OFFICIAL STATEMENT REGARDING SANFORD DAM SPOIL AREA
Dated: January 19, 2024
During the past week there has been considerable commentary on social media concerning the “spoil area” for which the City of Boiling Spring Lakes has contracted as part of the Sanford Dam restoration project. There have been suggestions that there is something improper about the agreement the City reached with the property owners, one of whom happens to be a City employee. Some may disagree with the decision, as is their right. But, to be clear, the agreement we reached with the property owner and the process the Board of Commissioners followed when negotiating and entering into the agreement were thoroughly reviewed and vetted by the City Attorney, and the Board’s decision to enter into the Agreement was made in public at a regular meeting of the Board held on May 10th, 2023. Simply stated, the City needed a place to deposit “spoil” material excavated from the project site and after considering several locations it was determined that the most cost-effective, suitable site was the one now being used (and criticized by some). No Boiling Spring Lakes elected official has profited in any way from the decision to use the site. The property owner, who played no role in the Board’s decision-making process, receives no monetary compensation for the use of the site. In the end, the site is a suitable site and using it has saved the City hundreds of thousands of dollars in the dam restoration project. In conclusion, the Board of Commissioners made what it believes to be the right decision to move forward with the site after considering all the circumstances, and the advice of counsel regarding the legality of the decision.