Heartbreak for Florida grandmother who is told to tear down her stunning tree house paradise where she's lived with her pet racoon for 25 years 

  • Shawnee Chasser has lived in a tree house for 25 years, but has now been told that it must be torn down
  • Officials from Miami-Dade County said the tree house was built illegally and is unsafe for her to live in 
  • Chasser said she won't take it down and could face more than $7,000 in fines - she has already paid $3,000

A Florida grandmother who has lived in a tree house for 25 years, has been told that she must tear it down or face nearly $7,000 in fines.

Shawnee Chasser, 65, has spent the last year fighting Miami-Dade County over her home called Shawnee's Paradise, that sits between an oak and strangler fig tree in the yard of her late son, according to the Miami Herald

The county has said the tree house was built illegally and is unsafe, the Herald reported.

Shawnee Chasser (pictured) has spent the last year fighting Miami-Dade County over her home that sits between an oak and strangler fig tree in the yard of her late son. The county said the tree house was built illegally and it's unsafe for her to live in 

Shawnee Chasser (pictured) has spent the last year fighting Miami-Dade County over her home that sits between an oak and strangler fig tree in the yard of her late son. The county said the tree house was built illegally and it's unsafe for her to live in 

Authorities said the cottage that is built around a man-made pond and water fountain must be demolished in the next four months or the 65-year-old grandmother could face thousands in fines

Authorities said the cottage that is built around a man-made pond and water fountain must be demolished in the next four months or the 65-year-old grandmother could face thousands in fines

But Chasser vowed that she will not take anything down. Last September she was issued a citation by county code enforcement for illegally running a rooming house and for work conducted at the property without permits, including the pond, fountain and the tree house

But Chasser vowed that she will not take anything down. Last September she was issued a citation by county code enforcement for illegally running a rooming house and for work conducted at the property without permits, including the pond, fountain and the tree house

Authorities said it must be demolished in the next four months or she could face thousands in fines.

But Chasser, who sells her own line of organic popcorn through Whole Foods, vowed that she will not take anything down and will continue to live there with a raccoon, who she's named 'Coonie', who visits her occasionally.

'I'll chain myself to that tree house,' she told the Herald. 

It all started a year ago when someone complained that Chasser was running the property like an apartment complex and campground in the middle of a single-family neighborhood, the Herald reported. 

Last September she was issued a citation by county code enforcement for illegally running a rooming house and for work conducted at the property without permits, including the pond, fountain and the tree house.

Chasser sleeps in a double bed (pictured) and her home is decorated with family pictures, books and a small couch

Chasser sleeps in a double bed (pictured) and her home is decorated with family pictures, books and a small couch

The first floor of the cottage has dozens of photos hanging on the wall as well as a small couch that her dogs often sleep on 

The first floor of the cottage has dozens of photos hanging on the wall as well as a small couch that her dogs often sleep on 

Chasser's home may be tiny but it's cleverly decorated with lamps, small trinkets and wallpaper

Chasser's home may be tiny but it's cleverly decorated with lamps, small trinkets and wallpaper

Ricardo Roig, Miami-Dade's code enforcement division director, told the Herald that Chasser's case was the first time he's ever dealt with 'somebody living in a tree house'.

Roig said the county's issue with Chasser's cottage is that it's unsafe and South Florida has strict rules about building codes because of the frequency of hurricanes.

He told the Herald that running water and electricity have to be installed with permits and inspections.

The home also includes a kitchenette with a mini oven and sink, along with a tiny living room equipped with a ceiling fan

The home also includes a kitchenette with a mini oven and sink, along with a tiny living room equipped with a ceiling fan

A county official said that running water and electricity have to be installed with permits and inspections
Chasser's tree house is equipped with a kitchenette and a double bed

Miami-Dade's code enforcement division director said the county's issue with Chasser's cottage is that it's unsafe and South Florida has strict rules about building codes because of the frequency of hurricanes. Pictured is the inside of Chasser's cottage (left and right) 

The county said Chasser (pictured with her daughter) can live in a legal tree house, but code and unsafe-structure inspectors looked at the cottage and found it wasn't up to to county standards

The county said Chasser (pictured with her daughter) can live in a legal tree house, but code and unsafe-structure inspectors looked at the cottage and found it wasn't up to to county standards

Roig added that Chasser can live in a legal tree house, but code and unsafe-structure inspectors looked at the cottage and found it wasn't up to to county standards. 

The board has given her four months to tear the tree house down or face more than $7,000 in fines.

Chasser said she has already paid $3,000 in fines. 

Riog told the Herald: 'It's just a combination of situations that haven't been well thought out.'

Chasser has lived in the tree since 1992 after she moved her family back to Miami from California. 

She moved to her son's home near North Miami and had the cottage built with curved wooden steps that lead to a second story.

It includes a kitchenette with a mini oven and sink, along with a tiny living room equipped with a ceiling fan. 

Chasser sleeps in a double bed and her home is decorated with family pictures, books and a small couch.  

'When I am up in my tree house in thunder, lightning and rain, I am in heaven,' Chasser told the Herald.

A raccoon, who she's named 'Coonie', also visits her occasionally at her handmade haven

A raccoon, who she's named 'Coonie', also visits her occasionally at her handmade haven

Chasser sleeps in a double bed and her home is decorated with family pictures, books and a small couch. A raccoon, who she's named 'Coonie', also visits her occasionally. The cottage includes a kitchenette with a mini oven and sink, along with a tiny living room

Chasser sleeps in a double bed and her home is decorated with family pictures, books and a small couch. A raccoon, who she's named 'Coonie', also visits her occasionally. The cottage includes a kitchenette with a mini oven and sink, along with a tiny living room

Chasser, who mass-produces and sells Shawnee's Greenthumb Popcorn in Whole Foods stores around Florida, told the Herald that she's unable to afford to hire the necessary people to bring her home up to code, but she's not giving up without a fight 

Chasser, who mass-produces and sells Shawnee's Greenthumb Popcorn in Whole Foods stores around Florida, told the Herald that she's unable to afford to hire the necessary people to bring her home up to code, but she's not giving up without a fight 

Her brother's tree house, which was also featured by the Tiny House Giant Journey travel blog, is included in marketing material from the county's tourism bureau and is treated like a landmark

Her brother's tree house, which was also featured by the Tiny House Giant Journey travel blog, is included in marketing material from the county's tourism bureau and is treated like a landmark

Her brother's tree house, which was also featured by the Tiny House Giant Journey travel blog, is included in marketing material from the county's tourism bureau and is treated like a landmark, according to the Herald. 

It also survived Hurricane Andrew.

Chasser, who mass-produces and sells Shawnee's Greenthumb Popcorn in Whole Foods stores around Florida, told the Herald that she's unable to afford to hire the necessary people to bring her home up to code.

Even if she could, she said, the county told her she would still have to apply to the zoning department for permission to stay in the home outside the main home on the property.

She said she isn't going to give up and she's in the process of talking with her attorney about all of her options. 

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