Last Updated on November 30, 2019 9:48 am
Superior Court Judge Susan E. Bray signed an order Nov. 14 completely
dismissing the lawsuit filed by Deschamps Holdings, LLC and others
against the Watauga County Board of Education that sought to prevent the
school board from purchasing the Hodges Property in Valle Crucis for
the construction of a new school.
In her order, the judge
rejected the plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary injunction to stop
the school board from completing its purchase of the property. Judge
Bray determined the plaintiffs could not demonstrate a likelihood of
success on the merits of their case if it went to trial. The Judge also
found that the plaintiffs could not show that the use of the Hodges
Property for a school would cause irreparable harm to the Mast Farm Inn
and could not show how the inn’s legal rights were in jeopardy.
In
addition, the judge found that the plaintiffs’ did not have legal
standing through any of their claims to permanently prevent the Watauga
County Board of Education from purchasing the Hodges Property. The
signing of the order follows an earlier hearing before Judge Bray on
Oct. 29 in Boone.
Ron Henries, Chairman of the Watauga County Board of Education, expressed his appreciation for the court’s ruling.
“I
am pleased at the Judge’s decision,” Henries said. “I want to commend
our attorney Chris Campbell for his diligence in defending us against
what we believe is a baseless lawsuit. I also want to commend
Superintendent Scott Elliott for his thoroughness and hard work that
proved beneficial in court.”
School Board Attorney Chris
Campbell stated, “We argued strenuously that the Plaintiffs had no legal
right to ask a court to prevent the school board from purchasing the
Hodges Property under the facts of the case and we’re pleased that the
judge agreed.”
Currently, the Board of Education is pursuing a
septic permit for the Hodges Property prior to closing on the contract
as part of its due diligence testing to ensure the site is appropriate
for the new school. The board voted unanimously at its November 7
meeting to extend its contract for the purchase of the Hodges property
in order to provide the time needed to conduct the permit level soil
test.
Henries added that the board of education remains focused on buying property and moving forward with plans for a new school.
“We look forward to continuing the process of building a new school for the students of Valle Crucis,” Henries said.
