy. Brian Morton has been reported to the St. Johns County Code Enforcement Office by the Paver Guy as well for the same code violation. Morton also lives in the Silverleaf neighborhood. "I think it’s crazy. This guy is just going around making everybody’s life really miserable," Morton told First Coast News. "In a sense, it's costing people a lot of money if they have to fix the problem. I've never heard of anything like this." It turns out this “Paver Guy” has filed code violation reports on more than 300 people across St. Johns County for the same thing: Having pavers closer than three feet to the property line. Who is the Paver Guy? Meet Zach Schwermer. "I already have also thousands documented that I have not reported," Schwermer told First Coast News. "And I didn’t even want to report a single other homeowner." His walkway extends from the front entrance of his side yard all the way to the back fence. Schwermer, himself, is in violation of the same paver rule. Two years ago, after dealing with water collecting in the swale on his side yard during and after storms, he installed pavers to help alleviate the poor drainage problem. He was unaware of the paver code. Schwermer installed a drainage system then as well. So now, when water falls on his roof, it’s collected in the gutter, goes into the downspout, into pipes under the pavers and out to the road. And now after a rainfall, he said: "The water is completely gone within 15-30 minutes. That’s really good drainage. We fixed a problem. We didn’t create a problem." He has videos that show no flooding issues on the side of the yard where there are now pavers. The other side of the house does not have pavers, and he has videos which shows standing water in the yard there. "Removing the path would be creating a new draining issue," Schwermer said. He said the neighborhood management group reported him to the county. He asked the county commission for a variance – or an exception to the rule - in order to keep his pavers. But the county commission said no. "Nobody’s listening to us," Schwermer said. "So, to get someone to listen to us, we have to take action." His action has been to find and report anyone else with the same paver violation. And he has found people in his neighborhood as well as miles away. He’s reported more than 300 homes and some are a 45-minute drive from his home. "This is a county-wide problem. We need to come up with a resolution because there’s clearly a disconnect between the county and its residents," he said. However, the residents he’s reported are ticked. "I spent good, hard-earned money putting the pavers in and installing them," Morton said. "And now, it’s just going to cost me another $2,600 to now move my path over three feet. All from a guy who complained and he lives 25 minutes away in Ponte Vedra." "I’m annoyed. Mostly because it’s not his business. He doesn’t even live over here," Flores said. "So I feel like if it was an immediate neighbor and it was causing issues for them, then I would most definitely fix my problem. But it has nothing to concern him." Schwermer wants equal enforcement of the rules or for the county to change the rules. The county says the code exists in order to ensure proper drainage. However, Schwermer, and even Flores, say drainage was a problem until they unknowingly broke the rule. And now it's not. In pointing out he’s not alone, Schwermer has made some enemies. "My family has been bullied the last few years, and I don’t like bullying on any level," Schwermer said, "And I hope that these people that I’ve reported don’t feel that I’m bullying them because that is not my intention at all. I truly hope that they get to keep their violations. I want to be able to keep mine and I want them to be able to keep theirs."