The view from a distance

Looking back over the events that started on October 19 and officially ended on December 5, I think there were three crucial elements that came together to produce the hoped-for result of the Henderson County commissioners opting out of the purchase and development of the Highland Lake Golf Club for a soccer complex:

• Organization/communication
• Legal counsel
• Alternate site: ArvinMeritor

Organization/communication

These aren’t the same thing but rather equally important parts without which nothing gets done.

In order to get a group of people with different schedules, different agendas, and different levels of interest united in opposition to the soccer complex, constant communication was essential—and this is why I love the Internet and email (and cell phones--sometimes).

Because time was such an issue here, the final organizational structure ended up being basically a two-tier coalition. First, there developed a small group of those most affected who had the authority and responsibility to hire an attorney, gather for him the needed information, and direct, with his advice, the legal approach. There just wasn’t enough time to have meeting after meeting of everyone who was concerned—not with the option agreement deadline out there.

Secondly, there was a much larger group of those opposed who through their letters to the Times-News, conversations with friends, phone calls to elected officials, donations to the legal defense fund, etc., kept the momentum going in the public arena and gave encouragement to the smaller group that they were not in it alone.

Bottom line: Organize small, communicate big.

Legal counsel

Whether or not you need a lawyer, of course, depends on the situation, and legal counsel isn’t always necessary or desired. In this case, though, there were land development ordinances, zoning rules, and government transparency issues that required legal expertise and aggressiveness.

After some initial set-backs, what I consider the crucial decision—the commitment to retain legal counsel—was made. Without the expertise of Robert Dungan and the aura of seriousness that hiring an attorney created for everyone (the HOAs, the village council, and the county commissioners), I don’t think we would have prevailed even though we were in the right. Knowing potential legal action was possible and/or probable made everyone step back, take a second look, and make sure all rules and regulations were being followed—and it was discovered that they weren’t.

Bottom line: Don’t listen to Shakespeare (The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers. Henry VI, Part II, Act IV, Scene 2). When you need legal advice/protection, be so very glad there are lawyers.

Alternate site: ArvinMeritor

This, of course, is very specific to this particular situation, but for PR purposes, this was a win/win. No, we're not against soccer, we just don't think Highland Lake Golf is a good location for it. And look over there, here’s a great location in Fletcher: safer, bigger, flatter, and more accessible.

The contrast of Highland Lake Golf (with its narrow, winding road, inaccessible entrance, and residential location) with the ArvinMeritor site was almost cruel, especially in photos. It also didn’t help the case for Highland Lake Golf or the county that the Henderson County Soccer Association already had an agreement with Fletcher that they seemed to be keeping under wraps from everyone, including Flat Rock.

Bottom line: Serendipity is such a happy coincidence.