‘Really disheartening’: Couple’s dream wedding turns into a nightmare because of venue’s zoning issues


NEW RIVER, Ariz. (KPHO/Gray News) – A couple says zoning issues with their wedding venue turned their big day into a nightmare.“I thought it would be a really place for everybody to meet in the middle and we found a venue that would allow parties,” said Holliann Tran, a bride who booked Wrangler’s Roost in New River, Arizona, for her wedding.She says she was shown photos of previous weddings at the venue and did not know about the issues when she booked it.Tran got married in November 2022, and was surprised when authorities showed up asking her to cut the wedding short.“It looked like an actual, legal venue until the cops showed up,” she said.Deputies can be heard on body camera footage telling the newlyweds that the venue is not a valid location and music can be heard about 1,600 feet away.Tran says they were not even three songs into their reception when authorities showed up.“We had a beautiful 10-minute ceremony, and then as soon as we turned the DJ on, it was like the police were there,” she said. “The police were like, ‘We have to shut it down.’ And I was like ‘You’re joking. This can’t be real.’ And they said, ‘No, you rented a venue that’s not actually a venue,’ and I just start instantly bawling.”Tran says she immediately contacted the owners of the venue and they allegedly told her to turn the music back on but ultimately, everyone was sent home. She says she lost out on nearly $10,000 and a lifetime of memories.The problem is that county officials say the venue does not have a permit to hold events.“The owners of this property are running a business out of what should be their residential home because it’s not zoned for commercial,” said Sgt. Joaquin Enriquez with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.Enriquez said these moments are hard on the deputies who have repeatedly dealt with this property. Since July 2021, there have been 61 calls for service to the property which is “a lot of time and resources” dedicated to the issue, according to authorities.“The deputies who have been going out there are very familiar with this area and they’re very empathetic of these people because they didn’t know. So we’re going to go and try to be our best as far as explaining the process and what MCSO wants of them,” he said.Marko Dapevich lives about 1,600 feet from Wrangler’s Roost and says he has been dealing with constant loud music and bright lights on the weekends.“The noise is remarkable. We can play name that tune in our bedroom at 10:00 at night,” he said. “The sheriff’s office has recorded mid-60s decibels inside our home.”The volume of a normal conversation is about 60 decibels, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Dapevich says events continue being held even though the property is not zoned for it.“The county has not enforced it. The sheriff’s deputies have not enforced it, nor have they enforced the zoning code. So after several years of this, I felt the only option we had to make a stop was to file a civil suit and ask for an injunction,” he said.Dapevich says the situation is a “conundrum.”“You don’t want to ruin somebody’s wedding. That’s one special day for them, but for us and the other hundreds of people that are within sound range of that it goes on and on and on,” he said.The owners of Wrangler’s Roose, Reid and Heidi Stewart, refunded some of Tran’s money, but she says she is left with a sour experience.“You plan your whole life for this special day, and then for somebody to take it away, it’s just really disheartening. I would never want this to happen to anybody else,” she said.The Stewarts have racked up more than $70,000 in fines so far, according to county records.The Stewarts and their attorney have refused to comment.Copyright 2024 KPHO via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

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