Cumberland County Approves Economic Development Agreement with SkyREM, LLC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE from the Economic Development Corporation of Fayetteville & Cumberland County
May 18, 2021
Contact: Natalie LaVallee, Director of Marketing
Phone: 910-500-6464
Email: natalie@fayedc.com
Cumberland County Approves Economic Development Agreement with
SkyREM, LLC
Developer Will Purchase 515 Acres & Commits to Building Industrial Space
FAYETTEVILLE, NC – The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners has approved an
economic development agreement with SkyREM, LLC, allowing the company to purchase approximately 515 acres of County-owned industrial property for $6.55 million. As part of the agreement, SkyREM, a commercial developer, will construct new industrial buildings in the Cedar Creek Industrial Park and Cumberland Industrial Center.

Three parcels, totaling approximately 356 acres, are in the Cedar Creek Industrial Park adjoining Clark West Road. The remaining 159 acres front Sand Hills Road and Production Drive in the Cumberland Industrial Center.
“SkyREM is excited for the opportunity to potentially invest further in the Cumberland County market, and we are happy to be considered as the potential purchaser for the Cedar Creek and Sand Hill development sites. We currently own and manage over 1.1 million square feet in Fayetteville and look forward to rapidly developing multiple state-of-the-art, best-in-class manufacturing, distribution and logistics facilities. These sites will have direct access to the crucial I-95 east coast corridor that reaches 80% of the American population in one day or less,” said Alex Dembitzer, SkyREM founder. “We would like to thank the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners and the Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation for their consideration and look forward to working alongside the local government bringing new
businesses, and, more importantly, new jobs to the area.”

“When our County invested in these industrial parks, the goal was to attract private sector investment and create jobs for our citizens,” said County Commission Chairman Charles Evans.

“With this announcement, and the company’s aggressive construction timeline, our community is well positioned to compete for and to win transformative economic development projects.”

Once the sale is complete, SkyREM will have 36 months to construct the first building on each individual site or the County may repurchase the property. This is the company’s third significant investment in Cumberland County with the purchase of 107 Tom Starling Rd. (927,000 square feet) in 2018 and 880 Technology Drive (182,000 square feet) earlier this year.

ABOUT FCEDC: The Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation is a publicprivate partnership designed to enhance job growth and prosperity in the region by attracting new Press Release
www.fayedc.com
P: 910.500.6464 E: info@fayedc.com
industry and growing and retaining existing industry. FCEDC works daily to help strengthen our economy and diversify our community tax base. Learn more at www.fayedc.com.

ABOUT SkyREM: SkyREM, with offices in Philadelphia and in New York City, is a privately funded and managed real estate company which owns and operates a large, diversified portfolio of properties in the United States. As a principal for its own account, Sky is actively acquiring throughout the east coast. To learn more about SkyREM please contact Marc Civitillo or James Pancetti at 212-888-6920, or visit
www.skyrem.com.

Eviction Moratorium Ruled Unlawful!

Court says ban is beyond CDC authority View this email online
May 5, 2021
 
Court Strikes Down Eviction Ban
U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich of the District of Columbia struck down a nationwide eviction moratorium Wednesday, calling it unlawful. Friedrich’s ruling applies nationwide.
The eviction ban was put in place last year by the Trump administration using public health powers granted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during health emergencies.
The ban was most recently extended by President Biden through the end of June.
In her 20-page ruling, Friedrich said, “It is the role of the political branches, and not the courts, to assess the merits of policy measures designed to combat the spread of disease, even during a global pandemic. The question for the Court is a narrow one: Does the Public Health Service Act grant the CDC the legal authority to impose a nationwide eviction moratorium? It does not.”
The Georgia and Alabama Association of REALTORS®, two housing providers, and their property management companies, filed the suit in defense of mom-and-pop property owners around the country struggling to pay bills without rental income for more than a year.
NAR—which helped secure nearly $50 billion in rental assistance provided by Congress since December to help tenants pay their bills and provide relief to housing providers who have lost income—supported the lawsuit, saying the ban was no longer needed.
“NAR has always maintained that the best solution for all parties was rental assistance to cover the rent, taxes and utility bills for tenants struggling during the pandemic,” says NAR President Charlie Oppler. “This decision prevents two crises—one for tenants, and one for mom-and-pop housing providers who do not have a reprieve from their bills. With rental assistance secured, the economy growing, and unemployment rates falling, there is no need to continue a blanket, nationwide eviction ban. With this safety net firmly in place, the market needs a return to normalcy and stability.”
Oppler adds that “our attention now should turn to the swift and efficient implementation of rental assistance.”
Read the court opinion. 
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Longleaf Pine REALTORS® Legislative Day in Raleigh

Last week members of Longleaf visited the Cumberland County delegation in Raleigh. Great conversation regarding housing among other key legislative issues were discussed. Thank you Senators Ben Clark, Kirk deViere and House members John Szoka, Billy Richardson and Diane Wheatley for meeting with us in person.

A BIG thanks to the members for taking time out of their busy day to attend. Jimmy Townsend Legislative Committee, 2021 President David Sattelmeyer, 2022 President Elect Amanda Martin, Legislative Chair Mark Dow, CEO Zan Monroe and Angie Hedgepeth Government Affairs Director. Thank you to Pam Melton, NC REALTORS® for visiting with us as well.

REALTOR® Call For Action – Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act

   
REALTOR® Call For Action    
HB 367 the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (UPHPA) will be up for a floor vote in House the week of May 3. This is important legislation because it protects the property interests of family members who have inherited land as tenants-in-common.  It provides for fair treatment of all parties. It also prevents the forced sale of property at a price below fair market value. If a sale is ordered, the property would be sold on the open market.    Right now, any single heir or someone who bought an interest from an heir, can effectively force the heirs to sell the property through a partition sale “on the courthouse steps” (like a foreclosure). Other heirs who may be living on or caring for the property are forced to leave. Market value is rarely received for the property.    This is an issue primarily impacting middle to low-income families. There is documented history of severe land loss as a result of partition sales. These families often don’t have the resources to protect their interests in order to preserve family wealth.   
NC REALTORS® strongly supports this bill as a protection of private property rights and as an issue of fairness.   
Who opposes such a beneficial bill? The Clerks of Court, who would administer the new process, strongly opposed this legislation and prevented it from receiving a House vote on April 28.   

Why do they oppose this legislation? They listed numerous reasons, but the biggest opposition is centered around the belief it will require more work to manage. In fact, in states that have enacted this legislation, partition proceedings have gone down. Additionally, we should always strive to do the right thing by the citizens of NC instead of ignoring an issue because it could potentially take more time.  

Is North Carolina introducing groundbreaking legislation with this bill that no other states have enacted yet? No, many states, including most Southern States, have enacted this legislation. In fact, South Carolina passed this legislation in 2015. South Carolina is important because it was considered ground zero for having a history of forced sales and lost wealth as a result of partition actions. Please act now and contact your House member and ask for support of HB 367 – the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act. Help us protect NC families. North Carolina families deserve a fairer process for dealing with inherited property.  PS – If you have examples of partition sales that have created hardship, please contact Pam Melton. Click the link below to log in and send your message:

CLICK HERE CALL TO ACTION  
Connect with us Longleaf Pine REALTORS® | 2412 Raeford Rd | 910-323-1421 ‌ ‌ ‌

Sanford – City Council to Vote to rezone 419 Acres for New Development

Public hearings for three new development projects are on the agenda for the city council’s Tuesday meeting.

Work on the Village of Cumnock neighborhood will continue as the city council considers a request to rezone 419 acres of land off N.C. 421. Earlier this month, the city council annexed 260 acres of land where N.C. 421 intersects Deep River, and south of Cotten Road, for the project.

On Tuesday, the city council will consider a plan for the neighborhood that breaks it into three sections: West, East 1, and East 2. If approved, the West section would allow for a mix of residential and non-residential development including townhomes, apartments, single-family homes, offices and institutions. Ten percent of the area would be reserved for R-10 homes and another 10% for R-12 homes.

The developer would have to submit a detailed site plan for approval by the city council and follow an array of other conditions including leaving a buffer zone around Deep River and the prohibition of landfills.

The East 1 section of the Village of Cumnock would contain single family homes with a minimum lot size of 6,000-square-feet. The lots would comply with R-6 zoning standards including 20-foot front and rear setbacks.

The East 2 section has identical zoning conditions, with the added provision that there will be a buffer around the flood zone next to Big Buffalo Creek and the developers will reserve space for a future, 40-foot greenway trail along the creek.

Also Tuesday, the city council will consider an application by Audentes Therapeutics to rezone its site in Central Carolina Enterprise Park to install a 184-square-foot sign off Colon Road, as opposed to the 80-square-foot sign currently allowed.

Finally, there is an application by Lee County to rezone 1 acre of land on Douglas Drive to allow for the construction of a new parking lot for the County of Lee Transit System, or COLTS.

Virtual Meeting on Contaminants in Cape Fear River Basin & NC Water Supply

PFAS Testing Network Virtual Forum

March 25, 2021

North Carolina PFAS Testing Network

The NC Policy Collaboratory and the NC PFAS Testing Network will host a virtual forum Tuesday, May 4, to discuss the Collaboratory’s and Network’s research on PFAS and GenX. Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) is a family of emerging contaminants that includes the compound GenX which has affected the Cape Fear River Basin.What PFAS Testing Network Community Forum

When 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 4

Featured research will include:

  • data on PFAS in public water supplies in North Carolina
  • potential health effects of PFAS
  • new research projects on PFAS in soil and animals
  • methods of removing PFAS from water also will be presented

There will be time for public questions and answers. The event is free but attendees must register in advance of the webinar. Register Online

TimeTopic
6:00-6:10 p.m.Welcome
Representative John Szoka, NC House District 45
Senator Kirk deViere, NC Senate District 19
6:10-6:20 p.m.PFAS in North Carolina
Detlef Knappe, S. James Ellen Distinguished Professor, Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, NC State University
6:20-6:30 p.m.Overview of NC PFAS Testing Network
Wanda Bodnar, Assistant Professor, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, UNC-Chapel Hill
6:30-6:40 p.m.PFAS Monitoring in Untreated Public Drinking Water
Lee Ferguson, Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Duke University
6:40-6:50 p.m.PFAS Toxicology
Jamie Dewitt, Associate Professor, Pharmacology and Toxicology, East Carolina University
6:50-7:00 p.m.First Question and Answer Session
7:00-7:05 p.m.Break
7:05-7:25 p.m.Other Potential PFAS Exposure Pathways
Soil uptake (crops/vegetables): Owen Duckworth, Professor, Soil and Environmental Biogeochemistry, NC State University
Animals: Scott Belcher, Research Professor, Toxicology, NC State University
7:25-7:35 p.m.Development of Novel Water Filtration Media to Mitigate PFAS Exposure
Frank Leibfarth, Assistant Professor, Chemistry, UNC-Chapel Hill
7:35-7:55 p.m.Second Question and Answer Session
7:55-8:00 p.m.Closing Remarks
Jeff Warren, Executive Director, NC Policy Collaboratory