URGENT: Developer Puts $1.5M on the Table 4 Days Before Monday's Vote — Email Commissioners Now!

Thank you to everyone who has signed this petition to protect our watersheds, roads, and planning standards from the 630-home Fearrington Preserve rezoning. Because of your voices, we won at the Planning Board (which voted 8–3 to recommend DENIAL) and County Planning Staff also recommended DENIAL.

Now, just 4 days before Monday night's final vote, the developer is trying an eleventh-hour "Pay-to-Play" maneuver.

Smart Chatham has learned that the developer (Fearrington Property Development, LLC) has quietly put $1.5 million on the table for the County as a proposed condition of approval ahead of Monday’s Board of Commissioners vote.

👉 TAKE ACTION IN 30 SECONDS: Email the Commissioners now at https://smartchatham.org/stop-the-deal

Here is why every petition signer needs to speak out before Monday night:

• Kept Out of Public View: As of today, no document describing this $1.5 million offer is posted in the County’s online file for the case—even though resident comments are posted within a day. Nobody has told the public what this money is for, or which Commissioners negotiated it.
• It Skipped Every Review: The Environmental Review Advisory Committee (ERAC), the Technical Review Committee (TRC), County Planning Staff, the Planning Board, and three public hearings all finished BEFORE this money appeared. Not a single review board has seen or evaluated it.
• Pennies on the Dollar (Covers Just 7 Months of Costs): Across up to 630 homes, $1.5 million is only ~$2,400 per home—less than a single year of property taxes on one of those homes. Worse yet, by the developer's own fiscal study, Fearrington Preserve will cost Chatham County $2.47 million EVERY SINGLE YEAR in services (including $1.67M/year for schools). A one-time check that covers seven months of costs for a project that burdens our community forever is a terrible deal for Chatham taxpayers.
• What the Law Says: Under North Carolina law (N.C.G.S. § 160D-703(b)), a zoning condition must address the project's specific impacts or conformance with County plans, and must be agreed to in writing.

Signing the petition was Step 1. Now, in the final 96 hours before Monday's vote, we need every single petition signer to flood the Commissioners' inboxes directly.

HOW YOU CAN STOP THIS BACKROOM DEAL TODAY:

1. Send a 1-Click Email to All 5 Commissioners (Takes 30 Seconds): Go to https://smartchatham.org/stop-the-deal to use our pre-written email tool and demand answers to 5 basic accountability questions before Monday's vote.

2. Show Up in Person This Monday Night: Pack the room so the Commissioners see our community watching!

• WHEN: Monday, November 16, 2026 at 6:00 PM
• WHERE: Chatham County Agriculture & Conference Center (1192 US-64 W Business, Pittsboro)

3. Share This Update: Forward https://smartchatham.org/stop-the-deal to 3 neighbors right now.

Residents spent 14 months playing by the rules, reading every filing, and showing up to every hearing. Don't let an unvetted, last-minute check overturn our County's planning rules behind closed doors!

— Smart Chatham Coalition https://smartchatham.org/stop-the-deal