Planning commission to draft City Code changes for manufactured homes and RV parks; asks staff to write ordinance

The Huntington City Planning and Zoning Commission on March 13, 2025 directed staff to draft changes to City Code Chapter 9 that would require building permits to be in place before a manufactured or modular unit is transported to a site for habitation, set a 20-year age guideline for units placed or replaced as dwellings (with exceptions handled by the City Council), and remove a 90-day rental limitation for recreational-vehicle (RV) spaces.

The proposed changes are intended to apply consistently across the residential-use sections of the code (Chapter 9-7) and the mobile-home/RV park section (Chapter 9-10). The commission discussed placing the new language in the development standards portion of the code so it appears alongside other site and unit requirements, and agreed the draft should say units must be "20 years from the current calendar year or newer" or meet applicable building permits prior to transport, with any exception approved by the City Council.

Tom Kaye, representing the City Council and serving in the meeting also as acting city recorder, has urged using a 20-year guideline for units placed in mobile-home parks and modular placements. Commissioners emphasized that the rule is intended as an expectation and that exceptions would be available: according to the commission's discussion, an owner could seek a City Council exemption where warranted.

Commissioners discussed enforcement and implementation. The commission noted that county building inspectors enforce building permits and that the city itself lacks direct building-permit enforcement authority; the proposed requirement would rely on applicants having permits in place before transport so there is "skin in the game" to complete repairs. Commission members said typical building-permit timelines in the area are roughly six months to a year, and the draft will include a required timeline for completing repairs or a process for extensions.

The commission also discussed removing a provision in the mobile-home/RV section that currently limits recreational-vehicle space rentals to no more than 90 days and restricts RV width to 8.5 feet including slide-outs. Members said the 90-day restriction had been intended to prevent RV parks from becoming quasi-mobile-home parks but that practice did not reflect current needs and should be removed; the width language was discussed but not changed in principle during this meeting.

Commissioners agreed the drafting work should create parallel edits to two code locations (9-7 and 9-10), and discussed insertion points (for example, near the development standards and prior to the section on storage of junk and debris so the requirement is prominent). The commission asked staff (Janine, identified in the meeting as city staff) to prepare the ordinance language for posting and public hearing and to present the draft to the City Council once written. The commission did not adopt the ordinance at this meeting; members said the written proposal and public-notice requirements must be completed before a formal vote.

The meeting record also shows routine procedural votes. The commission approved minutes for January 9, 2025 and February 13, 2025 (the February approval included a noted correction that Commissioner Trevor Calley was not present). The commission adjourned at about 6:00 p.m.

Next steps: staff will write the proposed amendments to Chapter 9 (changes to 9-7 and 9-10), post the ordinance language for public notice and hearing as required by local procedure, and forward the draft to the City Council for consideration.

"Sounds good to me," said Brad Hanson, the commission alternate, when members asked for reaction to the draft approach. Patrick Felberg, a commission member, indicated agreement that the item is ready to be written up, saying, "Yeah. I think we are."