New Updates in Graham Trask v. Dick Stewart  

Downtown Beaufort’s hotel and parking garage saga reached another chapter last week as the South Carolina Court of Appeals upheld the lower courts’ rulings in Historic Beaufort Foundation v. City of Beaufort, City of Beaufort District Review Board, and The Beaufort Inn, as well as West Street Farms, LLC and Mix Farms LLC v. City of Beaufort, City of Beaufort District Review Board, and The Beaufort Inn. 

These lawsuits, better known locally as the ‘Graham Trask v. Dick Stewart’ feud has been widely covered in Beaufort media, chronicling the ongoing disputes between the two prominent real estate moguls and the legal actions they have taken against each other.

Background

The Historic Beaufort Foundation (HBF), led by Cynthia Jenkins, along with West Street Farms (WSF) and Mix Farms, LLC (MFL), both owned by Graham Trask, filed appeals against the City of Beaufort and its Historic District Review Board’s June 9, 2021, approval of a 77-unit hotel and a 475-car parking garage. The hotel, slated for 812 Port Republic Street, and the garage, planned for 918 Craven Street, were both approved for applicant Beaufort Inn, LLC, a business owned by 303 Associates, LLC, with Dick Stewart as majority owner. These appeals were directed at both the City of Beaufort and Beaufort Inn, LLC.

Separately, several months before these appeals, WSF and MFL, as adjacent property owners, filed a declaratory judgment suit against the City of Beaufort and 303 Associates. This suit alleged that the city violated its own laws regarding the approval for the hotel and garage.

HBF, WSF, and MFL argue that these projects were inappropriately approved within the highly protected National Historic Landmark District. Their primary concern is that the scale of these developments will over-commercialize and harm Beaufort’s historic character, likening the potential impact to “another Mt. Pleasant or Charleston”.

The City’s approval of these projects also prompted the National Park Service to conduct a Condition and Integrity Study for the Beaufort National Historic Landmark District. The report concluded that the large-scale parking garage and hotel did not align with Beaufort’s historic building patterns and that the proposed buildings, with their size and mass, would impact the district’s design, ambiance, setting, and historic association.

Nevertheless, the city has granted Beaufort Inn, LLC all necessary approvals, including certificates of appropriateness and building permits. The Certificate of Appropriateness for both projects was issued in July 2021, with the building permits following in December 2022, allowing the projects to proceed.

However, progress on the parking garage and hotel projects has been minimal. The hotel site appears to be used for parking by Beaufort Inn and the City, while the site for the parking garage remains untouched since the December 2022 permit issuance. This lack of progress raises questions about whether the building permits may have expired, as city permits typically lapse after 12 months without visible advancement toward completion. FOIA requests have been submitted to the City to determine the status of these permits.

In response to the lawsuits, the City of Beaufort, along with Beaufort Inn and 303 Associates, maintains that all proper procedures were observed, including final approval by the Historic District Review Board (HDRB). Stewart has also defended the projects, arguing that they will boost Beaufort’s tourism economy and support downtown businesses by increasing visitor traffic and providing additional parking.

Throughout these proceedings, Graham Trask and Dick Stewart have publicly defended their positions, drawing widespread attention from the Beaufort community and sparking strong reactions on all sides.

In July 2023, Dick Stewart’s 303 Associates filed a $120 million lawsuit against Graham Trask, his father George Trask, and the Beautiful Beaufort Alliance, Inc. The suit alleges abuse of process, civil conspiracy, intentional interference with prospective contractual relations, unfair trade practices, and malicious prosecution. It claims that the Trasks delayed construction of the projects, despite Stewart possessing all necessary municipal permits, and seeks punitive damages for the alleged delays.

Legal experts have characterized this lawsuit as a potential Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP), a type of lawsuit intended to censor or intimidate critics by forcing them to bear costly legal defenses. SLAPP suits are often filed by powerful entities or individuals against opponents. While some states have anti-SLAPP laws to prevent these suits, South Carolina does not.

The discovery process continues in Stewart’s SLAPP suit against the Trasks.

New Developments in the Original Project Appeals and Declaratory Judgment Lawsuits

In January 2022, disgraced Judge Bentley Price ruled in favor of the City of Beaufort and the Beaufort Inn regarding the plaintiffs’ appeal of the project approvals. The plaintiffs appealed Price’s decision to the South Carolina Court of Appeals.

In June 2023, Judge Scott R. Sprouse ruled that WSF and MFL could not proceed with their declaratory judgment case until the initial appeals by HBF, WSF, and MFL were fully resolved. This decision was also appealed.

The SC Court of Appeals has since bundled these cases and issued a ruling on October 30, 2024, affirming the decisions by both Judge Price and Judge Sprouse.

The City of Beaufort released a media statement in response, with City Manager Scott Marshall, who has previously criticized Graham Trask, stating, “We are pleased with these decisions from the Court of Appeals, which is a three-judge panel. We would like to thank former City Attorney Bill Harvey and our current legal team at Pope Flynn, LLC, for their excellent representation.”

In a statement to Beaufort Insider, Graham Trask expressed disappointment in the SC Court of Appeals’ decision, describing it as a setback for Beaufort’s Historic Landmark District. He confirmed that he plans to request a reconsideration from the SC Appeals Court and may eventually appeal to the SC Supreme Court. “I am hopeful that at some point, the court will rule on the actual merits of these cases – to date, no court has done so, dismissing them instead on legal technicalities.”

Beaufort Insider reached out to Dick Stewart for comment but did not receive a reply. As for the future of the hotel and parking garage, Dick Stewart and 303 Associates will decide next steps.