Did You Know – The Holly Acres Trailer Park Owner In Prince William Has Won An Appeal To Rebuild?
I thought many of you readers would like to know an update about The Holly Acres Trailer Park’s owner, Hank Ridge of Prince William County has won an appeal to rebuild the trailer park. The Prince William Board of Zoning Appeals voted 5-0 Monday to overturn the zoning administrator’s decision that forced many residents affect by the Tropical Storm Lee out of their homes, despite minimal damage to their trailer units.
Yes, the vote does allow for the mobile home community owner Hank Ridge to rebuild many of the units destroyed by the September 8, 2011 flood or demolished in the flood due to their designation as inhabitable by the county.
Hank Ridge, who has owned the park for 35 years indicates, “My God is faithful.” I’ve had my days of soul searching and… I’m going to do the right thing by everybody…it will happen.
A Holly Acres resident Israel Carrillo indicated that he’s going to take Tuesday off to return to his home and start the rebuilding process. In a decision rendered September 12, 2011…4 days after the flood…the zoning administrator stated 66 units were more than 50 percent damaged, in part, by judging the hone’s worth based on their assessed value. And because those homes were built in a federally designated floodway, they couldn’t be rebuilt per county code, state the administrator.
Hank’s attorneys argued that Virginia code when it came to mobile homes and that the county’s assessments were rushed and should have been based on fair market value. When they assessed then at fair market value, they argued, the cost of fixing many of the homes the county declared uninhabitable would have been less than the 50% threshold.
Ridge’s attorneys obtained emails through the Freedom of Information request, county officials made interior inspections of only two units, a fact assistant county
attorney Kurt Spear didn’t dispute during the hearing. 66% of the units were demolished after county officials placed stickers on their doors stating the units were inhabitable.
Note: Spear indicated he will present the decision to the Prince William Board of County Supervisors Tuesday to see what the county leaders want to do next. If the county decides to appeal, the case will go before the Prince William Circuit Court.
Reference:
News & Messenger Serving Prince William, Manassas & Manassas Park, Virginia – writer of article by Kipp Hanley