Agenda 11/10/2025 Item #16K 3 (File a lawsuit on behalf of Collier County Board of County Commissioners against On Time Utility Services, Inc.)11/10/2025
Item # 16.K.3
ID# 2025-4545
Executive Summary
Recommendation to authorize the County Attorney to file a lawsuit on behalf of Collier County Board of County
Commissioners against On Time Utility Services, Inc., and any other responsible parties for $87,095.75 in damages
caused to the County’s water main, located at or near the intersection of Collier Boulevard and US 41 East.
OBJECTIVE: To recover the money spent by Collier County to repair a water main line, damaged by a negligent
contractor On Time Utility Services, Inc.
CONSIDERATIONS: On or about December 18, 2024, On Time Utility Services, Inc. performed a directional drill at
or near the intersection of Collier Boulevard and US 41 East in Collier County, Naples, Florida, which bored into and
damaged the County’s water main. The County engaged emergency contractors and allocated staff resources to repair
the County’s Water Main, incurring $87,095.75 in damages. The County Attorney’s Office issued a demand to On Time
Utility Services, Inc., and received no response.
The County recommends Board approval to file a lawsuit in the Circuit Court to recover the damages. Attached is a
draft copy of the complaint, documenting the damage and amount thereof.
By filing this lawsuit to recover damages, the County puts the contractor/subcontractor on notice that they will be held
responsible for their negligent actions.
FISCAL IMPACT: The cost to file and serve a Complaint is approximately $450.00 and funds are budgeted and
available in the Risk Management Property & Casualty Fund (Fund 5016).
GROWTH MANAGEMENT IMPACT: There is no growth management impact associated with this item.
LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS: This item has been approved as to form and legality and requires a majority vote for
Board approval. – RTT
RECOMMENDATION(S): To authorize the County Attorney to file a lawsuit on behalf of Collier County Board of
County Commissioners against On Time Utility Services, Inc., and any other parties responsible for $87,095.75 in
damages caused to the Water Main located at or near the intersection of Collier Boulevard and US 41 East.
PREPARED BY: Ronald T. Tomasko, Assistant County Attorney
Michael Quigley, Division Director- Risk Management
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Complaint - On Time Utility Services
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IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE TWENTIETH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA
CIVIL ACTION
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
OF COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA,
Plaintiff,
vs. Case No.: ___________________
ON TIME UTILITY SERVICES, INC., a Florida
Profit Corporation,
Defendant.
_____________________________________/
COMPLAINT
Plaintiff, BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF COLLIER COUNTY,
FLORIDA, (“COUNTY”), by and through its undersigned counsel, sues Defendant, ON TIME
UTILITY SERVICES, INC., a Florida Profit Corporation. (“ON TIME”), a Florida Profit
Corporation, and states as follows:
NATURE OF CLAIMS, THE PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE
1. The COUNTY’s claims stem from damage to the COUNTY’s personal property,
specifically the COUNTY’s 20-inch transmission water main line (“Water Main”), owned,
operated, and maintained by the COUNTY, and the resulting cost of repair and mitigation incurred
by the COUNTY.
2. This Court has jurisdiction over this matter, as it is an action to recover damages in
the amount of $87,095.75, exclusive of interest, costs, and attorneys’ fees.
3. In personam jurisdiction is properly exercised over ON TIME because ON TIME
is a Florida corporation and Florida courts have personal jurisdiction over all Florida residents.
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See, e.g., Subic Bay Marine Exploratorium, Inc. v. JV China, Inc., 257 So. 3d 1139, 1141 (Fla. 5th
DCA 2018).
4. The COUNTY, as the governing body for Collier County, Florida, a political
subdivision of the State of Florida, and as the ex-officio governing board of the Collier County
Water-Sewer District, an independent special district created by the Florida Legislature, is the
owner of the personal property that is the subject of this litigation and is thus authorized to bring
this action.
5. ON TIME is a profit corporation organized under the laws of Florida, with its
principal place of business at 4581 Weston Road, #231, Weston, Florida, and is authorized to and
does conduct business throughout the State of Florida, including in Collier County.
6. Venue is proper in Collier County, Florida, pursuant to Sections 47.011 and 47.051,
Florida Statutes, because (i) this is an action against a domestic corporation, (ii) Collier County is
where the instant cause of action accrued, (iii) Collier County is where the property in litigation is
located, (iv) the property damage occurred in Collier County, and (v) the amounts due to the
COUNTY are due in Collier County.
FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS
7. In 1993, the Florida Legislature enacted the “Underground Facility Damage
Prevention and Safety Act,” Chapter 556, Florida Statutes (“the Act”), to prevent injury to persons
or property and the interruption of services resulting from damage to an undergrou nd facility
caused by excavation or demolition operations. Fla. Stat. § 556.101(3)(a).
8. The Act created a not-for-profit corporation called Sunshine State One-Call of
Florida, Inc. (the “Corporation”), and requires the Corporation to maintain a free-access
notification system (the “One-Call System” or “System”) which excavators can use to notify
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owners of underground facilities of planned excavation or demolition activities. See Fla. Stat. §§
556.103, 556.104.
9. The Corporation is comprised of the owners of underground facilities in the State
of Florida, which are called “member operators” by the Act. Fla. Stat. § 556.104.
10. The COUNTY is a “member operator” under the Act.
11. Under the Act, “excavators” and “excavating contractors” are required to notify the
System and provide information about a planned excavation at least two full business days before
beginning any excavation. Fla. Stat. § 556.105(1). After receiving information from the system, a
member operator shall provide a positive response to the system within 2 full business days
indicating the status of operations to protect the facility. Fla. Stat. § 556.105(9)(a). Thereafter, an
excavator shall verify the system’s positive responses before beginning excavation and if an
excavator knows that an existing underground facility of a member operator is in the area, the
excavator must contact the member operator if the facility is not marked and a positive response
has not been received by the system. Fla. Stat. § 556.105(9)(c).
12. An excavator shall avoid excavation in the area described in the notice until each
member operator underground facility has been marked and located or until the excavator has been
notified that no member operator has underground facilities in the area described in the notice, or
for the time allowed for markings set forth in Section 556.105, Florida Statutes. Fla. Stat. §
556.105(6)(a).
13. ON TIME is an “excavator” and/or “excavating contractor” under the Act because
they performed the excavation work at issue.
14. ON TIME is a licensed Certified Electrical Contractor in Florida with a license
number EC13010332.
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15. Cable Wiring Specialist, Inc. hired ON TIME to perform excavation work at Collier
Boulevard near the intersection of U.S. 41 East in Collier County, Naples, Florida.
16. On or around December 18, 2024, ON TIME engaged in directional drilling
activities at Collier Boulevard near the intersection of U.S. 41 East and hit and damaged the
COUNTY’s owned, operated, and maintained Water Main. The COUNTY discovered damage to
its Water Main on December 18, 2024.
17. Prior to performing the excavation work at issue, ON TIME notified the System of
its planned excavation activities at Collier Boulevard near the intersection of U.S. 41 East.
18. The COUNTY timely responded to the notification with a “3C response code” and
requested a meeting with ON TIME and all utility owners whose utilities fall within the scope of
work. The COUNTY requested a meeting with ON TIME due to the size of the proposed work
area and the critical nature of the intersection.
19. The System provides response codes on its website
https://sunshine811.com/response-codes, stating “[n]ext to getting your locate ticket, confirming
and verifying member positive responses is essential to preventing damage to underground
facilities. By comparing what you see at your excavation/dig site to the positive response codes
for your locate ticket, you can determine whether it's safe to begin digging or do some follow up
with the member operator.”
20. The System’s definition of the 3C positive response code on its website
https://sunshine811.com/response-codes is as follows:
3C Unmarked: Locate technician and contractor (excavator) have agreed to meet
on site on a specified date. Excavation site is unmarked. The locate technician and
excavator negotiated an alternate time to meet at the excavation site.
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21. ON TIME’s representative, Jesus Cruz, assured COUNTY staff that he would
provide a time to meet onsite prior to excavation but failed to follow up with the COUNTY.
22. ON TIME proceeded with the work without pre-marking or locating the
COUNTY’s utilities in the work area resulting in ON TIME striking the COUNTY’s Water Main.
23. “If any excavator fails to discharge a duty imposed by [the Act], the excavator, if
found liable, is liable for the total sum of the losses to all parties involved as those costs are
normally computed.” Fla. Stat. § 556.106(2)(b).
24. As a result of ON TIME’s negligence, the COUNTY incurred monetary damages,
including but not limited to the cost to repair the COUNTY’s Water Main in the total amount of
$87,095.75.
25. Accordingly, ON TIME is liable to the COUNTY for the total sum of the losses to
repair the damage caused by ON TIME.
26. On September 12, 2025, the COUNTY sent a letter to ON TIME demanding that
ON TIME reimburse the COUNTY to repair its Water Main. ON TIME failed to respond to the
COUNTY’s demand letter.
27. All conditions precedent to the relief demanded herein have been performed or
waived.
COUNT I – NEGLIGENCE
28. The COUNTY re-alleges and incorporates by reference its allegations in
paragraphs 1–27, as if fully set forth herein.
29. ON TIME had a duty to verify the system’s positive responses before beginning
excavation. Fla. Stat. § 556.105(9)(c).
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30. ON TIME breached the aforementioned duty by failing to respond to the
COUNTY’s response code requesting an onsite meeting to discuss the excavation prior to
excavating.
31. ON TIME also had a duty to avoid excavation in the work area until the COUNTY’s
underground facility was marked and located.
32. ON TIME breached the aforementioned duty by proceeding with the excavation
without ensuring the COUNTY’s underground facility was marked and located.
33. ON TIME knew that there were COUNTY owned underground facilities in the
work area.
34. ON TIME’s breach of its aforementioned duties is the direct, proximate, and
foreseeable result of the damage caused to the COUNTY’s owned, operated, and maintained Water
Main located at Collier Boulevard near the intersection of U.S. 41 East.
35. In addition, should a member operator not mark its underground facilities, the Act
imposes a duty on excavators to proceed only “if the excavator does so with reasonable care and
if detection equipment or other acceptable means to locate underground facilities are used.” Fla.
Stat. § 556.105(6)(a).
36. ON TIME had a duty to use increased caution to use reasonable care and locate the
COUNTY’s Water Main located at Collier Boulevard near the intersection of U.S. 41 East.
37. ON TIME breached the aforementioned duty by failing to use reasonable care and
failing to locate the COUNTY’s Water Main located at Collier Boulevard near the intersection of
U.S. 41 East.
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38. ON TIME’s breach of its duty to use reasonable care to locate the COUNTY’s
Water Main before proceeding with the excavation is the direct, proximate, and foreseeable result
of the damage caused to the COUNTY’s Water Main.
39. Finally, ON TIME had a duty to exercise due care in the performance of its
excavation at Collier Boulevard near the intersection of U.S. 41 East, which required ON TIME
to exercise the degree of care that a reasonably careful excavator would use under like
circumstances.
40. ON TIME breached its duty to exercise due care in the performance of its
excavation at Collier Boulevard near the intersection of U.S. 41 East, in the following ways:
a. ON TIME knew or should have known that the COUNTY had underground
facilities in the vicinity of the proposed excavation.
b. ON TIME failed to properly respond to the COUNTY’s positive 3C response
requesting that locate technician and contractor (excavator) meet on site on a specified date.
c. ON TIME performed an excavation without authorization from the COUNTY or
coordinating the excavation with the COUNTY.
d. ON TIME performed an excavation without first pre-marking or locating the
COUNTY’s underground facility.
41. The damage caused to the COUNTY’s Water Main was the direct, proximate, and
foreseeable result of ON TIME’s malfeasance described in Paragraph 40, a.– d.
42. As a result of ON TIME’s negligence, the COUNTY incurred monetary damages
including, but not limited to, $87,095.75 incurred by the COUNTY to repair the Water Main, and
other direct and consequential damages.
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43. ON TIME is liable to the COUNTY for the total sum of the losses incurred by the
COUNTY as a result of its negligence. Fla. Stat. § 556.106(2)(b).
WHEREFORE, the COUNTY demands judgment against Defendant, ON TIME UTILITY
SERVICES, INC., for damages, together with prejudgment interest and costs, and for such other
or further relief as this Court deems equitable and just under the circumstances.
DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL
The County hereby demands a jury trial on all issues so triable.
Respectfully submitted,
By: _____________________________
Ronald T. Tomasko
Florida Bar No. 1030999
Courtney L. DaSilva
Florida Bar No. 1032733
Collier County Attorney’s Office
3299 East Tamiami Trail, Suite 800
Naples, Florida 34112-5746
Telephone: (239) 252-8400
Facsimile: (239) 252-6300
Counsel for Plaintiff COLLIER COUNTY
ronald.tomasko@collier.gov
courtney.dasilva@collier.gov
marian.rhyne@collier.gov
rosa.villarreal@collier.gov
juanita.garcia@collier.gov
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