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HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV) -- A Harrisonburg judge has ruled in the city's favor on the mulch ordinance which states how close mulch can be to an apartment building.
McCloud said there are other ways to keep buildings safe from fires than the ordinance.
The ruling affects new buildings or updated landscapes that have flammable siding.
The Virginia Apartment Management Association, Sunchase Harrisonburg, and Park Apartments sued the city.
The plaintiffs argued the ordinance violates the Virginia General Assembly's law on regulating landscaping materials like mulch or gravel.
Patrick McCloud, the C.E.O. of Virginia Apartment Management Association, said he was disappointed and surprised by the ruling.
"It goes back to semantic games. You know, that's not the way good government is transacted," McCloud said. "Good government consists of working with all parties involved. Not just government making up rules without paying attention to what anyone else is thinking."
A new General Assembly bill could stop the city for good. McCloud said he has had his eyes on the bill even before the judge's ruling. He said he thought if the city lost, it would redo its ordinance.
"Our concern was that even if Harrisonburg lost, the city would simply try to re-write the ordinance around the judge's ruling," McCloud said. "And still get what they had originally wanted."
The General Assembly bill singles out the city of Harrisonburg, saying it would not be able to regulate landscape covering materials.
WHSV called the city about the case but did not receive a call back.
