The plaintiffs in a lawsuit over the 2010 rezoning for 751 South have withdrawn their case, by an agreement signed Wednesday with Southern Durham Development.
Two property owners near the proposed subdivision, and the Chancellor's Ridge Homeowners Association, had appealed their suit's dismissal by Superior Court Judge Henry Hight in January.
"They agreed to walk if we agreed not to pursue sanctions for a frivolous lawsuit," Southern Durham President Alex Mitchell said.
Hight dismissed the suit "with prejudice." The plantiffs had sued Durham County, contending that their protest petition against a rezoning vital to the project was improperly ruled invalid. Southern Durham Development subsequently joined the suit on the county's side.
Withdrawing the lawsuit means the Durham County commissioners' approval for the rezoning remains in effect. However, in December Southern Durham filed a request to re-rezone its 167-acre site in southwest Durham County. The new rezoning would remove some restrictions included in the original.
Terms of the settlement agreement bar the defendants and plaintiffs from further action in the matter, but the terms expressly state that the plaintiffs are free to express their opinions of the plaintiffs publicly.
