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HUDSON — Tim Carmack has spent most of his life at war.
Bitten by a parasite while he was an Army sergeant fighting in Vietnam, he ended up with a disease that left him dependent on a wheelchair and unable to work. He spent years battling the government over veterans disability benefits, a fight that continues to this day.
On Dec. 14, a fire caused by an old stove damaged his mobile home. Efforts to replace it led to an insurance fight that required the help of state Sen. Mike Fasano to clear the red tape. In the end, Carmack, 65, got to swap his burned home for a new home, and everyone lived happily ever after, right?
Wait, it's not that simple.
When the new home was put on the lot, Carmack, his wife and two young sons packed up to move. The only thing left was for Pasco County officials to give the green light.
Instead, the Carmacks got a big stop sign.
The problem is that the new mobile home is 2,432 square feet, county officials say. That's larger than the old one, though exactly how much has been called into question. County officials say records show the old one at 1,344 square feet, making it more than 1,000 square feet smaller than the new one. County officials say the size difference means that the Carmacks owe $2,927 in impact fees.
"A bigger home typically means more (car) trips," Assistant County Attorney David Goldstein said. Even if the Carmacks don't let anyone else move in, they could sell the home to a family with more drivers.
"The county has no control over who anyone sells to," he said.
The family can seek a variance from the county's top administrators, but the filing fee is $800.
"You would hope that a group might come forward and help them," said County Administrator John Gallagher. While he alone lacks the authority to offer relief, he serves as chairman of the committee that has the power to grant a hardship waiver.
The Carmacks, who have been living in a borrowed mobile home, say they got the larger home to accommodate Tim Carmack's wheelchair. The extra space wasn't needed when he bought the old home in 1997, six years before he came down with lymphatic filariasis. The disease, which can take decades to surface, causes hardening and thickening of the skin, fluid collection and swelling in the arms and legs, and a compromised immune system.
The new home has doorways wide enough for Carmack to maneuver and a bathroom large enough for him to use on his own. The shower also has a seat.
"He can get into the kids' rooms and kiss them good night," said his wife, Shannon, 34, who had to quit her job as a nurse when her husband got sick and required constant care.
The Carmacks, whose only income is Tim's disability check, hope that paperwork filed by insurance adjusters after the fire will show the original home was larger than county records show. Tim said the home was advertised as 2 feet longer, and there appeared to be little difference between it and a 65-foot-long home nearby. He said crews brought it in with a larger air conditioner than it was supposed to have but decided to leave it rather than swap it.
County Commissioner Jack Mariano, whose district includes the Carmacks' home, said he sympathizes with their plight and hopes they can find the proof of the larger home and avoid the issue altogether.
Representatives of Citizens Insurance, the Carmacks' carrier, says Shannon must request the paperwork in writing before they'll turn it over.
"They won't let me e-mail," she said.
Tim Carmack said the latest challenge has left him frustrated. To top it off, thieves stole his prized smoker grill from their temporary home. They had hoped to hold a barbecue for friends to celebrate their new home.
"It seems every time you turn around something else happens to knock you that much deeper down in the dirt," said Tim Carmack, whose military contributions earned him a Bronze Star. Home alone at the time of the fire, he single-handedly saved two dogs and put out the blaze at his home before collapsing on his wheelchair ramp.
He was profiled in the St. Petersburg Times in 2007 and featured in an Animal Planet television show called Monsters Inside Me.
Fasano, R-New Port Richey, whose senate district includes the Carmacks' home, said he hopes officialdom will figure out a way to provide a happy ending either by waiving the fee or letting them move in and make payments.
"These people have been through so much," he said.
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