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Dispute stalls planned expansion of Cashiers library
By Lynn Hotaling
The good news about the planned expansion for the Cashiers library is that construction bids came in much lower than anticipated.
The bad news is that county commissioners could not award a contract because Jackson County does not yet own the land needed to build a 5,400-square-foot addition to the Albert Carlton/Cashiers Community Library.
Hunter Construction of Spruce Pine submitted a bid of $1,401,904, which county Manager Ken Westmoreland termed a "good bid."
Jackson County commissioners voted Nov. 18 to move forward with purchasing 3.5 acres from Jim Nichols for $1.5 million, with the understanding that the county would close on the property in January, Commissioners' Chairman Stacy Buchanan said Tuesday (March 23).
Commissioners received news of the bids on the library project during their March 16 meeting but declined to award a contract to Hunter because the property acquisition was not final.
Nichols has refused to move forward with the sale due to a dispute between him and his ex-wife based on terms written into their divorce agreement, Buchanan said.
Nichols and his ex-wife are awaiting a ruling on their dispute from Jackson County District Court Judge Steve Bryant.
In an effort to speed up the land transaction to allow the library project to proceed, Jackson County attorney Paul Holt contacted attorneys representing both Nichols and his former wife to ask if the property could be transferred to the county and the money placed in escrow until such time as Nichols and his ex-wife can settle their differences.
"Hopefully, you can reach an agreement that this closing will not be used by either party against the other and resolve the differences of the parties so that the good citizens of Cashiers, North Carolina, can look forward to the completion of the library expansion which they so desperately need," states Holt's letter to Asheville attorneys Stephen Barden and George Moore.
To date the county has not received a reply, Buchanan said.
If the matter is not resolved quickly, the county may take legal action to force Nichols to abide by the terms of the sales contract and sell the property, Buchanan said.
"We have a signed contract," Buchanan said.
Commissioners are expected to act on the matter during their April 13 meeting, Buchanan said.
When reached Tuesday, Nichols declined comment on the matter except to say he is "confident everything would work out."
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