MICHELLE WILLARD, Post Staff Writer
Posted: Thursday, November 13, 2008 10:10 pm

After a two hours discussion with county attorneys, Rutherford County voted to appeal the recent decision in the Bible Park zoning case.

The Rutherford County Commission voted 17 to 4 in favor of appealing Chancellor Robert Corlew’s decision in Shelton v. Rutherford County, which challenged the denial of a zoning change that would have allowed the development of Bible Park USA in the Blackman Community.

Commissioners Ron Williams, Rick Hall, Jeff Phillips and Jim Daniel voted against the motion brought by Trey Gooch.

County Mayor Ernest Burgess said the county has many objections to the decision. He wouldn’t go into specifics saying he can’t comment on pending litigation.

Burgess did agree the county feels the amount Corlew ordered for legal fees was excessive.

Last week, the county was ordered to pay $3,189.21 for depositions and more than $95,000 in attorney’s fees.

In the order, attorneys representing the Sheltons and Rutherford County agreed the Sheltons should be reimbursed the cost for the depositions. The county also agreed to pay the bill for Shelton attorney Taylor Harris but feels it shouldn’t have to pay the fees for a North Carolina law firm.

In the lawsuit, the Sheltons claimed petitions filed in opposition to the park by surrounding landowners was invalid and that County Attorney Jim Cope overstepped the bounds of his job by ruling the petitions valid.

Chancellor Robert Corlew agreed and sent the decision back to the Rutherford County commission to decide whether a supermajority vote was required.

County commissioners met with Cope in executive session Thursday during their monthly meeting to discuss Corlew’s decision. During an executive session, the commission is closed to the public because of attorney-client privilege.

Michelle Willard can be contacted at 615-869-0816 or mwillard@murfreesboropost.com.