HOLLY TWP, MI -- A Holly Township family just wants a years-long headache to be behind them.

But it isn't over yet. The family has battled injury, gone through foreclosure and lost half its land, moved into a trailer and fought to keep the lights on. And now the family has until Dec. 17 to clean its property or get hit with a whole new set of fines they say they cannot afford.



Timm Smith believes Holly Township officials have been trying to boot his family from their property in order to claim the property and build a riverside park.



An Oakland County commissioner is backing their claims.



"I think from day one they had a plan to get that entire parcel," said Oakland County Commissioner Robert Hoffman, R-Highland Township.



Smith has sued the township to try to retain the rights to his property. His case was dismissed in Oakland Circuit Court recently and the family is now hoping for the Michigan Court of Appeals to hear their case.



Township Supervisor Dale Smith, who is not related to the family, denies the family's claims. He pointed out that the family has violated ordinances, declined buyout offers and had its case dismissed in court.



The family, which previously defaulted on a mortgage, has recently been cited for blight violations.



Smith, a former journeyman tradesmen and skilled carpenter, lived on 20 acres in north Oakland County with his wife and two daughters. After he broke his back on the job and later suffered a stroke, the family defaulted on a $138,000 loan and was evicted from their home and a 10-acre parcel of the property in 2009.



They then moved into the 10 acres of property they owned outright.



They since have been living in a camper that he has slowly added to and modified.



"It's been an amazing journey," Smith said. "I mean, five years. It's preoccupied our lives."



The mortgage company then gave the 10-acres they defaulted on to the township.



Hoffman said this alone is strange.



"Why would a bank that has more than $140,000 invested in a piece of property give it away?" Hoffman asked.



The township has said it wants to cut off the family's electricity, but the Smiths contend they have paid the electric bill.



In November, Oakland County commissioners unanimously approved a resolution -- introduced by Hoffman -- calling on township officials to keep the Smiths' power on.



"Commissioner Bob Hoffman has been steadfast in his support of the Smith Family and believes the action of township officials to be immoral and illegal," read a news release on the resolution.



Now, Timm Smith said he has until Dec. 17 to address the blight violations.



"They hit me with a whole list of ordinance violations and told me to get them cleaned up by Dec. 17," he said. "There's no way I can. I'm disabled."





Blake Thorne is a reporter for MLive-The Flint Journal. Contact him at bthorne1@mlive.com or 810-347-8194. Follow him on Twitter or Facebook.