Four Fayetteville homeowners associations are asking the North Carolina Court of Appeals to revive their lawsuit against the city, arguing that a judge improperly ended the case before jurors could decide it.
The appeal comes just weeks after Cumberland County Superior Court Judge Stephen Stokes granted a directed verdict in the city’s favor—a move the plaintiffs said short‑circuited nearly a decade of litigation over who should pay to repair dams destroyed by Hurricane Matthew.
The dispute centers on whether Fayetteville effectively used the lakes in the neighborhoods as part of its stormwater system, and whether that makes the city responsible for the roughly $10 million in repairs to the dams at Devonwood‑Loch Lomond, Arran Lake, Rayconda and Strickland Bridge Road
Attorney Woody Webb argued that the judge overstepped.
“The judge went above his authority by determining what the facts of the case were, and he can’t do that,” Webb said. He noted that Stokes did not provide any justification for granting the city’s motion for a directed verdict.
A notice of appeal has been filed, but the state appeals court has not yet set a briefing schedule. Webb said the judges may request oral arguments or could rule solely on the written filings.
How the trial ended
The trial, which began Dec. 15, was expected to go to the jury after a week of testimony. Instead, it ended abruptly on Dec. 19 when Stokes granted the city’s motion for a directed verdict—a legal mechanism that allows a judge to rule that the evidence is insufficient for a jury to decide.
For residents who have lived with dry lakebeds and damaged infrastructure since 2016, the abrupt ending felt like a blow.
“I don’t feel like we lost the case. I feel like we didn’t have an opportunity to win the case,” said Judith Lee, president of the Rayconda HOA. She called the hurricane‑damaged road in her neighborhood a safety hazard, adding that the city continues to “come up with one excuse after another.”
Martin Young, former Arran Lake HOA president, said the appeal is necessary, even if confidence in the process has waned. “I don’t have much faith in the legal system anymore, especially there, but I think it’s the right thing to do,” he said.
The HOAs argued that Fayetteville bears responsibility for years of stormwater runoff that poured onto their dry lakebeds after Hurricane Matthew. They described the runoff as continuous, pollutant‑laden and destructive. They said the city’s discharge transformed once‑functional lakes into wetlands clogged with sediment, debris and contaminants, leaving parts of their properties unusable and unsafe.
The city countered that it never assumed control of the lakes or dams and has no legal obligation to maintain private drainage systems or natural waterways. Fayetteville has consistently argued that the dams are private infrastructure and that taxpayers cannot be required to rebuild them.
Before the trial began, the HOAs attempted to settle. They offered to grant the city a conservation easement or trust that would allow Fayetteville to use the lakes as part of its stormwater system and open them for recreational use, including boating and fishing.
Webb said the city rejected the offer on Friday. CityView has reached out to the city for comment.
“I no longer expect Fayetteville to do the right thing,” Young said.
Government reporter Rachel Heimann Mercader can be reached at rheimann@cityviewnc.com or 910-988-8045.
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