Fast track

In "doing business" with the state during the administration of former Gov. Mike Easley, developers had a friend in a high place - the governor himself. The News & Observer's J. Andrew Curliss reported Sunday that a group of developers who also happened to be contributors to Easley's campaigns got the ball rolling on something called "express review." That process enabled those seeking the various environmental permits required for new developments to pay extra and have their permits handled more quickly than was customary.

This is, on its face, disturbing. It echoes the "pay to play" customs in state politics and government that have been tolerated for years but that appear to have flourished under the former governor. And coming as it did during a land rush on the coast, "express review" prompted overdevelopment, the ramifications of which are being felt during this economic downturn.

Yet another aspect of this maneuvering that raises questions is the fact that Easley bought a discounted lot in a development that had benefitted from getting into the Easley express lane.

Around the table

The group of developers met with Easley in 2002 in the offices of developer Nick Garrett, a friend of the former governor's who was also appointed to a couple of statewide boards by Easley. At the meeting were developers wearying of the conventional permit process, which can take some months, particularly in the case of large projects.

Garrett is proud of the expedited process. For developers, time is money. The quicker they can finish their projects, the quicker they can get their money back. For him, the process makes sense. But for environmentalists, the virtues are not embraced.

Frank Tursi, the Cape Lookout Coastkeeper, says, "Common sense tells you that what comes out is not likely to be as protective as if the regulators had more time to process the permits and do the analysis. It's never given us much comfort that you can analyze these very complicated development projects in a very truncated period of time just because someone is able to afford the fee." The extra fee for the express program is capped at $5,500 - not much if a developer is doing a multimillion-dollar project.

No-whining zone

Tursi makes a good point, but that view apparently didn't count for much. Bill Ross, who served under Easley as secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, at first didn't seem too keen about making things easier for developers. But Garrett told Curliss that after the governor had developers meet with Ross, the secretary was easier to work with. "Once he got pointed," Garrett said, "he made himself available."

And Dempsey Benton, who was the No. 2 person at DENR, wrote a memo to a division supervisor about a period in 2006: "This program is a top priority of Governor Easley, and thus it must be allowed to function even if in atypical administrative ways. The whining must stop!"

There probably wasn't much whining about the Cannonsgate development in Carteret County, which was financed by some Easley campaign money men, including Lanny Wilson of Wilmington and brothers Gary and Randy Allen, who had development companies in Charlotte. Cannonsgate received express review on many permits. And Easley's friend McQueen Campbell (he and Gary Allen were among those who testified at state Board of Elections hearings into Easley's campaign finances) boasted that he and Allen had gotten fast-track wastewater permits thanks to connections.

After the permits were issued for Cannonsgate, Easley bought a lot there at a huge discount. The former governor currently figures in federal and state investigations having to do with campaign money, free plane rides and other issues.

While it's fair for developers to seek discussion over the permitting process, which needs to be conducted efficiently, in this case there seems to have been a little "express review" in the course of creating express review itself. Whether Easley's actions resulted in good long-term public policy remains to be seen, but the way this expedited review option was put in place builds no confidence in it.

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