Lake Norman Real Estate

MacAulay residents vow fight to the finish - of clubhouse

By Brett Freeman
Top, the second floor of the Tudor style clubhouse at the McAulay neighborhood pool has been left unfinished. (below) McAulay residents at their Homeowners’ Association meeting last Thursday.

Residents of the MacAulay subdivision, already irate over the condition of roads in their neighborhood, now have a new reason to be angry at an old foe.

Fanning the flames of protest with neighborhood developer Rhein Interests this time is the recent discovery by many residents that the neighborhood’s clubhouse, construction of which they expected would at some point be completed by the developer, is complete, at least according to Rhein. “I think the issue is how you define completion,” says Glenna Musante, spokesperson for MacAulay Farms,LLC, the Rhein subsidiary which developed MacAulay. That piece of information is unlikely to sway residents who suspect that “complete” would mean that the entire interior of the clubhouse, and most notably the upstairs portion, was actually finished. But to Rhein, “complete” means that the company has already done what it said it would do, which is build the mock Tudor building and finish … most of the inside. “The developer never represented verbally or in writing to the builders or any homeowners that the second floor would be finished,” Musante says. “It was never intended to be finished. The reason it is two stories is for aesthetics. It was designed along the lines of a Scottish carriage house, which is a two-story building.” Bosh, say MacAulay’s residents. “I think it comes down to the definition of what a clubhouse is,” says John Sabbagh, who chaired the ad hoc committee formed to look into the clubhouse’s completion.“I think it comes down to what is the legal thing to do, and what is the right thing to do.” But according to Musante, Rhein has already done the right thing, generously giving the ad hoc committee a check for $30,000 to be put towards the completion of the clubhouse’s second floor. “The $30,000 was a gift,” she says. “An interest was expressed in finishing the second floor, and pretty much out of the goodness of their hearts, the developer gave $30,000 to the (ad hoc committee).The committee that was formed to look over this understood this, that’s why they accepted the check.” Sabbagh obviously remembers things differently, as he says the ad hoc committee will continue to try and pressure Rhein into completing the clubhouse. He bristles at Musante’s assertion that the upper floor was intended for storage, along the lines of an attic. “(The second floor) is not an attic,” he says. “It’s very obviously not an attic. It’s got what would be (if finished) an open meeting area; it’s got doors that go out to a balcony that overlooks the pool area. It’s not like we’re trying to put a clubhouse in an attic. It is a true, unfinished second floor.” Unfortunately for residents, that’s all it is likely to remain unless the neighborhood’s homeowners’ association, which was recently turned over to the residents, wants to contribute significantly. Despite a recently gathered petition with 130 signatures calling for Rhein and builders Shea Homes, D.R. Horton, Ryland and St. Lawrence Homes to complete the clubhouse, Musante says the developer has more than met its obligation. She adds that when the check for $30,000 was signed over to the ad hoc committee, it was with the condition that Rhein was off the hook with respect to any further work on the clubhouse. That kind of throws a kink into Musante’s goodness-of-the-developer’s- heart theory, but it does present a contractual/legal problem for the homeowners. “Unfortunately, I think that good-faith offer (of $30,000) was misunderstood,” she says. “I think what you’re seeing now is probably well-meaning people acting just on hearsay or misinformation. But because there were misunderstandings, and it became apparent that there were misunderstandings about why the developer was giving that money, it did have a clause that accepting this check would release the developer from future claims.There was never a legal basis for any claims, but they were just trying to put it to rest. It was just a very generous offer that’s apparently been misunderstood, and that’s a shame, but they do have that money now, and they can do anything they want with it.” Shabbagh says his committee has more meetings planned to work on getting the upper floor finished, and it is working with architects to get a more solid estimate of what it will cost to do so. “We’ve gotten a couple of estimates already,” he says. “It exceeds what Rhein has offered. Significantly. It will cost at least double, if not triple what they’ve offered.”

Familiar road?

If Rhein seems to be suffering from a credibility gap with MacAulay residents, it could be because the residents have found the developer to be somewhat unresponsive in dealing with their complaints over the condition of the roads in the neighborhood, many of which are heavily patched and unsightly.To be fair, Rhein has met its technical obligation, building up to the code under which the subdivision was approved, and making repairs where necessary. The Huntersville Town Board was, in fact, prepared to accept half a dozen roads in MacAulay for maintenance at its meeting Monday night, but opted to wait at the urging of Robert Labadorf, newly elected president of the new MacAulay HOA. “The moment you enter the subdivision, it’s nothing but patching,” Labadorf said.“We as homeowners don’t feel that the roads are up to the town’s standards. ... I’m asking for your help in making sure this developer takes care of business before leaving town.Well, we know he’s not leaving town. Labadorf’s last comment referred to a proposed mega-development by American Asset Corporation and Rhein/Medall Properties off of Old Statesville Road (Highway 115) across from North Mecklenburg High School and Alexander Middle School. Rhein/Medall has no direct affiliation with MacAulay, but both are owned, at least in part, by Robert C. Rhein Interests. The $600 million mixed-use development would include 1.2 million square feet of office space, 825,000 square feet of commercial space, 2,750 multi-family living units, and 250 single-family homes. The scale and nature of the project are such that significant participation on the town’s part is required to make a go of it, meaning the town could have some leverage in trying to get Rhein to leave less of a mess road-wise in McAulay. “I know they want to do some work in the town that is quite significant,” Mayor Kim Phillips said at the board meeting. “I think they need to hear these concerns. “Let’s schedule a meeting with them,”she suggested,“and see if they are willing to make some concessions.”