Burke County affirms vacate order for Marshallese New Beginnings but gives 30 days to produce financing and contractor plans

The Burke County Board of Commissioners on April 10 affirmed a building‑inspection order to vacate residential occupancy at 8123 George Hildebrand School Road — the site used by Marshallese New Beginnings Church — but modified the order to grant the church 30 days to submit written contractor estimates, proof of financing or a line of credit, or documentation of grant applications for repairs.

The board’s action came after a quasi‑judicial evidentiary hearing during which county staff testified the property contains multiple life‑safety and sanitation hazards. County attorneys and inspectors urged the commissioners to uphold the order after hearing testimony they said showed “exposed live wiring and overloaded electrical system[s],” sewage leaks and structural deterioration.

County attorney Dylan Laws, representing professional staff, told the panel: “This is a quasi judicial evidentiary hearing. … Your discretion is limited. Your decision can rest only upon the competent, relevant, and substantial evidence that is entered into the record today.” Laws argued the church had not met the burden of proof to show the prior order was incorrect.

Building inspector (identified in the record as) Holden described repeated inspections beginning in September 2022, a November 2022 order giving the owner 60 days to remedy unsafe conditions, a permit issued in December 2022 that expired a year later without inspections, and a room‑by‑room inspection in January 2024. Holden testified to multiple electrical violations, including uncovered panels and exposed Romex wiring, and said of an open panel: “All your bus bars and electrical is open to for anyone subject to just walk up to it and touch it and be…