Commissioners waive sediment violation fines

By Lisa Majors-Duff

Betty Bradley of Dillsboro's Moonlight Drive appeared before the board to relay her story, one she told The Sylva Herald two weeks earlier, and to ask several questions of county leaders.

After her property and water source were damaged in March by runoff from an adjacent development owned in part by Jack Debnam, Bradley wanted to know why the county did not take legal action against Debnam and why he was allowed to continue to serve as chairman of the planning board.

"(Debnam) broke the rules, and yet he's on the planning board?" Bradley asked. "Isn't that like asking the wolf to watch the sheep?"

As was reported in The Sylva Herald Oct. 10, fines against Jackson Land and Timber Co., which is owned in part by Debnam, were recommended by the county's soil sediment control officer after some 1.5 acres of land were disturbed at a development site on Moonlight Drive, near the former Ward's Cabins. Violations included the absence of a sediment control plan for the development and the lack of sediment control measures, according to records in the county's building inspections department.

Though a $7,450 fine was recommended, county officials took no action against JLT Co. after they discovered a deficiency in their ordinance. A detailed penalty fee schedule was missing from the document, a fact that would have made any fine imposed by the county difficult to defend in court, officials said. That deficiency was rectified July 25 with the adoption of a fee schedule.

"What makes our community great is the people who have been here for years," said Rusty Rhymer, pointing to Bradley, his mother-in-law. "It's when new people come in that they want to change everything.

"I think it's a conflict of interest to have (Debnam) on the planning board," Rhymer told commissioners.

Though scheduled to appear on another planning issue, Debnam was not in attendance at last Thursday's meeting.

In an attempt to assist Bradley seven months after the fact, commissioners made several suggestions, including asking her and Debnam to attend a mediation session prior to pursuing additional legal action. They also requested building inspections supervisor John Wittekind and sediment control officer Jeff McCall visit the JLT Co. site to make sure the plan the county approved would not cause further damage to neighboring property.

"We're sorry this happened, and I, for one, would like to see the situation resolved," Commissioner Conrad Burrell told Bradley and those with her last week.

After spending considerable time discussing the situation on Moonlight Drive, commissioners heard from two individuals who requested fines assessed against them for violations of the sediment control ordinance be waived.

Contractor Mike Cooper admitted to not filing a plan in a timely manner for his development on U.S. 441, for which a fee of $1,500 was assessed for the period May 9 through June 10.

Landowner Ken Solomon made a similar request of commissioners for a fine of $3,300 assessed for three separate violations between May 20 and June 10. "If we couldn't fine Mr. Debnam, we can't assess fines against you," said Vice Chairman Stacy Buchanan, who was conducting the meeting in the absence of Chairman Jay Denton. "Everything is grandfathered before July 25."

Buchanan went on to express his hope that Cooper, who offered several suggestions for ways to improve the sediment control ordinance, would attend a meeting of the planning board Tuesday, Oct. 29, during which a brainstorming session will be held with area grading contractors. The meeting was scheduled after opposing views were aired about who should be held responsible - the landowner or the contractor - when ordinance violations occur and damage is done.

Cooper, who indicated he'd spent $2,130 to have an engineer prepare his control plan, said most people clearing a site for a home cannot afford such an expense.

"You need a short form for people to fill out," said Cooper, who indicated he planned to attend the Oct. 29 meeting.

As was pointed out by county attorney Raymond Large, circumstances in Solomon's case differed from Cooper's. While fines assessed against him prior to July 25 were waived, Solomon remains out of step with the ordinance.

"It's my understanding that (Solomon) is still out of compliance," said Large, who indicated he had discussed the case with McCall earlier in the day. "What I understand the board is going to do is waive the fine up until July 25 but no more. This is a new day."

"(Solomon) was out of compliance July 26, and I was out there today (Oct. 17)," McCall told commissioners. "He's still out of compliance. We could start the fine from then."

In explaining his situation to the board, Solomon said he trusted an excavator who had financial difficulties and did not complete the job he was hired to do. Beyond that, Solomon said he was unaware that county regulations required him to file a plan.

"I don't know what compliance is," he said. "I've been doing the best I can do without an excavator."

Assistance from the district soil and water conservation office is available to property owners, said department representative Bentley Robinson.

"We have resource materials to help people figure out how to make a plan, which does not require (an engineer's) stamp," Robinson said. "If the content is there, it doesn't matter who prepared (the plan), we approve it."

Instead of assessing a new fine against Solomon, McCall said Monday the landowner had been given a 15-day reprieve, during which he and Robinson will work toward repairing the damage at the Cullowhee Mountain site.

Also on hand for last Thursday's discussion was Richard Phillips of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, who responded to a question from Commissioner Roberta Crawford.

"Have we messed up by adopting this ordinance?" she asked. "Wouldn't it help if the state did this?"

"The way you are doing it will work fine. You get faster service with local folks (administering the ordinance)," he said. "You need to get your paperwork in order and be able to fine people."

Phillips pointed out that if the state had taken action against the three violators discussed last week, any fees collected would have gone to the county school system as required by state statute.

"If we collect fees, they go to the general fund," Large said. "(The county) could set up a program (with the fees) to assist those who are injured."

As a final note, planning board member Bill Lyons directed board members' attention to a section in the ordinance that could be used to address the Bradley/Debnam case. Section 608 says the county may require anyone engaged in land-disturbing activities "... to restore the waters and land affected by the failure so as to minimize the detrimental effects of the resulting pollution by sedimentation. This includes damage to properties adjacent to, nearby or downstream of the permitted property that are not owned by the person engaging in the land-disturbing activity.

"This authority is in addition to any other civil or criminal penalty or injunctive relief authorized under this ordinance," the document says.

Further discussion on the ordinance would be held when the full board of commissioners is present, said Buchanan. In addition to Denton's absence, Commissioner Franz Whitmire was not in attendance.

Back to Archive: 10/24/02.