(5/21) Discussion over how many trailers should be permitted on a Carroll Valley property continues.
Borough administration, with the blessing of the planning commission, presented a proposed ordinance to Borough council during its May meeting that allows three trailers on a lot less than two acres. Residents who own lots larger than two acres could have four trailers under the proposed ordinance.
The proposed ordinance classifies trailers differently than recreation vehicles. That did not sit well with most Council members.
Current laws state all motor vehicles, which includes recreational vehicles, must be parked on hard surfaces. The law does not state how many motor vehicles a homeowner can have on his or her property.
"It is our responsibility as council members to protect every homeowner in this borough to the best that we can for their property values," Council President Richard Mathews said.
The president’s remarks drew strong rebuke from Councilman Bruce Carr.
"That is a matter of opinion," Carr said. "I think it is a false pretense that just because people have vehicles on the property that it lowers the value of the neighboring property."
Mathews also disliked the proposed regulation that states trailers must be five feet from the property lines. Sheds, Mathews said, must be 10 feet away from the property line.
"The reason they put them so far away from the house is because they do not want to look at them," Councilman David Lillard suggested.
Again, Carr objected.
"If I had a 27-foot boat on a 29-foot trailer, it would sit right in front of my yard," Carr said.
Carroll Valley residents have expressed many opinions on the proposed trailer ordinance this year. Borough Manager Dave Hazlett said he doesn’t recall hearing more thoughts on a subject throughout his 18 years working for the borough.
Mathews suggested three borough council members revise the proposed ordinance and present it again next month instead of asking the planning commission to review council’s suggestions. Hazlett encouraged council members to discuss the ordinance in public so citizens can share thoughts. The Council agreed to send it back to the planning commission, with Mathews and Carr objecting. Mathews disliked the review process and Carr was against limiting the number of items allowed on a property.
"I am sorry but any inconvenience caused for people who want multiple RVs, trailers, or whatever is usurping the rights of their neighbors. I feel very strongly about that," Mathews said. "I am very adamant that those people who want more than two can take the extra ones to a rental facility and put them there. No one is denying them the right to have these objects."
