Fed up Beaufort developer seeks $120 million from critics for ‘malicious campaign’
Prominent Beaufort developer Dick Stewart has filed a lawsuit aimed at recouping $120 million in losses he says his businesses have suffered as a result of what he describes as a conspiracy of misinformation about his parking garage, hotel and apartment projects in downtown Beaufort.
The lawsuit, filed Monday, also aims to end a “malicious cycle of obstruction that we’ve endured for years,” Stewart said.
Graham Trask and his father, George G. Trask, the most vocal critics of Stewart’s projects, were named as defendants by Beaufort Inn, LLC and 303 Associates, LLC, which brought the lawsuit in the Beaufort County Court of Common Pleas. Stewart, who is retired, is the owner of those two limited liability companies.
The lawsuit seeks $120 in damages — $40 million in actual damages from lost income, inflation-related increases in material labor and financing costs due to construction delays.
The rest is punitive damages including damage to reputation, personnel time and legal costs.
The legal salvo is the latest in a long-running war between 303 Associates and the Beaufort Inn and critics that centers on new development proposed within the city’s renowned historic district.
Graham Trask said Wednesday he was not aware of the lawsuit, calling it “an interesting approach.”
“They certainly have opened a big can of worms for themselves,” Trask said. “We will proceed once we know more about it. I haven’t been served.”
Stewart’s hotel and parking garage projects have been approved by the city but delayed by court appeals brought by Graham Trask and the Historic Beaufort Foundation (HBF).
The lawsuit alleges the Trask and his father have used disinformation, threats of litigation and intimidation tactics to halt the downtown projects. The grounds for the lawsuit, says Stewart, are abuse of process, civil conspiracy and intentional interference with prospective contractual relations.
“303 (one of Stewart’s LLC’s), fed up with the illegal conduct of these conspirators, and financially and reputationally damaged by the improper interference to their developments, have filed this lawsuit in response,” the lawsuit reads.
The Trasks have worked in cahoots with HBF, the lawsuit says, but the group isn’t named as a defendant. HBF is the city’s leading historic preservation group.
The Trasks, who are father and son, are prominent property owners in the city, too. They’ve led the opposition against Stewart’s projects that includes lawsuits against him and the city for approving them. They’ve also written about them extensively for the Beaufort Tribune, an online news site, and also distributed stories via email from their group called Beautiful Beaufort Alliance.
The projects, they argue, are too tall and massive and for the city’s historic district and the city illegally approved them. But in two instances, a judge sided with the city and 303 Associates and upheld project approvals. Appeals and additional litigation are still pending.
The lawsuit says the The Beaufort Tribune, which is operated by George Trask, has been used to spread disinformation about 303 Associates and its development projects, particularly its description of the mass and scale of the projects.
One example of the disinformation campaign cited in the lawsuit are renderings of the hotel, which were dubbed “The Red Menace.” First distributed in March 2021, the rendering depicts a large red building towering over a building with the words, “Marriott Hotel” written in black.
“The renderings are the equivalent of lies, as they are intentionally deceptive and falsely depict the mass, scale and height of the Hotel Project in an obvious attempt to inflame the viewer,” the lawsuit says.
Stewart notes the city studied the size of the buildings and concluded they would not overwhelm the surrounding neighborhood as claimed.
Stewart says the 70-room hotel project is an expansion of the nearby Beaufort Inn. While a Marriott operations system will handle reservations and other operations the hotel will remain part of the Beaufort Inn brand.
The parking structure will replace a parking lot currently used by the Beaufort Inn. It will be accessible for public parking as well.
“Our hope is that this lawsuit will end the malicious cycle of obstruction that we’ve endured for years,” Stewart said in a statement. “The goal is not just to recover the costs associated with these unjustified delays, but also allow for needed projects to take place in our town without threats or intimidation from those who are opposed for their own self-interests.”
The lawsuit also says the Trasks and HBF have participated “in a conspiracy and scheme to derail and stop the approved development projects.”
Cynthia Jenkins, the Historic Beaufort Foundation executive director, said Wednesday she was not aware of the legal action.
HBF, she said, has appealed the city Historic District Review Board decision OKing the parking garage hotel and a Zoning Board of Appeals decision on the apartments.
The projects, Jenkins maintains, are too big and don’t meet the city’s zoning rules or historic preservation guidelines. “It’s not just the size,” Jenkins says.
