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“It’s more like eight, but go on.”
“There are people—good people—who would like to make the Carolina Banks their permanent home, but seasonal work does not allow them to provide for their families all year.”
“CBX has always been seasonal. That’s just the way it is.” Her dismissive tone shocked me, making me question if my approach was all wrong.
It was too late to shift course. A knot grew in the pit of my stomach. If I failed on my first day, I would drown myself in a vat of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. But I hadn’t failed yet, and I refused to give up so easily, no matter how sweet the call of Chubby Hubby was.
“But it doesn’t have to be. This is one of the most beautiful and history-rich areas on the East Coast, and it is within driving distance for many people. Some would like to take winter vacations that don’t involve snow.”
“They can go to Disney World.”
This was not going well. I felt my badassery slipping from my grasp. Had the months of watchingReal Housewivesand gorging on Ben & Jerry’s made me lose my touch?
Refusing to believe it, I pressed on. “With all due respect, the Mouse is not for everyone.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” she muttered. “I took my grandchildren there last year. You wouldn’t believe the cost of—anyhoo, you didn’t come here to hear an old lady moan about missing the days of hamburgers costing a nickel.”
I chuckled. “I’m a little rusty on my economics, but I’m pretty sure those days were long past by the time you were born.”
Laughing, she shook her finger at me. “I knew I liked you.”
I let out a sigh of relief, hoping it wasn’t obvious. “Thank you.”
“Please forgive me for being a hard-ass earlier, but that’s what you’ll be up against. I wanted to see how you’d do.”
My brow furrowed. “Excuse me?”
Eleanor settled back in her chair. “I’ll let you in on a little secret. Or maybe it’s not such a secret—I don’t know. I’ve always been one to speak my mind, which I suppose is how I ended up behind this desk.”
“Okay,” I said slowly, not entirely sure where this was going. This was the most unconventional meeting I’d ever been in, reminding me I was a long way from New York City boardrooms and power lunches.
“I want this resort. An indoor water park? Massages for the moms? A casino for the dads? Count me in. The infrastructure is already in place to handle tourists in CBX—we have plenty of cafés, restaurants, and shops. What we don’t have is tourists when the temperature drops below sixty. Markham could change that for us.”
Exactly. If we’re on the same page, why is she putting me through this song and dance? “I’m glad to hear that.”
“But what I want doesn’t matter. The land you’ve acquired is not zoned for high-density tourism. Some of it is residential.”
I bent down to pull a file out of my bag. Eleanor stopped me before I could open it. “Don’t bother with that. I’m not the one you need to convince.”
“You’re not?” I wanted to scream in frustration.
“The local business commission has to approve the rezoning. Some businesses have been here for generations, passed down from parent to child. Our residents come first. They always have and always will. So it’s not me you need to convince. It’s them.”
I flipped open my notepad and scrawledlocal business commission, fuming inside that I’d been blindsided. I had stacks of research from Markham’s development division but not a single word about this, a vital piece of information for their on-site negotiator. Phil would not be happy when I informed him about this fresh development. Hopefully, no one would lose their job over it. Or perhaps they should. This was an unforgivable error for a multimillion-dollar project.
It’s fine. Everything is fine.This wasn’t a lost cause—I simply needed to change focus. “When is the next commission meeting scheduled? And how do I go about getting on the agenda?”
“Schedules and agendas.” Eleanor chuckled. “That’s a good one. Anything that needs a vote is formalized, but other than that, you’d be just as likely to find them discussing issues at Happy’s Pancake House or on Howie’s fishing boat. Rest assured, though—by the time anything is up for vote, it’s been thoroughly discussed.”
“Oh,” I said, deflated. How am I supposed to present the research to the committee if they don’t have meetings?
I tapped my pen on my chin as it dawned on me—I wasn’t. If the members of the commission were even a fraction like their mayor, a pie chart on a PowerPoint would not convince them. I was going to have to win this war guerrilla style. Something fluttered in my stomach, and I realized it was excitement. It had been a while since I’d had a professional challenge.
Game on.“Can I have the names of the commission members?”
“Everything is listed on our website.”
Except, apparently, the fact that the business commission held the power to decide the Markham resort’s fate. No matter. This would simply take longer than originally expected, but I was sure I could handle it.
