Carlin council denies two older-mobile-home variances, approves curb-and-gutter waiver for 402 W. Cedar

At its Jan. 28 meeting, the Carlin City Council denied two variance requests to place older manufactured homes in Maggie Creek Mobile Home Park and approved a separate variance to waive curb, gutter and sidewalk requirements for 402 West Cedar Street.

Alejandro Perez sought permission to place older manufactured homes at 1653 Puett Drive and 1639 Maggie Court. Perez told the council he intended to clean and update the homes. "They are decent trailers and I would do my best to keep them updated," he said. Building official Anna Penola told the council city code requires any mobile home brought into Carlin to be five years or newer, and that the safety standard for manufactured homes dates to 1976 and can require electrical upgrades. Penola identified the two units in question as 1979 and 1985 models and said she opposed the variance pending completed repairs and documentation.

Councilmembers debated housing availability and strict enforcement of the code. Councilmember Denise Taylor said housing is limited in Carlin and proposed allowing an engineering report and photos for further review; others, including Mayor Cameron Kinney and Councilmember Joel Nalley, urged adhering to the ordinance for safety reasons. Joel Nalley moved to deny the 1653 Puett Drive variance; after a procedural pause a follow-up motion to deny passed unanimously. Nalley then moved to deny the 1639 Maggie Court request; Denise Taylor seconded and the council again voted unanimously to deny that application.

Separately, homeowner Luanne K. Macumber requested a variance to waive curb, gutter and sidewalk installation tied to converting her manufactured home at 402 West Cedar Street to a foundation. Macumber, 71, said the foundation would cost about $35,000 and the curb/gutter/sidewalk roughly $40,000, creating a combined cost she described as a significant hardship. "This total cost of over $75,000 creates a significant financial hardship for me as the seller and for any potential buyer," she said. Council members discussed that Title III of the city code currently triggers curb/gutter/sidewalk requirements when improvements exceed a $10,000 threshold and that variances run with the property. Realtor Jody Hensley and others urged relief to allow the sale and eventual tax-base increase. Denise Taylor moved to approve the variance; Lyndsie Whigham seconded. The motion passed 3–2 (Taylor, Whigham and Brandon Keller in favor; Mayor Kinney and Joel Nalley opposed).

The council noted that granting a variance attaches the waiver to the property and invited broader review of the $10,000 improvement threshold. The public hearing was closed at 7:04 p.m.