The owner of a couple of mobile home parks appeared before the Marshall County Commissioners Monday, saying he should be exempt from the county’s permitting requirements. Ralph Costello, who owns the Gatewood Estates and Creek Side mobile home parks, says he should not have to get a permit every time his parks decide to move or demolish a mobile home, since the parks predate the county’s zoning laws.
Costello says Gatewood Estates received a license to operate under Indiana State Department of Health regulations in 1972, two years before the county adopted its zoning ordinance. “When Marshall County Plan Director Bill Neal was in office, he brought Gatewood Estate before the Marshall County Court on a matter,” he said. “The judge at this time said that Gatewood Estate had licensed before zoning was established, comes under grandfather, so leave them alone under the Indiana State Board of Health rules.” Costello says the same thing happened again under a different plan director.
The permitting system allows the county to ensure safety regulations are being met, but most permits also come with a fee. Costello told the commissioners that the $150 fee that the county charges for the permits required for moving mobile homes would be an extreme financial hardship for his company. He estimates that his two parks make changes that would require a permit three times a month.
Marshall County Plan Director Ralph Booker says that while mobile home parks will continue to be given some leniency when it comes to zoning regulations, the county’s ordinances need to start being enforced when possible. He says that’s especially true when it comes to the issue of safety, “If we exempt this one, we’ve got to exempt the other ones too, and there are conditions out there that I know the State Health Department looks at, but they don’t really enforce them very well.”
Costello responded that the State Department of Health inspects many of the same items as the county, thereby unfairly doubling the amount of inspection. He also expressed his belief that the way the ordinance is worded means it should only apply to mobile homes placed individually around the county, and that many of the regulations are not necessary for mobile home parks.
Booker disputed that claim, saying that any structure over 120 square feet needs a permit, “I don’t know what the difference is between a mobile home that’s placed in a residential environment out in the county versus a mobile home park. I think we’re here to protect the citizens on both sides, their health, safety, and welfare. So I don’t know any state law that says the mobile home parks are not in the county.”
Building Commissioner Chuck DeWitt, meanwhile, said the county’s main concern is making sure the structures are safe. He also pointed out that the county does not charge a fee for demolition permits.
The commissioners were reluctant to grant an exemption. Rather than taking any action themselves, they suggested that Costello bring the matter before the Marshall County Plan Commission.
