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Neither Skip Dixon nor Senator Hoyle expected to be greeted with opposition in the community. Dixon was already selling lots on a development called Hatteras Harbor, in the town, complete with a planting of non-native palm trees that raised the hackles on some residents. Ricki Shepherd and others jokingly call the development "The Lonesome Palms," but no one from the Civic Association voiced opposition to it.
But when the Civic Association realized that the Slash property had been sold to developers, says Shepherd, they were very worried. In March of 2002, Shepherd called Sen. Hoyle at his office in Raleigh to discuss the possibility that the Hatteras Civic Association could purchase the property from him and Skip Dixon.
"At first, Sen. Hoyle was very polite. He said that he owned a house down here, and wanted to do what was best for the community. We agreed to talk again in 10 days."
When Shepherd called him back 10 days later, she got a very different reception. "Hoyle just said, "We're going through with the development. We'll do whatever we have to do to make it happen.' I was taken aback by the change in his voice, but I just said, "We'll do what we have to do, too,' and hung up, trying to figure out what went wrong."
What went wrong, according to Senator Hoyle, is that letters from some Hatteras residents had been sent to state permitting agencies, voicing opposition to the development. Hoyle also says letters were sent to the Charlotte Observer, Gaston Gazette and other newspapers, alleging that he was using, or would use, his influence as a six-term North Carolina Senator, to expedite the permitting process for the project. Hoyle was, and remains, outraged at the allegations that he would abuse his position as a legislator, and says the attitude of the residents changed his mind completely about how the project would be conducted.
"It's a matter of principle now," he said. "I've developed properties in Texas, in Atlantic Beach, NC, all over. I've done this for 30 years and I've never had anything like this happen. And the funny thing is, we could have helped the Hatteras Civic Association. When we were building in Atlantic Beach, the town needed a fire truck, so we bought them one. We bought the fieldhouse for a high school in Myrtle Beach. But that's not going to happen here. The money that could have done something like that is going straight to our lawyers."
Inquiries about the letters to the Gaston Gazette and other newspapers found no evidence that they were received there, or if they were, reporters didn't follow up on the allegations.
Ted Sampson at the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management, the agency that issues the primary CAMA permit for coastal developments, said he had indeed received "an outpouring" of letters and phone calls from the public concerning the environmental impacts of the proposed marina at the Slash development, "but we did not get anything in writing that would question Senator Hoyle's involvement in the permitting process." Sampson adds, "This is the most citizen response I guess I've ever seen, but as I understand it, the Slash is a sensitive, valuable estuary, located right beside an ecologically important inlet, so the public involvement is welcome."
A Flood of Concerns
Hoyle says that he and his partner will comply with all environmental regulations, but that it bothers him that environmental considerations are being used as a blockade simply because some residents don't want the project to go through, and they have no other way to say so.
"Now they're using the environment as the issue to try and stop us, but everybody knows exactly what the issue really is. Ten years ago these same people said "hell no" to zoning. They didn't want anybody telling them what to do with their property. They want to blame me for raping the place, for doing something bad, when the whole blame rests with them. I'm a private citizen, trying to make living. I didn't take a vow of poverty when I signed on at the legislature. I put my occupation right down there. I'm proud of what I do."
The people who are opposing his project are actually very lucky that he and Dixon bought the property, Hoyle says. "You could put anything on that place. I could build myself a nice putt-putt golf course in there if I wanted to. Have a big orange tiger's ass revolving around for people to hit balls into. Or some go-carts, how about that? Run 'em at one in the morning. But I'm not doing any of those things. I've got to build something nice so we can sell it and make some money. Those people are saying they're drawing the line in the sand, I say fine, just draw it on the other side of me."
