A resident of Dunedin, Florida has been fighting for two years to close a lemonade stand owned by a 12-year-old boy.

According to the Tampa Bay Times, T.J. Guerrero carefully selected the location of his lemonade stand, which operates from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m.

The boy has used money garnered from the stand, combined with cash earned by mowing lawns, to buy snacks, an iPod, vacations with his grandfather, dinner for his mother, as well as pay his cell phone bill.

"It's all about profit," he said.

Guerrero obtained permission from a neighbor to open his stand, which features a handmade sign that sits in the grass, a white table and products, which include strawberry-flavored Country Time lemonade for $1 and cookies for 50-cents, in plastic containers.

One neighbor does not approve of Guerrero's business, however. Doug Wilkey, a 61-year-old who lives four floors beneath Guerrero, has sent at least four e-mails -- one in May 2013, one in October 2013, one in March 2014 and another in June 2014 -- to City Hall requesting that law enforcement close the stand.

"Please help me regain my quiet home and neighborhood," he wrote in an e-mail.

According to Wilkey, Guerrero's lemonade stand is an "illegal business" and diminishes his property value by creating trash, noise and traffic and encouraging illegal parking.

Guerrero said, however, that the largest number of people he's ever had waiting for his lemonade was five people. In addition, two neighbors allow patrons to park in their driveway.

Still, Wilkey laments Guerrero's friends, who reportedly curse, throw rocks and loiter with skateboards. He claims the boys once set off fireworks, scaring his dog. In another incident, Guerrero's friends reportedly hit Wilkey's parked truck with a bicycle.

"The city could possibly face repercussion in the event someone became ill from spoiled/contaminated food or drink sales," Wilkey wrote in an email.

"If this were a once a year event by a couple kids to earn a little money for a holiday or something, I would not have a problem with it," he wrote in a different email. "I am very worried about the value of my home, which is why I built in a residential area, not a business area."

In another email, Wilkey expressed shock that the lemonade stand returned "AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!"

According to Greg Rice, Dunedin planning and development director, Wilkey may not get the support he wants.

"We're not in the business of trying to regulate kids like that; nor do we want to do any code enforcement like that," he said. "We are not out there trying to put lemonade stands out of business."

Guerrero is not perturbed by the negativity and is instead waiting to turn 14 so he can work as a bagger at a grocery store.
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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.

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