A nearly decade‑long legal battle over whether Fayetteville taxpayers should repair private dams blown out by Hurricane Matthew abruptly ended Friday when a Superior Court judge dismissed the case moments before it was set to go to the jury.
The lawsuit centered on whether Fayetteville had effectively used the Homeowners Association’s lakes as part of the city’s stormwater system.
Residents from the four neighborhoods who lost their dams were left stunned, angry, and demanding answers.
The courtroom fell silent when the ruling came down, said Martin Young, a former president of the Arran Lake Homeowners Association.
“When the judge made a decision, everybody froze,” Young said. “It was just pure confusion, like, what the hell just happened? It seemed like they went through the motions to give a trial, but the trial was done before it ever started.”
In court filings this month, the plaintiffs argued that the City of Fayetteville bears responsibility for years of post‑Hurricane Matthew stormwater dumping onto their dry lakebeds—conduct they described as continuous, pollutant‑laden, and profoundly damaging. They argued the city’s ongoing stormwater discharge has transformed once‑functional lakes into wetlands choked with sediment, debris, and contaminants, rendering portions of their properties unusable and unsafe.
Because the harm is ongoing, they allege, North Carolina law entitles them to seek the costs of repair, replacement, and restoration—not merely the diminished market value of their land.
The city’s filings painted a starkly different picture. Fayetteville argued it never formally took responsibility for the lakes, never controlled the dams, and was not obligated to maintain private drainage systems. The city maintains that it has no legal duty to preserve or upgrade private dams, drainage systems, or natural waterways.
It insists the plaintiffs cannot prove that the city altered the flow of water—and that any alleged harm is tied to the plaintiffs’ own dam failures, not municipal conduct. The city also argued that the plaintiffs’ multimillion‑dollar repair estimates are legally irrelevant because damages must be limited to diminished market value, not rebuilding lakes the city never owned.
A Sudden End to a Long‑Running Fight
The week‑long trial began Monday, December 15, and appeared headed for jury deliberations when the city twice moved for a directed verdict—an argument that the plaintiffs had not presented enough evidence for the case to go to the jury at all.
Judge Stephen Stokes denied the city’s first attempt earlier in the week, but on Friday, December 19, just as jurors were preparing to deliberate, he granted the city’s renewed motion and ended the case from the bench.
According to plaintiffs’ attorney Woody Webb, Stokes offered no explanation for the abrupt reversal, leaving the homeowners without a jury verdict and without clarity on why their claims were dismissed at the final hour.
The judge is reviewing the final order to dismiss the lawsuit, which should be filed today or tomorrow, Webb said.
“We believe the judge ruled incorrectly,” Webb told CityView after the ruling.
Young was more blunt. “Fayetteville is probably the most corrupt city,” he said. “All of us were just in absolute shock and disbelief. I think the anger is even more than it ever was—an anger of realizing just how corrupt this city is.”
In a statement, City of Fayetteville spokesperson Loren Bymer said the lawsuit sought to make taxpayers pay for private dams on private property, arguing that the homeowners “failed to maintain” their own infrastructure and that “none of this was ever the responsibility of the city and its taxpayers.”
Bymer added the city was grateful the court “faithfully followed the law” in rejecting the claims, echoing earlier rulings in federal court.
How a Decade of Stormwater Disputes Led to Trial
The trial unfolded against the backdrop of a nearly decade‑long legal fight between the City of Fayetteville and four homeowners associations whose private dams failed in 2016 during Hurricane Matthew. When the storm tore through the region, it breached dams at Devonwood‑Loch Lomond, Arran Lake, Rayconda, and Strickland Bridge Road, draining the lakes and leaving behind sediment‑filled basins and stretches of dry land.
Two years later, the HOAs sued the city in federal court, arguing that Fayetteville had long relied on their lakes as part of its stormwater system and should therefore bear responsibility for repairing the damaged dams. The city has consistently denied that claim, insisting the dams were private infrastructure and that the cost and liability for maintaining them rest solely with the homeowners.
The case has bounced between federal, state, and local courts, intensifying after the N.C. Court of Appeals ruled in October 2024 that several of the HOAs’ claims could move forward. That decision revived the litigation and set the stage for renewed conflict.
In February 2025, the HOAs attempted to break the stalemate with a settlement proposal: the city would assume control of the lakes for stormwater and recreational use, and in return, it would restore the dams to their pre‑Matthew condition. City Attorney Lachelle Pulliam rejected the offer, citing legal limits on using public funds for private property, the inability to restore the lakes, and concerns about setting a precedent that could obligate the city to fix other private dams.
With settlement off the table and discovery underway, both sides entered the December trial with years of frustration, legal maneuvering, and unresolved questions about responsibility hanging over the case.
Young said the group is still reeling from the ruling and that the group needs time to process before deciding what comes next. “We’ve been fighting this now for 10 years,” he said. “We’ve had people living on the lake that have died not knowing if the lake would ever come back.”
Government reporter Rachel Heimann Mercader can be reached at rheimann@cityviewnc.com or 910-988-8045.
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