Don’t you think you should be able to do what you want on your own property? You know, the property that you bought and pay taxes on taxes on taxes on taxes for?

A very, very long story short and leaving out a ton of details, an “anonymous” complaint about our little space was made to the county September 2022. We were shocked, as we believed we had wonderful relationship with our neighbors. With the way our house is and how the driveways were set, we share an entrance with our immediate neighbor. Technically, it’s our driveway and they have easement to use it. (For future reference, don’t ever do this.)

They issued two separate complaints: 1.) The photography business and 2.) The weddings. What we learned (and truly we were not aware of) is that in order to operate a business out of your home in our county, you need to have a Home Occupation Permit. After learning about that, we did the necessary paperwork, paid the fees and got that part taken care of. It basically just says I can photograph my clients in my backyard and answer emails from my couch. While inconvenient and a hassle, we submitted the paperwork and that part was done.

The main issue we now faced was that the county said we needed a Special Use Permit to continue hosting weddings in our backyard. Something else we had no idea we needed and never heard of. We now know more about our County Ordinances than we ever wanted to, but after extensive research, it looked like we were safe, as we have a right to Religious Assembly no matter what we’re zoned. However, because it’s “reoccurring,” we were told we still needed to go through with obtaining the Special Use Permit. This included two public hearings: 1.) The Planning Committee and 2.) The Board of Supervisors.

Please remember: Our events are small. They are not distinguishable from a backyard BBQ. We self-impose our own limitations: Guest limits, time limits, sound, timeframes, privacy, parking, etc. All limitations we take very seriously, as this is our home too and we want things small here.

The Planning Committee meeting was at the beginning of April 2023. It went terribly. Our neighbors put on a show and the planning committee ultimately bought it. They were shaking with anger and complained about things we’ve never even had happen. They said things that weren’t true, and brought photographs that could have only been attained by trespassing onto our property, but because we weren’t shown those images, we didn’t know until later. In the 3 years we’ve been operating, they never once came to us stating an issue, even when we’ve always encouraged open communication. In fact, when our first letter from the county was received, Mitch approached them to ask if there was an issue and if they knew about why the letter was sent. They lied to Mitch’s face and said no. And then followed up with “but you know what you’re doing is illegal right?” We knew it was them after that. Our neighbors across the pond had no idea we even existed. Only when they saw the sign posted at the end of our driveway did they get curious. Gratefully, most of them didn’t care. They didn’t know about us before so why would it matter now? One house did, however their worry was more for the cottage than the greenhouse. However, that meeting at nothing to do with the cottage.

The Planning Committee ultimately didn’t know how to vote, so they voted no. We were absolutely heartbroken but knew that it was the Board of Supervisors meeting that mattered. Many of you reached out after you saw the news article that was written. We never wanted this to be made so public. We never made a public statement, as we didn’t want our current couples to have to worry if they’d have a wedding venue. The keyboard warriors had fun in the comment section, but it was uplifting to see our friends and people we’ve never met come to our defense. I read every comment and stayed in the shadows.

What nobody knew, upon learning so much about the ordinances, we had a failsafe plan B if the Board of Supervisors meeting went poorly. We were ready to put that into effect to save our business. We were ready to change the entire infrastructure of our business for our couples. We did the preliminary research, had the paperwork ready and were ready to submit if it came to that. Thankfully, we didn’t have to use it.

We invited all the board members out to our property to see it for themselves. (I didn’t know you could do that until I spoke with another local wedding venue who went through the same thing.) Three responded to our invite and came out, including Tammy Parker, our district board member. It’s silly to compare it to this, but you know in Breaking Dawn when Edward and Bella are trying to get ‘witnesses’ and once Renesmee touches them, they all understand? It was like that. They were shocked we were even zoned R-2. We should be zoned agricultural because we’re surrounded by 100s of acres of farmland.

Our meeting in May 2023 with the Board was full of our friends, neighbors and vendors who spoke on our behalf, including our bordering neighbor, who stood by us. Dozens of emails were sent in on our behalf from those who couldn’t make it. Listening to our friends and neighbors speak publicly for us is something I will always remember, and will forever be grateful for. On the other side, there were more untruths and misrepresentations spoken. Mitch addressed the ones that mattered.

When it was time for the deciding vote, the vote we’d been praying about for 8 months, the Board voted 7-0 – a unanimous vote in our favor. We only needed 4. And from what we’ve learned, a unanimous vote is rare. We have been awarded our Special Use Permit, and because that meeting was for both land parcels (the greenhouse land and the cottage land) both are safe and permitted.

It’s easy to throw stones at the county, however they were just doing their job, as we would have wanted if we were the ones with the complaint. They were very communicative and willing to listen, and we’re grateful for that.

Ultimately, we know without a doubt this is what God wants us to do. He’s shown us time and time again. While all this was going on, our calendar was filling and filling. We had 10-15 inquiries a day. The greenhouse was booking. The cottage was booking. While we spent a significant amount of money on extra permits, attorney consultations and additional land improvements to meet the permit criteria, the money was there to pay for it. God just kept sending weddings to us, further showing us that this is what we’re supposed to do and just trust Him. And we did. While this was the most stressful thing we’ve ever gone through, the sense of inner peace we had about the final decision was inexplainable. We fully believe Romans 8:31: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” And that held so true. The victory is His. The Glory is His.

He did show off a little. All this time we’ve been praying for at least 4 yes votes. He gave us all 7. I love it when He does that.

You can view the public record video here. Fast forward to 40 minutes to begin.

Our little business is safe. The greenhouse is safe. The cottage is safe. Here’s to a beautiful 2023 and beyond!

2024 Update! After claiming we “ruined their lives” our neighbors moved to another state. Ben (single guy with a dog named Merle!) moved in and we’ve become really good friends! He’s absolutely wonderful, helps out with moving tables and claims he can’t hear a single thing. He’s such an answered prayer!