20071505 Ver 4_04132018_USACE ltr to owners_20180413

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WILMINGTON DISTRICT, CORPS OF ENGINEERS
151 PATTON AVENUE
ROOM 208
ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA 28801-5006
April 13, 2018
Regulatory Division
SEE DISTRIBUTION
Dear Seven Falls Property Owner,
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This letter serves as notification to property owners in the Seven Falls Bonded Phase of the
position and expectations of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) as it relates to the
unauthorized impacts to streams in the bonded phase area of the development. The Seven Falls
Bonded Phase is a 302 -acre area which was originally a part of the 1,400 -acre Seven Falls Golf
and River Club residential development in the Etowah community of Henderson County, North
Carolina. This area includes residential lots.platted and recorded with Henderson County
(County) which are located in the area of the development covered by a performance guarantee
agreement between the County and the subdivision's development company, Seven Falls LLC
(see attached Figure 1).
USACE issued a permit in August of 2008 to Mountain Development Company LLC (later
succeeded by Seven Falls LLC) authorizing impacts to jurisdictional waters of the U.S. (WoUS)
associated with the development of Seven Falls Golf and River Club. Compensatory mitigation
requirements associated with this authorization included:
• Payment to the North Carolina Ecosystem Enhancement Program (now North Carolina
Division of Mitigation Services) in the amount necessary to perform restoration to 1.48
acres of riparian hardwood wetlands and 1,884 linear feet of cool water stream.
• Off-site restorationlenhancement activities on approximately 4,708 linear feet of stream
channel at two locations.
• Preservation of approximately 81,743 linear feet of stream channel on the development's
property and associated undisturbed riparian buffers on each side of the stream channels.
.These areas were to be preserved through the implementation of a restrictive covenant
and recordation of the covenant with the Register of Deeds for Henderson County for the
purpose of maintaining the preservation areas in their natural state in perpetuity.
• Construction of 0.50 acres of littoral shelves around three ponds within the development.
In April 2010 the USACE determined that mitigation requirements for the issued permit had
not been met, in whole or in part. Therefore, USACE revoked the permit and ordered Seven Falls
LLC and Mr. Keith Vinson to remove and restore all impacts to wetlands and streams.
Restoration of the impacts was never accomplished.

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In June of 2010, the Co, eclared the Seven Falls Golf and River Club development in
default of the p�irfo}m nce guar tee. The County reached a settlement with Lexon Insurance
ompagy,in October OI regar ing the bond provided by Lexon for infrastructure
pprovements within. the 302-acr` bonded phase area.
USAA%ceived an application from the County in October 2015 seeking authorization for
sJeam and wetlands unpctasoiated with the completion of road infrastructure and
t,�2ahoatofi� ofxistmg unaulorized stream impacts in the bonded phase area of the
delgprzi'entri November 2016 USACE issued a permit to the County that stipulated
4... .
compensatory mitigation be provided to offset impacts to 1,782 linear feet of stream impacts via
the purchase of 3,584 stream credits from the North Carolina Division of Mitigation Services.
At that time, the cost for these credits totaled $1,401,344.00. The County notified USACE in
February 2017 that the North Carolina Court had removed the. County from responsibility of the
development's bond funds. As a result of this. decision, the County removed itself as the
applicant and withdrew the application.
Currently the 302 -acre bonded phase of the development includes 1,726 linear feet of
unauthorized impacts to jurisdictional WoUS (reference attached Figure 2). This activity,
undertaken in jurisdictional streams and WoUS without the approval of this office in the form of
a Department of the Army permit, constitutes a violation of Section 301 of the Clean Water Act
(33 USC 1311).
Impacts to, WoUS undertaken by Seven Falls LLC continue to be unauthorized and must be
either restored to pre -project conditions or authorized by a new Section 404 permit. Otherwise,
these unauthorized impacts remain a violation of Section 301 of the Clean Water Act (33 USC
1311).
It is important for the property owners to understand, as stated above, the impacts to WoUS
undertaken in the bonded phase area continue to be unauthorized and remain a violation of the
Clean Water Act. It is the intention of USACE to resolve these outstanding violations. Any use
of the unauthorized stream crossings within the bonded phase area or any future unauthorized
work in jurisdictional WoUS in the bond phase area will be considered a violation of federal law.
In order to bring this property into fall compliance with the requirements of Section 301 of
the Clean Water Act, all unauthorized discharges of fill material into WOUS must be removed,
or a Section 404 permit must be issued to authorize the fill and any compensatory mitigation
requirements fulfilled. While we are able to discuss generally what our requirements will be, we
will not be able to make final commitments, including the outcome of our permit review, until
we are able to review a written permit application or restoration plan from an entity with the
legal authority to accomplish the proposed work or restoration.
Should you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact me by phone at 828-
271-7980, ext. 4222, or email [e-mail] or David Brown at 828-271-7980, ext.
4232, or e-mail [e-mail].

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FOR THE COMMANDER
Sincerely,
Scott Jones, PWS
Chief, Asheville Regulatory Field Office
Encl
DISTRIBUTION:
Seven Falls Property Owners
cc:
Mr. Mark T. Calloway
United States Attorney
Western District of North. Carolina
Suite 1700, Carillon Building
227 West Trade Street
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202
Mr. Chris Parker
Wetlands and Regulatory Section
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center
61 Forsyth Street, SW
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960
Mr. Zan Price
North Carolina Division of Water Resources
NCDEQ— Asheville Regional Office
2090 U.S. Highway 70
Swannanoa, North Carolina 28778
Mr. Marcus Jones
Henderson County
1 Historic Courthouse Square, Suite 6
Hendersonville, North Carolina 28792
Mr. Gregory Johnson
Ferikes & Bleyant, PLLC
48 Patton Avenue, Suite 300
Asheville, North Carolina 28801

Ms. Kristen Rigsby Smith
The Van Winkle Law Firm
Post Office Box 7376
Asheville, North Carolina 28802-7376
Ms. Esther Manheimer
The Van Winkle Law Firm
Post Office Box 7376
Asheville, North Carolina 28802-7376
Ms. Sharon Alexander
2403 d Avenue West
Hendersonville, North Carolina 28739
Mr. James Lee
28 Schenck Parkway
Suite 200
Asheville, North Carolina 28803