***UPDATE***
I wanted to share an update on the Stern Stormwater Variance.
I’m incredibly relieved to share we got great news from our initial consultation with Appalachian Landslide Consultants. I provided them with several maps of the area and the plans for the variance showing where it would be. After reviewing them they did not see any major red flags indicating that a creek disturbance in that area could cause a land failure like what we saw in Craigtown, ie the size of slide we feared could threaten the dam.
Biggest positives-
Land shape: The concave slope of the land where the variance is located is less likely to fail than if it were on a convex slope. If it were to fail the concave shape wouldn’t create as fast of a moving debris flow like what we’d see from a convex slope.
Path of water: The body of water being disturbed isn’t in an area where multiple channels intersect. One singular water pathway means the area is more stable and able to withstand higher flow events better than areas where multiple pathways come together. Slopes with intersecting waterways were the kinds of slopes that led to the Craigtown slides.
Their advice to us at this point was to allow the variance to stand because having the variance on the books makes Al Stern have more agencies monitoring his work than if he didn’t have it. It also places higher fines and a more immediate timeline on fixing his current erosion control violations. Thanks to the efforts of Echo Lake and Dove’s Landing HOA’s to fight the variance during the hearings, he’s been held to a much higher standard of safety and erosion prevention than most variance applicants typically would be.
In other words he’s got a heck of a lot of work ahead of him if he wants to do this according to the requirements that have been laid out for him. On top of that if he has anymore grading or erosion violations going forward he will be in much more trouble than he would be without the variance. Because of that we have multiple agencies we can contact if anything goes wrong. I have a list of phone numbers and emails for all these agencies. We will be keeping a close eye on the lot and any progress on work that is made. If we notice anything not being done to the highest standard of safety, we’ll light up those phone lines and emails like we light up our dam on the Fourth of July.
We are still going to have Appalachian Landslide Consultants come out and do a physical report of the landslide risk for the area that we can share with the public. This will reassure folks we’ve done all we can to understand the risks of any possible land failures that could be created by the Stern Stormwater variance. It will take several weeks to have done but I will share it as soon as it is available.
I also plan to pursue efforts to make improvements to the Buncombe County Landslide Ordinance to prevent our community from having to go through this cycle of fear and panic again. We got very lucky this time. If the variance had been on a higher steeper lot, we could be facing the kind of situation we’d initially feared. If anything this process has taught me our county’s laws are incredibly outdated with what we’ve learned from Helene and don’t properly protect residents from the life threatening landslides we now know are possible. Commissioner Jennifer Horton has been phenomenal in her efforts to help us in this process with the variance, and I look forward to working with her on exploring what improvements can be made to county ordinances to keep Buncombe County safer in the future.
Most importantly I want to thank everyone who donated to our crowdfunding campaign to raise legal fees in case we needed to fight the variance further. Not having to fight this in court really is the best case scenario. It means we can refocus on the much needed recovery efforts in our community, including the safety and repairs of Echo Lake and the dam. I’ll be taking down the go fund me today and returning all the funds collected. For anyone that mailed or dropped off money I’ll be sure to get that back to you in the coming weeks. This fight has been a lonely and scary one at times, and seeing the way our community came together to support us in this fight means more than I can put into words.
For those that are curious about what’s been happening at the Stern lot since the variance passed, no work has actually happened yet. With the state the area is in none will happen in the near future. Helene caused a lot of damage to the gravel road that accesses Dove’s Landing neighborhood where Al Stern’s lot is located. It is the only access that exists to those homesites. After Helene the roadway is only 8’ wide in some spots and the land isn’t stable enough for anything beyond residential traffic. All parties in the Doves Landing community have made efforts to pay their share to the HOA for repairs to the road, with the exception of Al Stern. He refuses to pay for repairs to any part of the road that isn’t on his property. So long as he refuses to pay his share, repairs can’t be made. As long as the road is in its current state (I.e. only open to small vehicles) he won’t be able to get the equipment needed to his site to fix his erosion control violations which are incurring fines and will continue to do so until they are fixed. He certainly won’t be able to get the bulldozers and concrete trucks needed to execute the complex plans for a driveway he presented during the variance hearings.
With all that in mind it’s hard to understand why he applied for the variance in the first place. Why spend thousands to apply for a special consideration if he doesn’t intend to contribute to the rebuilding of the community, especially considering that rebuilding is reaquired to fix and improve his own lot? Luckily for us we don’t have to understand his motives to keep an eye on what he is doing. Whether he leaves it in its current state of violation, or pays his share of the road and fixes the silt fences, or goes all out and builds the driveway of his dreams, we’ll be keeping an eye on the process every step of the way. We’re so thankful to have so much community support behind us as we do so. ❤️ #WNCStrong #FairviewStrong #Craigtownstrong
Origional Go Fund Me Bio:
We are ready to take on the Stern Stormwater variance in court, and we need your help.
Background:
-July 9, 2025 The Buncombe County Board of Adjustment granted out-of-state landowner Al Stern a dangerous Stormwater Variance above our home on Echo Lake in Fairview.
-Our area has a known history of landslides. During Helene, minor high elevation slope failures led to catastrophic landslides killing 13 of our neighbors. Though our valley accounts for less than 1% of Buncombe County’s population, we lost 15 neighbors total which accounted for 40% of Buncombe county’s Helene-related deaths.
-Al Stern’s Stormwater Variance allows him to cut into a creek on a steep slope above Echo Lake. This slope is marked as high risk on the North Carolina Geological Survey landslide hazard map. With the land already showing signs of instability, this could trigger a landslide into Echo Lake which holds 21 million gallons of water. Such a slide could breach the dam and endanger the 8,000+ residents downstream in Cane Creek Valley.
What happened at the hearing:
-Along with community members, we proved through evidence and witness testimony that Al Stern knowingly rejected a safer, documented access route in favor of cutting through sensitive terrain, and was issued multiple erosion control violations for illegal grading.
-The disturbance he caused put him at the limit for the amount of disturbed land allowed per zoning laws. This made the lot inaccessible through any other route, hence why he applied for the Variance.
-By definition this is a “Self Created Hardship”. Variance law is clear- a variance cannot be granted for self created hardships. The Buncombe County Board of Adjustment gave Al Stern the variance anyway.
We have sought legal advice on overturning this variance which puts our lives and thousands of others in danger. We have been told there’s 21 days left to appeal the decision to the Superior Court. This will bring the case up for judicial review, which is our only recourse for it to be overturned.
Significant legal fees come with this.
We need to raise $45k in 21 days to proceed with our appeal.
With the incredible community support we’ve already received, we believe we can make this happen.
Please give whatever you can. Share far and wide. Give Buncombe County residents a WIN against dangerous development. Overturning this decision would set a precedent for others. It will make developers think twice before putting profit over the lives of Buncombe County's citizens.
If we aren’t able to reach our goal before the deadline, ALL donations will be refunded to their donors.
Thank you for standing with us and our community in this fight.
-Echo Lake Community
Background on our Community:
Echo Lake is a small community of home owners who maintain the lake. When Helene hit it dumped over three feet of rain on our valley, all of which drains to the lake. This caused significant damage, dumping tens of thousands of cubic yards of silt and debris in the lake as well as damaging the dam's spillway. We have already had engineers certify the dam is safe in its current state. However spillway repairs must happen for it to remain sound. Spillway repairs will cost over a hundred thousand dollars. Once spillway repairs are complete we will face the removal of the silt debris, which will cost minimum three hundred thousand possibly much more. These repairs are already placing a difficult financial burden on us as homeowners, making it impossible to fight this Variance in court on our own. We need the broader community's help to fight the variance in order to protect ourselves and the thousands of neighbors we have that live downstream.
About the Organizer:
My name is Gina Miceli and I've lived in the area most of my life. My husband Tom and I both grew up in the area. We live in a home on the lake built by Tom's grandparents. We are proud of the deep roots we have in Fairview and are grateful to be raising the next generation of our family here. Together we own Whistle Hop Brewery, a small community focused business that has been heavily impacted by the toll Helene has had on our local economy. We've poured everything into keeping our business afloat this past year, while doing all we could to help our community recover.
Al Stern's property is on a cliff directly above our home. The creek he wants to cut into flows onto our property. This normally small creek turned into a 50 foot wide raging river during Helene which totally reshaped our yard. It also has an unstable mountainside above it that has had landslides in the past as well as smaller failures during Helene. If anything happens our family will be the first harms way.
We did everything within our power to fight this variance before the Board of Adjustment. We attended four hearings, two of which were over four hours each. We did countless hours of research and organizing our community against it. We brought witnesses and presented evidence showing Al Stern's repeated violations and demonstrating the reasons not to pass this variance. From the beginning we raised our concerns over the very real threat of landslides to our area. Instead of being listened to as the engaged community members we are, the Board of Adjustment passed the variance. Our only recourse at this point is to file an appeal as explained above. We need the community's support to do this. Thank you for standing with us in this.
-Gina Miceli
Organizer
