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Neighbors urge planning board to reopen review of Foxfire Mountain House special permit, citing traffic and missing documentation
Summary
A resident urged the planning board to reopen the special permit for Foxfire Mountain House, alleging repeated oversized events (she cited 140 attendees), increased weekend traffic and missing permit records; board members and staff said enforcement is limited to conditions explicitly written in a permit and discussed whether the town retains a formal record of the original approval.
A lengthy public comment period focused on traffic congestion, event size and permit enforcement at Foxfire Mountain House, a wedding and events venue on Angeline Road.
"They're now doing a 140 ahead weddings," said Molly, a nearby resident, reporting that the venue has hosted larger events and recent film shoots that have created heavy truck and car traffic on the narrow, 1.5‑lane dead‑end road. She described repeated weekend activity that she said damaged the roadway and increased flooding onto adjacent property, and she urged the board to reopen or otherwise review the special permit that allowed Foxfire's operation.
Molly and other residents said they could not find a written special permit or conditions in the town records; board staff confirmed minutes and video of the earlier proceedings exist but that written resolution language or a fact‑finding document may be missing or misfiled. Board counsel and staff explained the town's enforcement authority depends on the conditions actually written into a permit: "If the board had imposed conditions on the approval, ... that's absolutely enforceable," a board member said, but several members agreed there may be no enforceable written limit on event size because verbal assurances were not converted into permit conditions.
The board discussed possible paths: consulting the town attorney about whether the permit can be "reopened" or clarified, retrieving and scanning any upstairs files to verify what exists, and encouraging direct negotiation between neighbors and the venue. Several members noted legal limits on retroactive remedies and the practical difficulty of enforcement when documents cannot be located. One staff member suggested that if no permit document is found the burden of proof may fall to the town; residents were told they could pursue civil remedies if administrative options were limited.
Next steps: The board said staff would search for the permit file and scan materials; staff and counsel will consult on the legal practicality of reopening a 2015 permit or other enforcement options, and residents were encouraged to provide the board with any documentary evidence and the video excerpt they cited.
