On March 12, 2024, 45 homeowners filed a complaint in New Hanover County Superior Court against Copper Builders, challenging the company’s plan to cut two access roads through their properties for the Hilton Bluffs 1,800‑home development.
Copper Builders initially proposed a network of roads that would intersect private land. After the lawsuit, the developer removed the disputed links and filed a revised plan that would use only a single entrance on Sledge Road. County officials rejected the plan on technical grounds, citing the North Carolina Fire Code that requires at least two working access roads for a subdivision of more than 30 homes.
During the New Hanover County Technical Review Committee meeting, the fire marshal warned that a single‑entrance layout could bottleneck emergency vehicles during a storm. The county planning officer said the traffic projections for an 1,800‑home community would overwhelm a single road.
On the same day the appeal hearing was scheduled for November 4, 2024, the Board of Adjustment heard arguments from both sides. Copper Builders’ attorney Sam Franck argued that the March approval was still binding, while attorney Jason Keelin for the Southern Environmental Law Center and local residents rejected that claim.
Board member Michael Sanclimenti urged parties to bring strong evidence to the November hearing, saying the decision would determine whether the project could proceed. Meanwhile, a resident of the Sledge Forest neighborhood told reporters that the new roads would change the area’s quiet character.