The log cabin-trailer hybrid on Old Rail Road in Oriskany is too small to be a modular home yet too large to be a recreational vehicle. Its exterior appearance differentiates it from a typical recreational vehicle, but it is on wheels and it has a porch.

So, what exactly is it?

That question has perplexed zoning officials in Botetourt County for months, and the planning commission is scheduled to re-examine the issue Monday at a 6 p.m. meeting in the Old District Courthouse on West Main Street in Fincastle.

The dwelling is neither a federally approved manufactured home nor a state-approved stick-built home; therefore, it conflicts with the county's zoning code.

Rob Hagan is a Daleville attorney representing the owners of the dwelling, Polly Ann and Wayne Crouch. Hagan proposed amending the ordinance at the commission's meeting in October. The changes proposed would have allowed recreational park trailers in the county as a use by special exemption.

But members of the commission at that time feared creating an exception that might set a precedent enticing other county landowners to start placing less appealing trailers in more visible areas of the county.

"The biggest bone of contention was trying to figure out whether or not this was a recreational vehicle," planning commission Chairman Chris Whitely said.

Hagan withdrew the Crouches' request at the October meeting to avoid its being rejected. If the proposal had been rejected, the Crouches would have had to wait a year before it could be brought before the commission again. Hagan has modified the request to limit recreational park trailers to the agricultural zoning district and specifies the use to be for recreational living only -- not to be occupied all the time.

"The Crouches have vacationed on Craig Creek since the '70s, and they are hoping this property goes down to the third generation," Hagan said. The Crouches' primary residence is in Chesterfield.

The trailer, manufactured by Superior Park Model Homes of Pelham, Ga., is equipped with a full kitchen with electric appliances, bathroom and bedroom. The base price of the unit is about $28,000.

According to Hagan, the Crouches thought the trailer was in compliance after receiving clearance from the state Health Department in the summer of 2007 to hook the trailer up to a septic system. A county building inspector discovered the trailer on the property in April when he was conducting an inspection nearby.

When the commission meets Monday, its members will have to decide first whether to add a definition for recreational park trailers and to allow such dwellings in the agricultural zoning district for recreational occupation. If approved, the commission then will have to consider whether to recommend approval of the Crouches' special-exemption permit to the county's board of supervisors, according to Chuck Supan, the county's planning director.

"If approved, there are a few changes they would have to make to that unit," he said.

Insulation would be required, and the vacation home must be able to withstand standard snow and wind loads.