20080880 Ver 1_Public Comments_20080730 (4)

LLT F
Alpine Mountain Homeowners Association, Inc.
P. O. Box 202
Black Mountain, NC 28711
July 26, 2008
Cyndi Karoly
NCDWQ
2321 Crabtree Blvd
Raleigh, NC 27604-2290
Re: Corps Action ID# 200701619
Dear Ms. Karoly:
C)8- 0880
PIE&EY..,
JUG, 2 0 2008
WATER QUALITY
WETWND STORMWATER BRANCH
On behalf of the Alpine Mountain Homeowners Association, Inc., this is a request to
extend the public comment period on the above referenced application by the Cliffs at
High Carolina to the Army Corps of Engineers for certification under Section 401 of the
Clean Water Act. Currently the deadline for public comment is August 1, 2008, and the
notice was issued by the Corps only a few weeks ago on July 3, 2008. The notice
provided information on the High Carolina impacts on streams and wetlands that is
confusing to laypeople; therefore, additional time is required for us to have truly
meaningful notice, as would be attained with further information provided by your office
and other experts on these matters. We trust that you share our goal to have informed
consent to the Cliffs' proposed environmental actions.
Alpine Mountain is situated adjacent to the Cliffs property on the Swannanoa side. This
development is inclusive of several streams, creeks and waterfalls, which we do not want
disturbed. In addition, all the Alpine Mountain residents depend on well-water since city-
water is not available. The proposed Cliffs development and golf course may adversely
impact the quality of water. Since the Cliffs began construction and subsequent site
blasting, several of the residents at Alpine Mountain have reported dry wells, minimal
water output and other well-related issues. There are several other concerns or questions
that have arisen among Alpine Mountain residents out of the public notice of the Cliffs'
proposed action, which we want an opportunity to explore and address before any action
begins.
Clearly property owners in Alpine Mountain have a compelling stake in the
environmental impacts of the Cliffs development and are entitled to have a meaningful
opportunity to become educated as to what those impacts really are and mean for our
development. We do not believe that the information in the public notice provides that
information in a meaningful way.

Cyndi Karoly, NCDWQ
July 26, 2008
Page 2
We request a 3 month extension of the public comment period, until November 1, 2008,
in order to achieve the above-stated goals. We submit that without said extension, we as
stakeholder citizens and owners of residential property adjacent to the Cliffs at High
Carolina are not being given the required opportunity to comment in a meaningful,
informed manner about a project that may or may not affect our waterways and wetlands
in a deleterious way. We also request information gathering meetings with you and any
other agencies involved as well as documents pertinent to this application so that we may
make informed comments about the proposed action.
This request was approved by action duly taken by the Alpine Mountain Homeowners
Association Board of Directors at a meeting on July 26, 2008. Please respond to Mr.
Allen Hope, a member of the Association's Board of Directors who has been designated
to report to the Board of Directors on this matter. We look forward to working with you
on this important matter.
Sincerely,
aWade, Jr.
President, Alpine Mountain Homeowners Association, Inc.
cc: Allen Hope
P. O. Box 181
Black Mountain, NC 28711
Swannanoa Pride Community Coalition