Scalpis file suit against town, contractor

The long running controversy between Williamston business owners Shane and Robin Scalpi and the town of Williamston may be coming to end soon.

The Scalpis have filed suit in Martin County Superior Court against the town of Williamston and demolition contractors, Jones and Smith, LLC.

Martin County Sheriff Tim Manning served the papers on Williamston Mayor Dean McCall on Monday, July 8. It couldn’t be confirmed if Jones and Smith had been served as of press time.

The suit centers around the demolition of the Tarheel Building previously located at 154 West Main St. in Williamston. The Scalpis’ business, SS Custom Cycle is located next door at 152 West Main St.

When the Scalpis purchased their building, the Tarheel property was in an extreme state of disrepair, according to town officials.

The Tarheel Building was a commercial building that stood roughly for 100 years. The first floor was a department store with apartments on the second and third floors.

By 2021 the building was in disrepair. The second floor had collapsed into the basement and eventually the roof collapsed as well.

Following the roof collapse, Martin County condemned the building and the Williamston Board of Commissioners proceeded to authorize the town to advertise for demolition proposals for the building.

According to the lawsuit, Commissioner Alton Moore questioned the ability of keeping the Scalpis’ shared wall intact during demolition.

At a special meeting of the Williamston Commissioners on August 9, 2021 bids were opened and discussed, however, according to the suit, two other bids were missed at the previous day’s meeting and were considered at an emergency session of the commission. Of those two bids, Jones and Smith Contractors had the lowest bid of $125,000 and were selected to demolish the 100-year-old condemned structure.

According to the suit, the town’s Request for Proposal (RFP) included instructions that the common wall of the neighboring structure remain intact and operational once demolition is complete and that the contractor shall take necessary precautions to protect neighboring structure and prevent unnecessary damage to the structure during the demolition process.

The Scalpis claim the contractor did not fulfill his obligation and excluded services from his bid that proved detrimental to their building and business. They also claim the company did not complete the job, causing continual water leaks since the wall was not properly protected or repaired once the demolition was completed.

“Consistently following the demolition, Plaintiffs had water coming into their shop every time it rained, interrupting SS Custom Cycle business operation,” according to the filing.

The Scalpis are claiming “Professional Negligence” against Jones and Smith, LLC and the town of Williamston. The suit also alleges the town of Williamston was negligent in its hiring of Jones and Smith LLC.

Since the case is pending, Williamston Town Administrator Eric Pearson and Mayor Dean McCall could not comment on the case. Jones and Smith LLC could not be reached for comment. Shane Scalpi did not return phone calls regarding the suit.

The Scalpis are seeking compensation in excess of $25,000 against Jones and Smith and the town of Williamston. The Plaintiffs are requesting a jury trial. A court date has not been set.

A Go Fund Me account, was started on June 5 under the headline, Support Martin County’s Fight for Justice, started by “Anonymous One” is attempting to raise “money for a brethren of Martin County who is fighting commissioners/non-profit organizations using taxpayer dollars under false pretense.”

Shane Scalpi’s picture headlines the page. To date the page has attracted four donations totaling $300.