The watchdog group I'd joined was an irritant to both the developers and the county. The developers were being challenged and the county was being monitored to make sure building codes and zoning laws were adhered to. Life on the island was approaching a never ending battle of wits: developers vs. watchdogs, with one developer in particular as the chief focus.
It won't come as a surprise to some that there are people who emotionally bulldoze their way through life on the assumption they're "entitled". They're entitled to do what they want, and if they screw others or objections are raised there must be something wrong with the other guys or their thinking. Because these people are going to get their way or else! This one was alleged to have built a shoddy housing development elsewhere on the island and now he was moving on to shopping centers, raising all kinds of red flags as he worked through the permit process.
First there was a piece of property he optioned and presented plans to build a motel, gas station, fast food restaurant and what he called a "fine dining" restaurant. The problem was, nobody wanted such things on the island. We were appalled! Please, not in our back yard! There were a few B&Bs but there was nothing in the zoning code that permitted motels so it was puzzling he'd even presented plans for it. He certainly hadn't expected 150 or so people to show up to object when he appeared before the planning board, but like so many others of his ilk he was both clueless and insensitive to what lay ahead and didn't expect what he got.
When that plan failed he bought acreage further up the road to build an even bigger shopping center, and this time, instead of a "motel" he was calling it "short term rental units", imagining, I guess, that he was pulling the wool over everyone's eyes! Each time he presented his plans to the county there was an appeal by the watchdogs, on legitimate grounds, followed by a hearing at which he was challenged. The watchdogs always came out in force, organized via emails and phone trees. A legal fund was established and every time an attorney was required expenses were minimized by recruiting members as researchers. It was a real grassroots movement.
Hearing after hearing took place as various aspects of the plan were challenged. Besides the short term housing the watchdogs objected to the huge septic system which pumped effluent to a site up a hill several miles distant because the building site itself was not large enough to accommodate a drain field. The pipe carrying it would necessarily be laid on county property, which would make the county liable if the line was damaged in any way, but the hearing examiner granted the permit for it anyway.
Then the density of the project was challenged and it was becoming clear to the county commissioners that there needed to be some clarification and agreement reached as to exactly what would be allowed on the rest of the land bordering this road, some of it designated as Rural Areas of Intensive Development. What exactly would be allowed. They decided to slap a 6 month moratorium on all development in the corridor, but before they they could do it they had to have a public hearing and let the public speak. And man, that's when the ---- hit the fan!
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