SYRACUSE.COM: CNY couple who couldn’t park their pickup in driveway has had enough; they move out
By Elizabeth Doran
A couple sued by a Central New York homeowners’ association for parking their pickup truck in their driveway in the town of Manlius says the pressure from the case forced them to move.
“Enough pressure was put on us that we felt we had to leave,” said David Orlando, who moved to Florida with his wife, Arna, in June. “We were forced out of our home.”
The HOA “didn’t come with shotguns – they didn’t need to. We felt the pressure,” he said.
The Orlandos were the target of a lawsuit filed by the The Kimry Moor Homeowners Association, who sought an injunction in Onondaga County Supreme Court to stop the couple from parking their 2014 black Ford150 truck in their driveway. The couple lived at 511 Kimry Moor, just outside Fayetteville.
The association charged its regulations only allow residents to park “private, passenger-type, pleasure automobiles” in driveways. The association owns the driveways in the development.
The association argued the couple’s pickup did not qualify as private passenger-type vehicle. The group’s officials said the truck could be parked in the couple’s garage.
The Orlandos contended their pickup was a personal passenger vehicle and not a commercial vehicle of any sort.
After syracuse.com/The Post-Standard wrote about the couple’s situation, the case attracted national attention. The coverage included David Orlando and his attorney, Tom Cerio, appearing on Fox News’ television show “The Real Story with Gretchen Carlson” in January to discuss the lawsuit.
David Orlando, contacted at his home in Florida this week, confirmed moving, but declined to say more or provide more specifics about why they moved because his countersuit for damages is still pending.
Paul Curtin, lawyer for the HOA, said he’s astounded at the Orlandos’ claim of pressure, and said the couple retired to Florida voluntarily.
“I can’t speak to what they (the Orlandos) feel, but the association did not directly or indirectly do anything to cause them to sell their home and go all the way to Florida,” he said. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”
Curtin said “the association just wanted them to abide by the covenants like everyone else does.”
Curtin said it’s likely the association will formally drop its lawsuit because the Orlandos no longer live in Kimry Moor, so the injunction to stop them from parking their pickup in the driveway isn’t necessary.
The Orlandos filed a counterclaim against the association for emotional distress, but the judge threw that out, the lawyers said. Another counterclaim seeks compensatory damages for the lawsuit, and that part of the case is still active and pending.
The parties have a conference Monday with Supreme Court Justice Hon. James Murphy.
READ MORE: http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2015/08/couple_sued_over_parking_pickup_in_cny_driveway_says_the_pressure_forced_us_to_m.html
How could this HOA have handled this situation differently, without turning to legal action? Let us know! Email us at info@associationevaluation.com