Dispute over private lakefront park roils Virginia Heights

The owners of two large homes next to the park filed a lawsuit against another neighbor and want limited hours and kayaks removed

May 9, 2025

By Beth Kassab

The owners of two large homes on Lake Virginia filed a lawsuit last week against another neighbor over “filthy” kayaks and other issues related to a private neighborhood park visible from their backyards.

Escalating tensions over who can do what at the green space platted more than 100 years ago to provide all homeowners in Virginia Heights lake access is roiling one of Winter Park’s oldest neighborhoods known for its mix of architectural styles and picturesque views of the Spanish-Mediterranean buildings of Rollins College.

Residents say Eric and Diane Holm and Brian and Caryn Albertson, who own the homes on either side of the park and filed the lawsuit, have demanded changes to the park, installed cameras and floodlights and are using legal action to intimidate others from using the space that has long been the gathering spot for neighborhood holiday parties, Halloween costume contests and more.

“It’s creating a chilling effect of people going into the park,” said Stephanie Guss, who lives nearby and, so far, is the only named defendant in the lawsuit. “People walking into the park feel like they are trespassing even though they know they are not.”

Residents must walk across pavers that appear to be part of the Holms’ driveway and meander down a five-foot-wide path between a black iron fence and a large wall that separates the Holms’ property from the Albertsons’. The path opens to a lakefront green with a dock, a rack for kayaks and canoes and a pair of picnic tables surrounded by the Holms’ and Albertsons’ backyards.

In a rally of support for the park that was part ice cream party and part defiance, more than 100 people gathered there Sunday for treats, games, boat rides and speakers that included former United States Poet Laureate Billy Collins, who owns a home down the street.

“I’ve used this park a lot … there’s usually not many people here,” he told the crowd before reading from one of his works.

Guss is named in the lawsuit because, according to the filing, she “helps handle inquiries for the use of the boat rack.”

Before filing the lawsuit last week, Holm and Albertson filed a legal proceeding in November against Guss to try to find out the names of the kayak owners, financial information related to the park and other details. That case is still ongoing.

While the new lawsuit filed in Orange County Circuit Court does not dispute that more than 200 homeowners in Virginia Heights have equal access to the park, it refers to the kayak and canoe owners as “co-conspirators” and argues that the boat rack and shrubs planted by residents deprives the Holms and Albertsons of use of a portion of the greenspace.

Eric Holm, one of the nation’s largest Golden Corral franchisees who lives in the 10,000-square-foot home just west of the park, told the Voice that he and his neighbor aren’t trying to intimidate anyone and that the cameras and lighting are no different from the typical security measures many homeowners take.

“If someone is not engaging in inappropriate or unlawful behavior, there should be no reason to feel intimidated by their presence,” he said in an email. “Our intent has never been to intimidate anyone—only to follow the law and ensure the park remains a safe, shared space.”

Guss said she stopped assisting with the kayak rack last fall. She said she originally got involved because of complaints from the adjacent homeowners about the canoes and kayaks being left on the grass.

“I was trying to keep the peace by getting everybody to be good neighbors and keep their kayaks on the rack,” she said. “And they came back and sued me.”

Holm, a major Republican donor who hosted Vice President J.D. Vance for lunch at his home last year and a philanthropist who operates multiple Golden Corral, Peach Valley Cafe and Jersey Mike’s Subs locations, said he has growing concerns about safety and liability. He bought his property in 2008 for $3.1 million.

The park, Holm told the Voice in an email, “is not maintained by a homeowners association and has no security or formal oversight. Over time, this lack of structure has led to growing safety concerns — including underage drinking at night and, more recently, vagrants sleeping in the canoes stored there.”

The lawsuit argues that the kayaks and canoes on racks are not permitted and the people using the racks “seem to look at the park as a storage area for items they do not wish to store at their own residence.”

“Many of the kayaks in and around the racks are filthy, showing no signs of use within the last year or more and are covered in dust, dirt, and mildew,” the lawsuit states.

Albertson, who paid $3.1 million for his property in 2020 and built his house last year, said he also has concerns about liability and safety.

“We need to take steps to reduce after-hours loitering, including drinking, drug use, and vagrancy,” he told the Voice in an email.

He said he has not reported any incidents to the police.

In a letter dated Jan. 17 signed by Albertson and posted in the park he alerted neighbors that he relocated the park trash cans “while we determine the legality of the placement of trash cans or any other item in the park.”

“We maintain a sincere desire to find an equitable resolution to this situation,” the letter said. “Should there be any criminal mischief or vandalism inflicted against our property we will be seeking criminal charges. Please be advised all movements are monitored by cameras” and invited residents to email him to make arrangements for him to “release the trash cans.”

In February, Holm and Albertson sent a letter to Virginia Heights homeowners explaining that they have tried to discuss solutions with neighbors, but “a handful of self-appointed individuals have attempted to dictate park policies” and “placed obstacles like bushes and trash cans in ways that obstruct views and limit fair use of the space.”

The letter also said all kayaks or other personal property must be removed immediately and asked for signs to be posted that declare the park closed between dusk and dawn. The letter also asserted that the homeowners are not allowed to take up a collection for park maintenance as they have done in the past.

“Rather than escalating this into a long legal dispute, we hope that our neighbors will voluntarily remove their personal property from the park and respect the shared nature of this space,” read the letter, according to a copy provided to the Voice.

Albertson told the Voice that a gate could potentially be installed at the entrance of the park as a security measure to limit access to homeowners. He also suggested that “perhaps we could consider a few well-maintained kayaks for shared community use.”

He said he wants to make sure there is insurance coverage in place “to protect all homeowners in case of any incidents.”

“Given that these concerns affect everyone, I’m a bit puzzled as to why this dispute has persisted for so long,” Albertson said in an email. “We have tried to amicably address this situation for two-plus years. I hope we can come together and find practical solutions that reflect the best interests of the entire community.”

Neighbors say kayaks and the racks have existed at the park in some form or another for 20 years and they object to limited park hours for those who like to watch night rocket launches from the dock, stargaze or just seek a few moments of solitude.

“The park has always been for the use and enjoyment of the neighbors and, to my understanding, has been collaboratively shared without incident,” said Hannah Miller, who also lives in the neighborhood. “What’s changed now has been this attempt to assert power and control over the park.”

Some in the community have taken exception to changes Albertson has made to the park, too, saying he trimmed park trees to enhance the lake view from his backyard. In a court filing last year, Guss wrote that Albertson told a meeting of about 30 neighbors in 2023 that the trimming was done to improve his view of Rollins College.

“We have spent significant money de-mossing and pruning trees on our property and the oak tree in the park,” Albertson said in an email, adding that the work was needed after hurricane damage and done with city approval. “At no time did we trim any trees or branches to improve our view.”

This isn’t the first time the park has been the subject of a legal debate.

A 1971 court judgement ordered the former owners of the properties now occupied by Holm and Albertson to take down wire fencing and landscaping they put in the park after they were challenged by Virginia Heights residents.

The judgement said that the property owners who abut the park are not allowed to build, plant or place anything on the park land.

Holm said he believes that rule extends to all Virginia Heights homeowners.

“While the judgment does reference the previous owners of the two properties adjacent to the park — now owned by myself and the Albertsons — it clearly states that no structures or improvements of any kind may be erected in the park,” he told the Voice. “We believe the intent of the court was to protect the integrity of the entire green space for the benefit of all 220 homeowners in Virginia Heights, not to single out just two properties.”

But other homeowners in Virginia Heights read the order as a protection from the adjacent property owners taking over the park. They said the ruling doesn’t prevent the neighborhood from collectively beautifying the area such as new bald cypress trees planted at the shore line at the recent ice cream party, where neighbors also took turns making video recordings of their memories of the park.

“These unfortunate circumstances have forged a stronger and more vibrant community in Virginia Heights and, for that, I am thankful,” Guss said.

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