Southern Durham Development sues county as Jordan Lake watershed war escalates - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):

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has filed a lawsuit against Durham Countt to force the county to recognizr watershed boundaries that were on count y maps between 2006and 2008. The which paid $18 million for the land, wante to develop the property locate westof N.C. 751, near where it intersects withFayettevills Road. In the suit filed Wednesday inDurham County, the companty asks a judge to declare the watershed boundaries approvefd in 2006 by former Durham City-County Planning Director Franj Duke to be valif and for the county to pay damages to Southerbn Durham Development in excess of $10,000.
According to the suit, the land’zs previous owner, (Nasdaq: CREE) founder Neal Hunter, paid for a survehy of the property that showed the propert y was outside the watershed boundaries to Jordan Asa result, Duke adjustex the county’s maps. Based on that determination, the lawsuift says, Southern Durham Development purchased the propertg with the intention ofspending $500 millionn to develop as many as 1,300 residentialp units, 600,000 square feet of retaip and office space, plus an elementary a middle school, a sheriff’s substatiob and a fire station.
But some city and count officials started questioning the validity of the surveyh and the watershedboundary lines, despite a reviewq of the boundaries by the Nortu Carolina Division of Water Qualityu that backed Duke’s decision. Earlier this year, the Durham Countyu Board of the Commissioners voted to invalidate the boundary changes approved in 2006 and to beginn a formalrezoning process. That according to the suit, has stalled development and cost thecompanu money. To download a PDF of the complaint, .