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Huntington council sends temporary single‑wide trailer request to planning and zoning after lengthy debate
Summary
A Huntington resident asked to place a 12x70 single‑wide trailer temporarily while rebuilding a home destroyed in a weather event. Council members disagreed about whether city code allows such placements and whether time limits should be enforceable; the council removed the item from tonight's agenda and referred it to planning and zoning for review.
HUNTINGTON — The Huntington City Council on Oct. 15 debated whether to allow a resident to place a 12‑by‑70 single‑wide trailer on a lot while rebuilding a home damaged in a weather event, then voted to refer the matter to planning and zoning for a formal review.
The request was described to the council as a temporary measure for a homeowner who has already started rebuilding. Planning and zoning staff said the trailer would be sited near the rebuilding work and would be removed once construction is complete. Planning/Zoning Administrator Gary Harrington explained that the trailer would be taken from another property in town and that the owner intends to sell it once it is no longer needed.
Council members disagreed over whether the city's ordinance allows placement of a single‑wide trailer in this situation. "Our ordinance don't allow that," said Council Member Tom K., who raised concern that allowing one temporary placement could open the door for others to become permanent. Harrington responded that city code has provisions allowing replacement after a structure is destroyed by a natural event and that homeowners are allowed to occupy RVs on a construction site in some circumstances, but that the specific language for single‑wide mobile homes was not clear at the meeting.
Several council members urged the council to delay making a decision until planning and zoning staff locate the exact code language and, if necessary, propose wording that defines "temporary" and sets enforceable time limits. "Temporary can end up being 20 years unless it's under certain guidelines," a council member warned during debate.
The council voted to remove the temporary trailer item from the council agenda and send it to planning and zoning for review; members agreed to give P&Z until the first of the month to report back. The motion to refer the matter passed by voice vote.
Next steps: Planning and zoning will review existing Chapter 9 code language cited during the discussion, clarify whether replacement rules apply to single‑wide mobile homes, and draft recommended language (including time limits and enforcement mechanisms) for council consideration.
Provenance: The discussion began when the presiding official asked to hear about a temporary trailer ("At this time, we'd like to hear from Gary Nelson about Gary Harrington about a temporary trailer," SEG 101). Debate over ordinance language and temporary living appears throughout SEG 142–176 and the council formally removed and referred the item in SEG 861–874.
