Ownership of electric vehicles may be on the rise, but one Florida homeowner is still getting grief from his homeowners' association about his new Rivian R1T.
Weston Hills Country Club resident Glenn Gordon describes his surprise when he received a letter from his HOA telling him that his pickup is against community regulations and that he could not keep it parked in his driveway overnight, local news station WPLG reported.
The neighborhood rules, which were reportedly written in the 1980s, stipulate that trucks, trailers, RVs, and commercial vehicles cannot be parked in the community overnight.
The HOA says that Gordon has to park his pickup in his garage. If he fails to comply, he could face fines and penalties and even lose his home. But Gordon believes that the community's rules are outdated and could hamper the neighborhood's desirability in the long run.
"It's a different world. Tesla's coming out with cybertrucks," he points out. "And it may hurt our home values, as the new vehicles come out. We're going to discourage people from buying in our community."
Rivian currently has 100,000 backlogged orders that it is shipping off to customers. That's up from a reported 1,000 vehicles made in January 2022.
More drivers are opting for EVs than ever, with registrations in the U.S. increasing by 60% in the first half of 2020.
President Biden wants 50% of the cars on U.S. roads to be electric by 2030. The number of electric vehicles sold in the U.S. has already tripled since he entered office.
This would tackle the biggest source of harmful carbon pollution in the U.S. — transportation.
All this is to say that the Weston Hills' Country Club's stance on Gordon's electric vehicle seems counterproductive, even if it is a pickup.
A judge from a comparable case agreed. In 2021, another pickup truck driver successfully appealed against his HOA, which ended up having to pay $40,000 to cover the homeowner's attorney's fees.
"Personal use pickup trucks do not carry the negative implication they might have 25 years ago," Broward County Judge Steven Shutter said. "In no way could parking these vehicles interfere with the quiet enjoyment or the property value of the condominium residents."
A version of the WPLG report posted on the station's YouTube channel largely drew support for Gordon and his ability to park his car in his driveway.
"I hope all HOA's take notice of this! There are many bylaws that need to be revised and made up to modern day standards," one user writes.
"What the HOA defines as a truck was probably intended as like a work truck with a box or panels on the back. Not a personal pickup truck. Antiquated HOA rules and too many Karen's. I'm rooting for the homeowner!" another replies.
"I love the heart warming story of an H.O.A. having to pay $40k," said a third. "I plan on telling this as a bed time story for years to come."
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