A Harpers Ferry resident is suing state officials over a state law called the “Tourism Development Act” that opened the way for the long-discussed restoration of the Hill Top House hotel.
The lawsuit was filed last week in Kanawha Circuit Court, which is where lawsuits over state government are adjudicated. The plaintiffs attorney is Bob Bastress, who regularly represents clients who challenge the state over constitutional issues.
The lawsuit names state Commerce Secretary Ed Gaunch and Mike Graney, deputy director for Commerce, in their official capacities.
The suit challenges the Tourism Development Act, which passed in 2020, allowing the state to approve up to five tourism development districts for companies investing in projects in municipalities under 2,000 in population and with projected costs of more than $25 million.
The act exempts the projects from municipal authority and regulation.
The legislation came about after years of wrangling over a proposal by SWaN Investors to restore the Hill Top House hotel, which first opened in 1889, burned down twice and reopened twice and continued until 2007.
The developers secured participation in the Tourism Development Act program and, last fall, announced steps toward construction and redevelopment of the $150 million project. Demolition work began last week.
The new lawsuit contends the Tourism Development Act was drafted solely for the benefit of SWaN. “It is highly unlikely that any other project or entity can or will ever satisfy the criteria” of the bill “as an undertaking exceeding $25,000,000 in a town under 2,000 population,” the lawsuit contends.
The lawsuit maintains the policy “deprives plaintiff and other Harpers Ferry residents of their rights as citizens to regulate and control a significant and important portion of the territory within their municipality.”
The lawsuit also argues a constitutional point that by providing for 99 years of Tourism Development Districts, the law attempts to bind future legislatures financially.
A lawsuit filed in Jefferson County by Bastress over local authority issues was dismissed this month. That lawsuit dealt with whether Harpers Ferry could act under the state’s Municipal Home Rule program to sell undeveloped streets ar0und the hotel property to the developer.
Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, whose home is in nearby Charles Town, filed to intervene in that lawsuit and praised its dismissal.
“Cities and towns such as Harpers Ferry must have the flexibility to make the necessary moves to enable economic development within their borders,” Morrisey stated last week in response to the Jefferson County lawsuit’s dismissal.
“As I have stated before, this project has been delayed long enough by forces who are opposed to the state’s economic progress.”