‘Would you like a sketchy land-grab to go along with your sleazy casino shenanigans?’
The Raleigh bully boys are in rare form. The amazing thing? We keep taking their crap and reelecting them. (Looking at YOU, Cleveland, Lincoln AND Rockingham counties.)
The state Senate voted Wednesday to remove nearly a thousand acres from the Guilford County town of Summerfield.
The deannexation bill was requested by developer David Couch, who wants to build apartments and other housing on the property despite objections from the suburban town’s leaders.
Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, represents the area. He’s pushing the legislation sought by Couch after he said the two sides couldn’t compromise over the development.
“I feel like we gave the property owner and the town of Summerfield an adequate amount of time to try to work something out,” Berger said. “They were unable to do so.”
Summerfield is blocking affordable housing and needs to develop a water and sewer system for fire protection and environmental issues, he added. The town is known for requiring large lots for new homes, creating an unusually low density community in a region outside Greensboro that’s seeing major population growth.
“Summerfield the largest municipality in the state of North Carolina that is exclusively on wells and septic tanks,” Berger said. “As far as fire protection, you’re dealing with fairly significant property improvements, where the fire department in many respects is dependent on ponds for the water necessary to fight fires. And I believe that the council in Summerfield has failed to take reasonable steps to address some of those issues.”
Berger noted that Guilford County leaders will be responsible for land use and zoning decisions after the bill becomes law.
The town’s mayor said this week’s Senate action came as a surprise, and he wants to continue negotiations with the developer.
“I’m working to secure a direct meeting with Sen. Berger to correct any misunderstandings about the town’s persistent and clear efforts to affect a better outcome for all parties,” Mayor Tim Sessoms said in a statement posted to the town’s Facebook page. “Our council takes public safety, land use and property rights seriously and these are at the core of trying to solve this critical development issue.”
The controversial development is located about 10 miles from the site of a proposed casino in nearby Rockingham County. Supporters of that project, including Berger, have argued it will bring growth and economic development to the area, but Summerfield is one of the neighboring municipalities that have passed resolutions opposing the casino.
Several of the lobbyists representing the Baltimore-based casino developer, The Cordish Companies, are also representing Couch’s development company at the legislature.[…]
*Oh, I’m sure that’s juuuuuuuuust a coincidence.*. (*Right? Um, RIGHT?*)
It’s good to know that, if your pockets are deep enough, you can simply take your plans to Raleigh and completely RUN OVER local planning and zoning authorities.
Time to primary Phil “Boss Hogg” Berger. Let’s flip the Berger!
This is a battle raging in other parts of NC as well. There’s a particularly interesting fight playing out in Granville County. Two separate groups of people in the county’s most GOP-heavy southern and western regions have formed alliances to fight these developers and their allies, the local commissioners and the state legislators. The battle plan they’ve developed is particularly interesting with several aspects….one of those aspects is that in the next two election cycles, they’re planning to replace current county commissioners with people from their alliances, who will not only be hostile to further development, but more tactically, will go out of their way to make life difficult for the legislators with whom the current establishment commissioners are working hand-in-hand. Something similar is starting to gear up next door in neighboring Franklin county as well.
Bottom of pg 4, top of pg 5.
Summerfield.
https://webservices.ncleg.gov/ViewBillDocument/2023/7201/0/H5-PCCS30404-TEXR-1