DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA

FOURTH DISTRICT

CITY OF FORT LAUDERDALE,

Appellant,

v.

WALTER HINTON, et al.,

Appellee.

No. 4D18-2089

[July 24, 2019]

Appeal of nonfinal order from the Circuit Court for the Seventeenth 

Judicial Circuit, Broward County; Patti Englander Henning, Judge; L.T. 

Case No. 07-30358 26.

William M. Droze of Troutman Sanders LLP, Atlanta, Georgia, and W. 

Tucker Craig and Jeffery R. Lawley of Billing, Cochran, Lyles, Mauro, 

Ramsey, P.A., Fort Lauderdale, for appellant.

Michelle D. Cofiño and Reginald J. Clyne of Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & 

Boyer, P.A., Miami, and Hunter Shkolnik, Louise R. Caro and Aaron R. 

Modiano of Napoli Shkolnik, PLLC, Coconut Grove, for appellees.

PER CURIAM.

The City of Fort Lauderdale (“the City”) appeals two orders denying its

motions for summary judgment. The City contends that these are 

appealable nonfinal orders under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 

9.130(a)(3)(C)(xi) because the orders determine, as a matter of law, that 

the City is not entitled to sovereign immunity. The City raises five points 

on appeal. We affirm in part and dismiss in part, concluding that some 

points, which do not involve immunity from suit as a matter of law, are 

not reviewable under the nonfinal appeal rule.

Background

In the underlying case, five members of the Hinton family (“the

Hintons”) are suing the City for actions and omissions that followed the 

City’s operation of an incinerator before 1953 at the Lincoln Park 
2

Complex.1 The Hintons allege the City caused or allowed ash and other 

contaminants from the incinerator site to disburse throughout the 

neighboring community. The Hintons allege that the hazardous 

substances physically injured them and they have lost use of their 

property and suffered reduced market value.

The Lincoln Park Complex and Durrs Neighborhood

The City-owned Lincoln Park Complex includes three principal parcels: 

(1) a parcel which has been the site for a trash transfer and recycling 

station since 1997; (2) a parcel which is currently the site for the City’s 

One Stop Shop for municipal services, and previously was the site of an 

elementary school until 2005; and (3) a grassy field that includes Lincoln 

Park. A portion of the first parcel served as a wastewater treatment plant 

from the 1920s until 1997, and another portion of the first parcel was the 

site for a municipal waste incinerator from 1936 until 1953 and thereafter 

a second wastewater treatment facility from 1971 until 1983. The area 

that is now a public park in the third parcel previously held piles of 

incinerator ash.

As to the two portions of the first parcel used as a wastewater treatment 

plant, the Hintons believe the wastewater treatment may have created high 

levels of dioxins that were released into the air, groundwater, and soil. The 

original wastewater treatment plant was demolished in 1997, and the 

trash transfer station was constructed in its place. Prior to the 

construction of the trash transfer station, the City had evaluated 

redevelopment of the incinerator-wastewater treatment plant site and 

conducted Phase I and Phase II environmental testing of the soil and water. 

Arsenic, barium, lead, and benzo(a)pyrene were detected in soil samples. 

The amounts detected allegedly exceeded some residential regulatory 

thresholds. At that time, the City decided not to redevelop and did not 

conduct any additional environmental testing or remediate any 

contamination. 

Several years later, in 2000, the City discussed potential construction 

of the One Stop Shop at the former elementary school site and ordered 

Phase II testing for the site. The Florida Department of Environmental 

Protection (“FDEP”) conducted independent testing at the Lincoln Park 

Complex. Sampling occurred between 2002 and 2003, and the park was 

closed for remediation activity. In 2003, FDEP allowed the construction 

to proceed, agreeing that the environmental conditions at the school 

1 There are approximately 113 plaintiffs with similar claims pending in the trial 

court.
3

property should not affect construction of the One Stop Shop. In 2003,

the City dewatered the site to install utilities for the One Stop Shop, and 

contaminated ground water flooded the neighborhood. During a partial 

remediation and capping of Lincoln Park, piles of contaminated soil were 

left uncovered for extended periods, including when hurricanes struck the 

area.

The Hintons complain that the City did not remediate or notify 

residents after the 1997 testing revealed contamination. The park was not 

fenced until 2002, and the City only posted “no trespassing” signs. It did 

not warn of possible contamination, and children continued to play in the 

area. 

Between 2004 and 2006, FDEP collected soil samples in the residential 

neighborhoods. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (“PAHs”) exceeding 

State of Florida Soil Cleanup Target Levels (“SCTLs”) were detected on one 

of the Hintons’ properties. One sample also showed an arsenic level above 

residential regulatory thresholds. Sampling of other homeowners’ lots 

detected other contaminants. Residents learned of the contamination 

from the State around 2005.

After evaluating soil sample results, the Florida Department of Health 

issued a report in 2007 concluding that chronic exposure to 

contamination in the surrounding neighborhoods could create elevated 

health risks for sensitive subpopulations, like children with developmental 

disabilities. Because contaminants were at higher concentrations below 

the surface, there was some indication that incinerator ash may have been 

used as fill for residential properties and digging in subsurface soils could 

increase exposure risk. Some contaminants were at concentrations above 

SCTLs, but the report found low to no apparent increased cancer risk from 

long term exposure to the highest levels of detected contaminants. Further 

soil testing was recommended. Residents with ash, glass, or metal pieces 

in their soil were advised to only grow fruits and vegetables in raised beds 

with clean soil. The report also concluded that based upon distribution 

and measured levels, PAHs in the Durrs neighborhood did not appear to 

be related to the Lincoln Park Complex. But, plaintiffs allege that FDEP 

reached a different conclusion, finding that the PAHs and arsenic were 

related to the complex.

In 2008 and 2009, FDEP worked with the City to address potential 

impacts on residents. FDEP recommended that surface soil at the 

incinerator site be remediated to residential SCTLs, covered with backfill, 

or removed. FDEP also required additional testing of the complex.
4

The Hintons allege that contamination was discharged from the 

complex on multiple occasions, during: (1) operation of the incinerator site;

(2) operation of the wastewater treatment and waste transfer site; (3) 

demolition of the Lincoln Park Elementary School; (4) excavation of the 

school site during construction of the One Stop Shop; (5) release of ash 

and contaminated water during construction and remediation; and (6) 

residential development (if ash was used as fill in the Durrs neighborhood). 

The Hintons further allege that they have ingested, inhaled, and 

touched contaminants from the soil and ground water through walking, 

playing, and gardening in the neighborhood or consuming well water or 

foods grown on their property. The Hintons’ oldest daughter died from a 

rare uterine cancer in 2010, and experts disagree about whether her 

cancer could have been related to the incinerator site. The Hintons also 

allege that they have lost uses of their property and that home values have 

been damaged by the stigma. 

The Hintons’ complaint

The Hintons brought the underlying action in 2007. The operative

complaint raises five counts. Count I seeks strict liability damages under 

section 376.313, Florida Statutes, for discharge of hazardous substances 

from the Lincoln Park Complex. Count II seeks damages for negligence 

from failing to warn of a hazardous condition; allowing discharge of 

contaminated soil; failing to remediate contamination and use reasonable 

care in remediation; and other breaches that have allegedly caused the 

Hintons physical injury, emotional distress, and property damage,

including lost use and diminished value. Count III asks the court, through 

permanent injunction, to require the City to fund a court-supervised 

medical monitoring program. Count IV seeks compensation for inverse 

condemnation, alleging the discharge of contaminants onto the Hintons’ 

properties constitutes a taking. Count V alleges a violation of substantive 

due process if the City’s actions did not constitute a taking.2 

The orders denying summary judgment

In October 2012, the trial court denied the City’s motions for summary 

judgment against Walter and Joan Hinton. In part, the court rejected the 

City’s argument that, because no waiver of sovereign immunity exists for 

a claim of strict liability against the government, the Hintons cannot 

maintain a claim for damages under section 376.313. 

2 The trial court granted summary judgment for the City on this count.
5

The City filed additional motions for summary judgment in March 2016 

and July 2017. Following a hearing, the court denied these motions. In 

the first order on appeal, the court concluded that sovereign immunity 

does not apply to the claim for medical monitoring because this is a claim 

in equity, as recognized in Petito v. A.H. Robins Co., 750 So. 2d 103, 105

(Fla. 3d DCA 1999). The court reasoned that, contrary to claims for money 

damages, claims in equity are not subject to the limitations for tort liability 

in section 768.28(5), Florida Statutes. The court concluded that the 

Hintons’ claims for damages under section 376.313 and the negligence 

claim are subject to the sovereign immunity waiver caps in section 

768.28(5). Inverse condemnation claims are not subject to the caps. The 

court also disagreed with the City that the Hintons’ claims constitute a 

“single occurrence” for purposes of the sovereign immunity waiver caps. 

In the second order on appeal, the trial court rejected the City’s 

argument that it was entitled to immunity on claims that it failed to act 

following environmental testing in 1997 because this involved planninglevel decisions related to site development. The court denied summary 

judgment as to the negligence claim, inverse condemnation claim, and 

claim for damages under section 376.313, finding no immunity. The court 

again concluded that the medical monitoring claim is not subject to the 

sovereign immunity caps and that the City has no immunity to this claim.

Appellate Analysis

The City raises five points on appeal: (1) the medical monitoring claim 

is completely barred because there is no waiver of sovereign immunity for 

a claim in equity; (2) a claim for strict liability for discharge of hazardous 

substances under section 376.313 is completely barred because the 

sovereign immunity waiver statute applies only to negligence and the 

discharge statute does not include an express waiver of sovereign 

immunity; (3) if medical monitoring is a negligence claim, then it is subject 

to the per occurrence cap, and the City believes damages for all of the 

Hintons’ claims combined are capped at $200,000 because there is only a 

single occurrence – the operation of the incinerator; (4) the trial court erred 

in ruling that there is no sovereign immunity for the inverse condemnation 

claim without determining that the Hintons established a legally sufficient 

takings claim; and (5) sovereign immunity bars claims related to the City’s 

failure to conduct further testing or remediation because these were 

planning-level functions related to site redevelopment.

This Court has appellate jurisdiction to review a nonfinal order 

determining “as a matter of law” that a party is not entitled to sovereign 

immunity. Fla. R. App. P. 9.130(a)(3)(C)(xi). The rule is intended to allow 
6

interlocutory review where material facts are not in dispute and a trial 

court has denied immunity from suit as a matter of law. Based on this 

jurisdictional standard, we do not agree that all of the City’s points are 

reviewable by nonfinal appeal.

The medical monitoring claim

The trial court ruled that there is no sovereign immunity for the medical 

monitoring claim because it is a claim in equity. The City does not dispute 

that it is a claim in equity, but argues there is no equity exemption to 

sovereign immunity. Additionally, the City argues that there is no express 

statutory waiver of sovereign immunity for this claim because the claim is 

not based upon a statute. 

Section 768.28 provides a limited waiver of sovereign immunity for torts 

for the negligent or wrongful acts or omissions of a municipality, but “only 

to the extent specified in this act.” § 768.28(1), Fla. Stat. (1999). Section 

768.28 does not include a waiver for claims in equity. The City argues 

alternatively that, if the claim is not barred by sovereign immunity, then 

the statutory caps on damages in section 768.28(5) apply. 

The Hintons believe that the trial court correctly determined that 

sovereign immunity does not apply to a claim in equity. Relying on Justice 

Cantero’s concurring opinion in American Home Assurance Co. v. National

Railroad Passenger Corp., 908 So. 2d 459 (Fla. 2005), the Hintons also 

argue that this Court should affirm because section 768.28 affects the 

State and its subdivisions differently from municipalities, and sovereign 

immunity for municipalities should be strictly construed. However, we 

rejected this argument in Town of Gulf Stream v. Palm Beach County, 206 

So. 3d 721 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016), and instead adhered to the Florida 

Supreme Court’s declaration in Cauley v. City of Jacksonville, 403 So. 2d 

379 (Fla. 1981), “that sovereign immunity should apply equally to all 

constitutionally-authorized governmental entities.” 206 So. 3d at 725 n.2. 

Like Judge Altenbernd in City of Treasure Island v. Provident 

Management Corp., 738 So. 2d 357 (Fla. 2d DCA 1999), quashed, 796 So. 

2d 481 (Fla. 2001), we have not found an equity exemption to sovereign 

immunity. See id. at 361.

The Hintons point to cases for declaratory or injunctive relief against 

governmental entities that proceeded without an express waiver of 

sovereign immunity. But, these examples, which relate to inverse 

condemnation and collection of unauthorized taxes or fees, involved 

constitutional violations. Sovereign immunity does not exempt the 
7

government from a challenge to a constitutional violation. Dep’t of 

Revenue v. Kuhnlein, 646 So. 2d 717, 721 (Fla. 1994). However, these 

examples are not comparable to the Hintons’ medical monitoring claim. 

The Hintons also contend that the denial of sovereign immunity to this 

claim should be affirmed where negligence is a necessary element for 

medical monitoring, and because the claim is grounded in negligence, the 

statute waiving sovereign immunity for tortious conduct (section 768.28) 

applies and the City is thus not immune from suit as a matter of law. We 

agree. Accordingly, although the trial court did not base its ruling on this

basis, we affirm the denial of sovereign immunity as to this claim. Dade 

Cty. Sch. Bd. v. Radio Station WQBA, 731 So. 2d 638, 644 (Fla. 1999) (“[I]f 

a trial court reaches the right result, but for the wrong reasons, it will be 

upheld if there is any basis which would support the judgment in the 

record.”).

The statutory caps issue

If medical monitoring is not barred by sovereign immunity, the City 

argues this Court should hold that this claim and all other negligence 

claims are collectively subject to a $200,000 cap on all claims by the 

Hintons for single occurrence related to operation of the incinerator. The 

City contends that the Hintons cannot separate aggregate negligent acts 

in order to exceed the “incident or occurrence” caps. See § 768.28(5), Fla. 

Stat. 

The Hintons disagree that there is only a single occurrence. They 

contend that separate and distinct acts and omissions by the City over 

more than 40 years have caused contamination to spread. They also 

disagree that the contamination is solely from the incinerator site and 

attribute it to three properties within the complex. The Hintons believe 

distinct acts of wrongdoing permit recovery for multiple incidents. 

Questions about whether the statutory caps in section 768.28(5) apply 

to medical monitoring and questions about how many incidents or 

occurrences the Hintons can recover for exceed our nonfinal appeal 

jurisdiction. In expanding the nonfinal appeal rule, the Florida Supreme 

Court intended to allow interlocutory review of an order denying immunity 

from suit. See Keck v. Eminisor, 104 So. 3d 359, 364-66 (Fla. 2012) 

(discussing Tucker v. Resha, 648 So. 2d 1187 (Fla. 1994), explaining the 

rationale for allowing interlocutory review because immunity from suit 

cannot be restored once lost, and directing the rules committee to submit 

a proposed rule change); see also Fla. Fish & Wildlife Conservation Comm’n 

v. Jeffrey, 178 So. 3d 460, 465 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015) (dismissing certiorari 
8

review of a sovereign immunity claim, recognizing that limited immunity 

from liability is not immunity from suit, and the benefit of immunity from 

liability is not lost if review has to await a final judgment). The parties 

have not cited any cases where the applicability of statutory damage caps 

was reviewed on nonfinal appeal.

In a footnote in Department of Financial Services v. Barnett, 262 So. 3d 

750 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018), review granted, No. SC19-87, 2019 WL 1123751 

(Fla. Mar. 12, 2019), we commented that a ruling on the number of 

occurrences for the sovereign immunity caps could be reviewed by nonfinal 

appeal because this relates to sovereign immunity as a matter of law. Id.

at 752 n.2. But, we did not need to reach the issue because the declaratory 

judgment in that case was final and the ruling was reviewed on direct 

appeal. Id.

In G4S Secure Solutions (USA), Inc. v. Morrow, 210 So. 3d 92 (Fla. 2d 

DCA 2016), the Second District on nonfinal appeal reversed an order 

denying a motion for summary judgment based upon limited sovereign 

immunity. Id. at 93-94. The court concluded that an individual 

transporting a prisoner, who was killed by another inmate, and the 

transportation company were entitled to limited sovereign immunity under 

section 768.28(5) as agents of the State. Id. The court found that there 

were no questions of fact that precluded summary judgment. Id. at 96. 

The opinion did not discuss jurisdiction.

If the statutory caps in section 768.28(5) apply, then the City is not 

immune from suit. See Gerard v. Dep’t of Transp., 472 So. 2d 1170, 1172 

(Fla. 1985) (holding that payment of the maximum permitted by section 

768.28(5) did not preclude a negligence action to establish government 

liability to support a claims bill; in other words, the Department was not 

immune from suit above the cap); Pub. Health Tr. of Miami-Dade Cty. v. 

Rolle, 88 So. 3d 191, 193 (Fla. 3d DCA 2011) (recognizing that “even if the 

[plaintiffs] have been paid the statutory maximum permitted under the 

statute, the trial court still has jurisdiction to enter a judgment against 

the Trust for purposes of supporting a potential claims bill to the 

legislature.”). The City still has to defend this action. Any error at trial in 

misconstruing the number of occurrences and the extent of the City’s 

liability can be corrected on final appeal.

The strict liability claim

The trial court ruled on this issue in a 2012 order. Although the court 

revisited the City’s arguments in the May 2018 orders, it did not change 

its ruling.
9

The City mistakenly argues that this issue can be reviewed at any time 

because it involves subject matter jurisdiction. The Florida Supreme 

Court has noted that sovereign immunity was once treated as a question 

of subject matter jurisdiction. See Dep’t of Educ. v. Roe, 679 So. 2d 756, 

758 (Fla. 1996); see also Citizens Prop. Ins. Corp. v. San Perdido Ass’n, 46 

So. 3d 1051, 1052 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010), approved, 104 So. 3d 344 (Fla. 

2012). However, recognizing that a claim of sovereign immunity was no 

longer treated as jurisdictional, the supreme court rejected this as a basis 

for extraordinary writ jurisdiction. Citizens Prop. Ins., 104 So. 3d at 350-

55. Moreover, if the issue was reviewable at any time as the City argues, 

then there would be no need to include it in the nonfinal appeal rule 

providing a limited time to appeal. See Fla. R. App. P. 9.130(b). 

The trial court’s ruling in 2012 was prior to the 2014 amendment 

adding a denial of sovereign immunity as a matter of law to rule 9.130. In 

re Amendments to Fla. R. of App. P. 9.130, 151 So. 3d 1217 (Fla. 2014). 

But, the City had an available remedy for interlocutory review. Prior to the 

rule amendment, a nonfinal order denying a claim of immunity from suit 

could be reviewed by certiorari. See, e.g., City of Freeport v. Beach Cmty. 

Bank, 108 So. 3d 684, 687-88 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013); see also Citizens Prop. 

Ins., 104 So. 3d at 353 n.6 (discussing situations where certiorari review 

would not be available and distinguishing those from cases of absolute 

immunity from suit). 

We agree with the Hintons that interlocutory review of this issue is 

untimely. The City can raise this issue on final appeal if necessary. 

The inverse condemnation claim

The City contends that the Hintons cannot state a sufficient claim for 

inverse condemnation because they cannot prove a permanent physical 

occupation of their land that effectively deprives them of all reasonable 

and beneficial use and enjoyment of the property. Citing Florida Fish &

Wildlife Conservation Commission v. Daws, 256 So. 3d 907 (Fla. 1st DCA 

2018), the City maintains that, unless the takings claim is facially 

sufficient, it is barred by sovereign immunity. The Hintons respond that 

their claim is facially sufficient and involves disputed issues of material 

fact, which are not appropriate for summary judgment. 

We agree with Judge Lewis’s dissent in Daws that the legal sufficiency 

of a takings claim is not reviewable by nonfinal appeal. Id. at 920 (Lewis, 

J., dissenting). The City is not immune from suit for inverse 

condemnation. See Kuhnlein, 646 So. 2d at 721 (“Sovereign immunity 
10

does not exempt the State from a challenge based on violation of the federal 

or state constitutions, because any other rule self-evidently would make 

constitutional law subservient to the State’s will. Moreover, neither the 

common law nor a state statute can supersede a provision of the federal 

or state constitutions.”). 

But, even if the sufficiency of a takings claim could be construed as the 

denial of sovereign immunity as a matter of law, there was no error in the 

trial court denying summary judgment on this claim. The Hintons have 

pleaded a facially sufficient takings claim and material facts are in dispute. 

Actions for inverse condemnation include “situations where a 

continuing trespass or nuisance ripens into a constitutional taking of 

property.” Suarez v. City of Tampa, 987 So. 2d 681, 684 (Fla. 2d DCA 

2008) (quoting State, Dep’t of Health & Rehab. Servs. v. Scott, 418 So. 2d 

1032, 1034 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982)). The Hintons do not have to show that all 

beneficial use or all value was destroyed. See, e.g., Young v. Palm Beach 

Cty., 443 So. 2d 450, 451-52 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984); Kendry v. State Rd.

Dep’t, 213 So. 2d 23, 27 (Fla. 4th DCA 1968). A taking occurs when 

government action deprives a property owner of “substantially all 

economically beneficial or productive use of land.” Tampa-Hillsborough 

Cty. Expressway Auth. v. A.G.W.S. Corp., 640 So. 2d 54, 58 (Fla. 1994) 

(emphasis added). Contrary to the City’s argument, a temporary 

deprivation can constitute a taking. Id. (citing First English Evangelical 

Lutheran Church v. Cty. of L.A., 482 U.S. 304 (1987)).

The Hintons have pleaded substantial interference with the beneficial 

use and enjoyment of their property and diminished property values. They 

allege that they are prevented from opening their windows, growing their 

own food, gardening, and other outdoor activities. At the summary 

judgment hearing, counsel pointed out that FDEP told residents not to let 

their children play in the yards. Potential buyers and mortgage companies 

have to be told about the contamination. The City responded that the best 

practices listed on a gardening card issued by the Florida Department of 

Health was merely a protective measure and did not confirm a problem. 

The City suggested that because only one soil sample from the Hintons’ 

property showed a problem with arsenic, this did not show a problem with 

the entire property. Whether contamination found on different properties 

came from the City properties and whether acts or omissions by the City 

amount to a temporary or partial taking involve disputed questions of fact. 

We conclude that the sufficiency of the takings claim is not reviewable 

by nonfinal appeal and dismiss this issue. But, even if jurisdiction could 

lie to review the issue, the trial court properly denied summary judgment. 
11

The City’s discretionary acts arguments

In its final point, the City argues that any claims for damages based 

upon the City’s failure to remediate or failure to notify residents of the 

1997 environmental testing results are barred by sovereign immunity 

because these are planning-level functions related to site development.

[A] “discretionary,” planning-level function involves “an 

exercise of executive or legislative power such that a court’s 

intervention by way of tort law would inappropriately entangle 

the court in fundamental questions of policy and planning.”

Mosby v. Harrell, 909 So.2d 323, 328 (Fla. 1st DCA 2005). An 

“operational” function, on the other hand, “is one not 

necessary to or inherent in policy or planning, that merely 

reflects a secondary decision as to how those policies or plans 

will be implemented.” Dep’t of Health & Rehabilitative Servs. 

v. B.J.M., 656 So.2d 906, 911 n. 4 (Fla.1995); Mosby, 909 So. 

2d at 328. Operational decisions are not immune.

City of Freeport, 108 So. 3d at 690. Decisions related to upgrades or 

improvements are a planning-level function for which there is no tort 

liability. Kaweblum ex rel. Kaweblum v. Thornhill Estates Homeowners 

Ass’n, 801 So. 2d 1015, 1016 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001).

Here, the City argues that it had no duty to test property that it never 

intended to develop. In 1997, it evaluated redevelopment of the incinerator 

and wastewater treatment site. It directed its engineers to perform Phase 

I and II environmental testing. One soil sample detected arsenic. The

property was fenced to restrict access, which the Hintons’ expert agreed is 

an acceptable control. The City decided not to redevelop at that time and 

did not revisit possible redevelopment until 2000. 

The City contends that it has complete immunity for any failure to act 

beginning in 1997 because the decision not to develop at that time was 

discretionary and the decision not to conduct further testing was 

discretionary where there was no proof of migration of harmful 

contaminants. The City does not explain how this argument relates to 

each of the Hintons’ claims. The City simply states that whether to 

redevelop the Lincoln Park site was a planning-level function and the 

Hintons have not identified any actions that could give rise to liability. 

The Hintons answer that their claims are based upon the City’s failure 

to contain the contamination, remediate the site, and notify residents of 
12

contaminated conditions. Like any private property owner, the City had a 

duty to maintain the property in a reasonably safe condition. See, e.g.,

Avallone v. Bd. of Cty. Comm’rs of Citrus Cty., 493 So. 2d 1002, 1005 (Fla. 

1986). Citing cases involving a duty to warn of a dangerous condition, the 

Hintons argue that at the very least there is a factual question about the 

City’s responsibility for contamination on the Hintons’ properties. The 

Hintons maintain that questions about the City’s failure to warn and about 

liability for contamination spreading from City property are issues for a 

jury.

The City has not shown that any particular claim or specific allegations 

of negligence are completely barred as planning-level functions. The City 

suggested that it took appropriate action for a vacant industrial site by 

fencing it. But, the disputed area includes the former elementary school 

and a public park. Whether the results of the 1997 testing gave rise to a 

duty to test further, to warn of a hazardous condition, or to remediate or 

secure contamination involve disputed questions of fact. The City has not 

shown that it is entitled to immunity as a matter of law for planning-level 

decisions.

Conclusion

We affirm the denial of summary judgment on the medical monitoring 

claim and the trial court’s ruling that the City is not entitled to summary 

judgment on its claim that it was engaged in planning-level functions. We 

dismiss for lack of jurisdiction questions about whether the damage caps 

in section 768.28(5) apply and as to how many incidents or occurrences 

the Hintons may be entitled to recover. We dismiss as untimely the City’s 

challenge to the section 376.313 claim. Finally, we dismiss for lack of 

jurisdiction the challenge to the sufficiency of the takings claim. 

Affirmed in part; dismissed in part.

CONNER, FORST and KLINGENSMITH, JJ., concur.

* * *

Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.