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A group of citizens came before the Stanly County Board of Commissioners at Monday’s meeting with concerns about the future of their housing.

Residents of six manufactured homes at 30545 Tom Road were given four months by commissioners to find new housing after orders for demolition were issued.

“We don’t get to this point in code enforcement very often, but unfortunately we find ourselves there tonight,” Stanly County Zoning Code Enforcement Officer Tim Swaringen said.

Swaringen said the investigation for compliance with the county’s ordinance for minimum housing and high grass standards started Feb. 9.

An order stating the homes were unfit for habitation was issued April 11, and owner Richard Huneycutt had 90 days to correct the violations or demolish the residences. Swaringen said there had been no significant changes in the conditions of the homes during that time after a re-inspection.

Commissioners’ agenda packets included photos of the homes which showed exposed outlets, mold, holes in floors and ceilings, exposed electrical boxes and other types of damage.

Many of the residents of those homes attended the meeting and spoke during public hearings regarding the conditions, including a family who signed a lease in July of this year while the home and others were under the 90-day span listed in the April 11 order.

Swaringen said he talked with Huneycutt and some of the tenants about the situation. He said Huneycutt “was instructed not to move anybody else into these mobile homes. There were a couple of vacant ones.”

Commissioners suggested several options for the residents in attendance, including the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program, Homes Of Hope and the Community Inn. Programs like the vouchers, Commissioner Bill Lawhon said, have a waiting list.

After the period of time to Jan. 31, 2024 ends, the eviction process would include a 30-day period of notification to tenants plus a 10- to 14-day process for a judge to hear the case and issue the eviction order, according to Swaringen, along with a 10-day appeal period.

The board unanimously approved the demolition orders dated Jan. 31, 2024, by a 6-0 vote. Commissioner Patty Crump was excused from Monday’s meeting.