MIDDLEBURG, Fla. — A Homeowner’s Association for a Middleburg neighborhood is taking a disabled veteran and his wife to court.
It’s after they installed an emergency second driveway to their home in the Villages of Fireside neighborhood without HOA approval.
Jimmy Moore served in the Army for 23 years, and he has multiple sclerosis.
He said he first looked into expanding his driveway 11 years ago so he could have additional space for his van, which is specially equipped for his disability.
“With that van, it has a lift and allows me to operate that from my power wheelchair,” Moore said. “I need the additional space so that I can get in and get out safely.”
But the HOA denied that initial request.
Years later, Moore said he asked permission again from the HOA’s Architectural Review Committee to build a second driveway on their property, even providing medical documentation explaining his disability.
“The HOA said we will look into it, and they never got back with us,” said Moore.
Moore said they went ahead and installed it, and now the HOA is suing him and his wife.
The lawsuit alleges that Moore violated neighborhood rules by failing to submit an application for HOA approval.
It also said the unapproved alteration removes soil, shrubs, plants, and changes the grade or level of the land, which also results in the permanent change in water and drainage flow.
The HOA is asking Moore to restore the lot to living grass and to restore its appearance as originally approved by the HOA.
But Moore said he is pushing the association to review their policies to better protect disabled homeowners.
“They violated my civil rights,” Moore said. “We would like for them to drop the lawsuit and be fair.”
Action News Jax reached out to the attorney representing that HOA on Monday. We did not hear back from them by the time this story aired.
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