Owner of land where mud-bogging event was planned fined $500

BROOKSVILLE The owner of property that had been promoted as the site of a mud-bogging event known as the Mud on the Barbee has agreed to pay a fine and meet other requirements after he was issued a stop-work order by county officials.

Thomas H. Malouf faced four citations from Hernando County Development Services when the county discovered what was going on and issued the order. The citations included failure to obtain a conditional use permit for a mud-bogging site, failure to obtain a land-clearing permit, failure to obtain a floodplain permit before constructing a bridge and failure to obtain a permit for the construction of a stage.

On Thursday, Malouf's attorney, Dean A. Kent, faced a special master and agreed to pay a $500 fine as part of a stipulated agreement.

Malouf will have to revise the approval he received from the Southwest Florida Water Management District for a mud bog and agree to use the area for agricultural purposes, such as a cattle pond, said Chris Linsbeck, the county's zoning supervisor. He also will have to use the platform that was to have been a stage for the Mud on the Barbee as a pole barn or other agricultural use.

If the structure is found to be too close to the road, Malouf will have to move it or get a variance, Linsbeck said.

Mike Barbee had been promoting the site, on U.S. 98 just north of Brooksville, as the home of the Mud on the Barbee, a mud-bogging and music event and the backdrop for a reality television show. On the event's Facebook page, Barbee had posted pictures of the work and announced that it would be ready to go by July 4.

His plans have since changed.

Barbee now plans to hold a Fourth of July weekend event at the Hernando County Fairgrounds.

The event, which is scheduled for July 4 and 5, promises mud-truck racing at the fairgrounds arena, live bands, overnight camping and a watermelon seed-spitting contest. A billboard at the fairgrounds pledges more than $12,000 in prize money.

On the Mud on the Barbee Facebook site, Barbee says there will be competition runs inside the arena with film crews shooting footage for the reality TV show. He hopes thousands of spectators fill the stands. Participants will qualify on Friday for a chance to win money on Saturday.

Link:
Owner of land where mud-bogging event was planned fined $500