By BROOKLYN BROWN BIGMEAT
One Feather Reporter
RALEIGH, N.C.—The One Feather sent a request for information from the North Carolina Department of Transportation regarding State Road (SR) 1355 Cooper’s Creek Road in Tsalsdoni (Bryson City).
Our inquiry relates to the One Feather article published July 20 titled, “Tribal member fights for access to possessory land.” We asked NCDOT to confirm whether or not SR 1355 was a public road that was 3.6 miles long.
The length of the road is an important detail, as explained in the July 20 article, because Cooper’s Creek Road leads to Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) member Scott Welch’s possessory land. A portion of the road, and consequently Welch’s property, is currently blocked by a gate owned by Cooper’s Creek Trout Farm owner Gerry Laschober. Laschober argues that the public road ends at his gate and becomes private. NCDOT maintains that the public 3.6 mile-long road extends past his gate to Welch’s property.
This was the response from District Engineer W. Cody Weddle, which confirms that their records indicate that the road is in fact public, and 3.6 miles long.
“Regarding this inquiry, the July 20 article references Department records that identify the official length of SR 1355 (Coopers Creek Road) as 3.60 miles from its intersection with US 19. NCDOT has no record of any modifications to the official road length for this public road.”
