Homesteading

I think homesteading in certain cases should be allowed. My boyfriend and I are fulltime RVer's and in most cases spend the winter at Southwinds Marina outside of Del Rio, Texas. During our visits, we have met a few of these "homesteaders". I have no complaints about these people as they are a steady source of income for the park as it is rarely full. If it weren't for these people, the park would have next to no income coming in. In the peak season "winter months" we seen the park get full maybe 3 or 4 times, otherwise the space that were open never filled up. So parks like this one needed the income from homesteaders. Now if the park was a park that was constantly busy then yes, enforce the limit rule. Give other campers a chance to enjoy the park, off season, that would be up to the campgrounds.

This last spring, Southwinds decided to enforce the 14 day limit, and now from one of the homesteader that I had met, states that Sounthwinds has now virturally become a ghost town. They have lost about $22,000.00 a year in revenue that the "homesteader" were paying. This last summer we were told that the place was empty as it was to hot to camp. Yes the homesteaders are benifical to some campgrounds.

Totally agree with the bringing in of revenue, but what about those of us who want to stay and just visit. Fort Sam Houston has a policy that if you want to stay longer then 30 days you have to submit a exception to policy and they work with most active duty who are waiting for housing, but do NOT allow homesteading. NO exceptions. and they take reservations. Try doing that at McDill where they hold spaces for the winter for their friends every year and if you are not part of the in crowd you will NOT get in.

Reservations / 3 month Stay limit / Able to extend 48 hours before your stay is up 1 month at a time if there are sites avalable.

Keep some CG's with no rules. This way the Homesteaders will migrate there and they can have the Trailor Parks they want.

I have found Homesteaders view CG's as a entititlement not a privlage. They should go join the Occupy movment. Maybe us that travel should pay more so these Homsteaders can have free rent.

Rules are only as good as those that enforce them. Stay limits for Camp Hosts and work campers is a must. When they stay to long then the buddy system takes effect. Go to Mayport and see this.

Homesteading is increasingly becoming a problem. We have seen it in action at the Naval Weapons Station in Charleston, SC, an active duty and spouse with 8 children living in a 5th wheel and at Fort Bliss, TX, where most of the sites are occupied by active duty. These situations not only make it hard for folks who want to visit an area and stay for a while, but many of these sites look like, if you will pardon the expression, trailer trash. These folks need to get an apartment or house on or off base where they belong. The tax payers are being milked. Also, this past summer during the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, NM, we stayed at Kirtland AFB famcamp. While there are no reservations, the CO of the base carved out 20 spaces for SMART campers so they could stay for the Fiesta. The rest of us had to go back and forth from dry camp to make room for these folks. What a shame. I guess it is who you know!

Agree with get a house or apartment.

At Oak grove in Pensacola Homestedding is on the rise. People living in the CG that work on base and Mil. Retired. I can see certain reason for extended stays like medical treatment or if your home was distroyed by fire or storms. but if you are collecting a retirement and working get a house. Those living in CG with kids, Man i would want to have a decent home for my kids to live in. Or maybe I was just raised wrong.

It is wrong to homestead. Like Illegal Immigration is wrong. If you want to Homestead fine, Change the Rules! I have always found it to be a joke that people say "well I have found a way to skirt the system, abusing the system you mean! Feeling so proud they have gotten over because no one has held them accountable and they are above the rules. I expect this from the younger generation of misguided mindless drones who only know, give me, give me, give me and find their meaning of life in a lifeless piece of technology because they cannot communicate with other human beings face to face; lacking the self confidence their parents were responsible for instilling, abdicating to the schools their responsibility. I expect better from active and retired military; the last bastion of what has always been good about America. The Euro-trash self-centered attitude of "Screw you" I am entitled, seems to be the way of many today. Well, I choose to do what is right, and will continue to wake up in the morning and look at myself in the mirror knowing I'm not screwing my fellow military and federal brethren. (That's how I was raised.) As for the camp hosts that allow their buddies front of the line privileges, you had better hope you never have me as your manager because you'll be looking for a new place to be a camp host, like maybe the parking lot of your local Walmart.
For campgrounds that sit vacant during extended periods, here is the exception to the rule. Of course they should keep campers that willing to fund the site, unless circumstances change, such as new RV'ers who are entitled to a spot. If they arriv to a park full of Homesteaders, then the homesteaders should be forced to move out based on who has been there the longest, returning only if they do not prevent other new members from staying.
Proper management and planning can always find a middle ground that is Efficient, Rational and FAIR!
As I said in my previous post, hold people accountable, even those military getting housing allowances for quarters. Someday I’d like to enjoy the benefit of visiting the MWR Campgrounds around the country, but not living in one. do not accept the unnacceptable. Demand better. If I have offended, then you should be offended. Those abusing the system are the problem, not the ones working within the system. Like the current political climate where Redicals believe rules do not apply to them, Homesteaders that share the same mentality demonstrate who's side they are truely on. Think about it.
the truth hurts!

Very Respectfully.