By Catharin Shepard • Editor • Documents sent to The News-Journal last week in response to a public records request appeared to confirm some of what was said during a recorded phone conversation between Hoke County Manager Letitia Edens and Interim Planner Jackie Lowery.
In the recording, Lowery told the county manager that a Hoke County commissioner allegedly told her to remove a special use permit from the board’s meeting agenda and approve the permit, without the board ever voting on it. Commission Vice Chairman Harry Southerland denied having done so, when The News-Journal asked him about the situation.
The permit documents provided to The News-Journal in response to a public records request included a note that said “Paid to go before planning board and BOC application was pulled 5/27/2026 per Mr. Southerland.” The permit is dated May 27, 2026, and under the payments section, it showed Lowery accepted a $100 cash payment for the permit fee that same day.
The special use permit in question was a request initially filed by Munawar Shahbain of J&K General Contractors for permission to put up a sign at a new gas station/convenience store at 9130 Fayetteville Road. According to discussion at the Hoke County Planning Board meeting May 14, 2026, the sign required a special use permit because it was larger than normally allowed under the county’s ordinance, but could be allowed with the permit.
In the recording, Lowery said she followed instructions to remove the matter from the county board’s meeting agenda and signed off on the permit May 27, 2026 – the week before the Hoke County Board of Commissioners gathered for the next scheduled meeting (Monday, June 1, 2026).
“You signed it on May 27 of 2026? For the sign?” Edens said on the recording.
“Yes, ma’am,” Lowery said.
“And you signed that because they told you to sign it?” Edens asked.
“Hold on one second, Ms. Tish, let me make sure that this – paid, to go before the planning board, case was pulled, 5/27, permits, Southerland. That’s the notes that I put on my paperwork which would have been May 27, 2026, when I was – May 27 to pull the paperwork,” Lowery said.
“So, you just did it because he told you to do it?” Edens asked.
“He told me, he asked me to take it off the agenda, and he said that the commissioners had met during that day, earlier. Now, I’m talking about Mr. Southerland. And he said for me to take it off the agenda, and that they could go ahead and put the sign up,” Lowery said.
“So, he told you they met and approved that? That’s what he told you?” Edens asked.
“Yes, ma’am,” Lowery said.
The permit paperwork provided to The News-Journal appeared to confirm what Lowery told Edens on the recording.
The permit is number 3258, building type “other,” description 9130 Fayetteville Road, applicant name J&K General Contractors, permit type “zoning,” applicant address 1184 Fayetteville Road. The payment type listed on the permit document said “check,” but under the payments section, it said Murnow paid the $100 “zoning fee for development or verification” in cash.
The property in question, a Starz gas station, is located on land zoned as Highway Commercial.
Planning Board minutes
In the public records request, The News-Journal also asked for copies of “Any and all meeting minutes or other documentation or recordings showing this permit application/request was voted on and approved by either the Hoke County Board of Commissioners or the Hoke County Board of Adjustment before the permit was signed.”
The records provided in response to the request did not include meeting minutes or other documentation that would show the commissioners or Board of Adjustment voted on the special use permit request.
The records did include meeting minutes from the May 14, 2026 Hoke County Planning Board meeting, where the planning board members determined that the matter did not fall under their jurisdiction and voted to send it to the commissioners for a decision.
The Planning Board meeting minutes read as follows:
“Mr. Munawar Shahbain and Mr. J.R. were present regarding the request. Mr. J.R. stated that the proposed sign exceeded the permitted height by 8 inches and that a variance was therefore being requested. Jackie Lowery stated that she had informed Mr. Shahbain on several occasions that the sign would need to go before the Board of Adjustments for a variance. Mr. Shahbain stated that Bryan Marley had advised him to seek approval from the Hoke County Board of Commissioners. Jackie Lowery stated that she had spoken with Mr. Shahbain several times about the process of appearing before the Board of Adjustments; however, Mr. Shahbain insisted on presenting the matter to the Planning Board and preferred that the Board of Commissioners hear the case.”
“Mr. Harold Brock stated that he had no objection to forwarding the request to the Board of Commissioners, noting that the sign would serve a convenience store in a Highway Commercial zoning district.”
“Mr. Tommy Wright stated that he did not understand why the request was being heard by the Planning Board and recommended that it be forwarded to the Board of Commissioners for a final decision.”
“Mr. Tim Locklear agreed with Mr. Wright’s recommendation to forward the request to the Board of Commissioners.”
“Mr. Tim Locklear and Mr. Maurice Winston made a motion to forward the request to the Board of Commissioners.”
“Motion carried unanimously.”
The permit dated May 27, 2026, the week before the commission met; the recording of the phone conversation between Edens and Lowery; and the apparent lack of any meeting agenda or meeting minutes that could prove the commissioners voted on the matter, all seemed to point to the Planning Board’s decision not being followed.
The documents and the recording, which was given to The News-Journal, are available on the newspaper’s website, hokenews.com.
Listen to the recordings
Previous planning concern
If that was the case, it wasn’t the first time in recent months that the Planning Board members noted something unusual going on.
In the Planning Board meeting this past April, Planning Board Chair Harold Brock and board member Tommy Wright both pointed out that changes had been made to the county’s zoning ordinance, apparently without their knowledge or input.
The matter was brought up when a developer present at the April meeting said he had questions about water, sewer and similar current issues related to planning and zoning. During discussion between the developer and the planning board members, the board focused on what looked to be a section of the county ordinance that was missing information. The section in question concerns the building of minor subdivisions, which historically were defined in the ordinance as five or fewer houses. While the county last year put a pause on approving major subdivisions, that declaration did not include minor subdivisions.
When Wright went looking through the ordinance to answer a question, he wasn’t able to find anything.
“At the present time, I cannot find a stipulation for minor subdivisions,” he said.
“I have researched it back to 1997. There was another change in 1998 and in 2000 there was a change. Back then, if it was five acres, or less, you could subdivide it five times. Technically you’re supposed to wait three years by any adjoining property to do another one, and it would have to be a minimum of 300 feet from the subdivision you started from. But right now, I cannot find anything concerning it.”
While major subdivisions have to go before the commissioners for approval, planning staff can approve minor subdivisions, Wright said.
“I don’t understand why it’s not in here to tell you what you can do or you can’t do,” he said.
Jackie Lowery, present at the meeting, said that the wording was removed from the ordinance.
“The wording was taken out. It’s no longer minor. It’s just subdivisions,” Lowery said at the time.
Planning Board Chair Harold Brock stepped in to make a request to get to the bottom of what was going on with the ordinance. Addressing Lowery, he said, “I want to request that you come back with whoever the proper people are, that can come here to this meeting next month to address this board to explain to us who, when, and why things in the regulation are disappearing, nobody knows nothing about it, who is taking it out and who is authorized to do it. I would like them to appear in this room to tell us who they are, under what authority they have to do and who is giving it to them, and what is going on.”
It’s “causing a lot of confusion,” the board discussed.
“We had stuff in the ordinance to address that, and now all of a sudden, it’s only six, and I want to know is who took it out and why and where is it at and where are we at now,” Brock said.
“I’ve probably gotten five phone calls this week with that same question.”
However, the board did not hear from a county representative about the situation when they met again in May.
Read the first story here: https://www.hokenews.com/index.php/2026/06/10/recording-reveals-ordinance-violation-in-hoke-county-planning-office/