Group files suit over future of foreclosed property

A community association for an over-55 development is trying to figure out what happens now that the Ruckersville property has been foreclosed upon and bought at auction.
To iron out those terms, a lawyer for the Four Seasons at Charlottesville Community Association Inc. said the group filed a lawsuit Jan. 14 in Greene County Circuit Court against M&T Trust Co., North Charlottesville Development LLC and K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons at Charlottesville LLC.

Mark A. Moorstein, who is representing the community association, said the group wants to be sure what will happen to the association and common areas under the ownership of M&T. The bank, which was foreclosing upon the development, bought it Thursday for $5 million.
According to the complaint, original developer MountainVu LLC proffered restrictions on the 204-acre development when it asked for the land to be rezoned in 2004. The project was envisioned as a multi-phase residential development for people 55 and older that would consist of 650 single-family units just off U.S. 33 between Stanardsville and Quinque.

The rezoning was approved in July 2004, the suit said, and the first phase and some of the common areas were constructed.
The complaint said that the association, which is bound to enforce a set of rules and regulations for homeowners called a declaration, owns the common area under the proffer. The proffer also contains language stating that the association cannot be dissolved unless another organization succeeds it.
Contradictory statements were published in the notice of sale, the suit said, and now the association and the bank disagree as to whether the declaration has been dissolved. Moorstein said the association believes the declaration still is binding.

Calls made to K. Hovnanian Homes and M&T for this story were not immediately returned.
Now that the development has a new owner, Moorstein said the next step is to define the rights of everyone involved.
“Everybody is talking to everybody, and everybody is trying to work out something,” Moorstein said. “I think everyone is trying to work toward an interim solution.”