Objection to Councilmember Adam Marshall’s Participation in Items H.6 and H.7
Amanda Hodierne Is a TREBIC Leader
Items H.6 (2025-930) and H.7 (2025-931) concern the annexation and original zoning of approximately 9.34 acres at 4212 S. Elm-Eugene Street and a portion of Ritters Lake Road, with the applications advanced by Amanda Hodierne and others, on behalf of South Elm Baptist Church Inc. and the City of Greensboro.
Tuesday, December 16, 2025 @ 5:30 PM; Katie Dorsett Council Chamber
https://www.greensboro-nc.gov/government/city-council/council-meetings
Councilmember Adam Marshall should not participate in or vote on either item due to clear ethical concerns arising from close professional and associational relationships compromising, or appear to compromise his independence.
1. Amanda Hodierne Is a Leader in the Triad Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition (TREBIC)
From TREBIC’s 2023 990 tax return;
Amanda Hodierne is a partner at TREBIC member Isaacson Sheridan and now serves as TREBIC’s Past-Chair;
https://trebic.org/our-members/
TREBIC Officers & Board Members Who Contributed to Adam Marshall’s Greensboro City Council Campaign;
Adam Carroll (Timmons Group); TREBIC Chairman
Richard Vanore (Koury Corporation); TREBIC Secretary
Will Yearns (Granville Homes); TREBIC Treasurer and Vice Chairman
Scott Wallace (Keystone Group); TREBIC Board of Directors
TREBIC Member Companies Whose Principals Are Contributors; (Partial List)
Signature Property Group Inc. (Governor Level)
Samet Corporation (Governor Level)
BSC Holdings (Senator Level)
Collins and Galyon (Senator Level)
Fourth Elm Construction (Mayor Level)
TREBIC is a powerful development and real-estate advocacy organization that actively engages on land-use policy, annexations, zoning and redevelopment issues before the City of Greensboro;
TREBIC is not a casual networking group; it is an active political and lobbying organization whose mission is to advance development interests before local boards, including Greensboro’s City Council.
Amanda at a TREBIC outing with former TREBIC CEO Marlene Sanford, who helped gut a successful active rental inspection program in Greensboro, RUCO, at the state level;
From: Turner, Denise
To: Young, Rashad; Scott, Andrew
Subject: Fwd: Sb 683
Date: Thursday, May 19, 2011 7:22:07 AMRashad/Andy, I know the below referenced bill would have a negative impact on our RUCO policy if not make it obsolete altogether.
I believe TREBIC is very much in support of this change.
7 16 13 on RUCO, Rental Inspections, TREBIC and Regulatory Capture;
Councilmember Marshall is himself a TREBIC member through his law firm, Law Firm Carolinas. Fellow Law Firm Carolinas attorneys contributed to Adam’s campaign;
2/4/2025 Jonathan Raymer, Lawyer, Law Firm Carolinas
1/22/2025 James H. Slaughter, Attorney, Law Firm Carolinas
5/8/2025 Steve Black, Attorney, Law Firm Carolinas
10/8/2025 Thomas Keith Black, Attorney, Law Firm Carolinas
3/18/2025 Carole Albright, Attorney, Law Firm Carolinas
3/23/2025 Joe Thompson, Attorney, Law Firm Carolinas
Amanda Hodierne’s partners at Isaacson Sheridan also contributed to Marshall;
2/2/2025 Marc Isaacson, Attorney, Isaacson Sheridan
2/25/2025 Desmond Sheridan, Attorney, Isaacson Sheridan
6/26/2025 Marc Isaacson, Attorney, Isaacson Sheridan
These contributions do not suggest illegality, but underscore the tight professional, organizational and financial ecosystem connecting Councilmember Marshall, TREBIC leadership, and the attorneys advancing annexation and zoning requests before the Council. Under Greensboro’s ethics standards, this level of interconnectedness heightens the appearance of improper influence and strengthens the case for recusal.
This places Marshall and Hodierne within the same professional and advocacy organization; one that exists specifically to influence the very type of land-use decisions presented in Items H.6 and H.7.
2. Item H.7 Triggers Heightened Conflict Concerns Under Zoning Ethics Standards
Under N.C.G.S. § 160D-109, the law is clear; “A governing board member shall not vote on any zoning map or text amendment if the landowner of the property subject to a rezoning petition or the applicant for a text amendment is a person with whom the member has a close familial, business, or other associational relationship.” The annexation and zoning request is immediately connected to a rezoning represented by Amanda Hodierne, a fellow TREBIC member and close professional associate of Councilmember Adam Marshall through Law Firm Carolinas’ extensive shared engagement with TREBIC. The action is procedurally linked by the applicant’s attorney, triggering the same ethical concerns that §160D-109 was intended to prevent.
Adam Marshall with Crystal Black at a TREBIC function;
While G.S. 160D-109 imposes an automatic voting prohibition, it reflects a broader and well-established principle; officials should not vote on zoning matters when they have close business or associational relationships with the applicant or applicant’s representative.
Voting on a zoning ordinance advanced by a TREBIC past-chair while being a TREBIC member oneself, creates exactly the appearance of improper influence that zoning ethics rules are intended to prevent.
3. Greensboro’s Ethics Code Goes Further Than State Law
Adopted under G.S. 160A-86, Greensboro’s Code of Ethics, Gift Policy and Disclosure Requirements for the Mayor and City Council requires council members to;
“act with integrity and independence from improper influence,”
“avoid impropriety in the exercise of their official duties,” and
ensure their actions are “above reproach.”
These standards are broader than the statutory minimums. They do not require proof of a financial interest or a formal business relationship. The appearance of influence is enough.
If Adam Marshall votes against TREBIC’s interests, it could result in;
loss of goodwill within the organization
reputational strain among peers
reduced professional referrals and income
diminished standing in industry networks
withdrawal of political support
reduced campaign contributions
organized opposition in future elections
A reasonable member of the public could conclude that a TREBIC member voting on land-use items advanced by a TREBIC leadership executive is not acting independently of improper influence.
In April 2012, the News & Record reported on a conflict involving then TREBIC member Mayor Rob Perkins, concerning a vote to approve a $218,700 incentive payment for TREBIC member Roy Carroll. Then Interim City Attorney Jamiah Waterman concluded a conflict could reasonably be argued as Perkins faced a potential financial detriment, including the risk of losing his real-estate listings with the developer, establishing a clear precedent that the appearance of professional pressure or potential loss is sufficient to require recusal.
Ethics rules are not about accusing people of bad faith. They are about preventing situations where public trust is put at risk no matter how someone votes, and this is one of them.
Hodierne with Mayor Abuzuaiter, former City Attorney Chuck Watts and City Manager Trey Davis at a TREBIC event;
4. Annexation and Zoning Are Distinct, But the Ethical Concern Is the Same
While Item H.6 (annexation) and Item H.7 (original zoning) are legally distinct actions, they are functionally linked steps in a single land-use process that determines whether and how property may be developed.
Participation in either vote by a council member with close professional ties to the applicant’s representative undermines public confidence in the integrity of the process as a whole.
5. Recusal Is Necessary to Protect Public Trust
This objection is not personal, nor does it allege wrongdoing. It is structural. It arises from;
shared membership in TREBIC,
the applicant’s representative serving as a TREBIC officer,
the council member’s professional focus on land use and real estate, and
the city’s own heightened ethics standards.
To comply with Greensboro’s Code of Ethics and to preserve public confidence in the fairness of zoning and annexation decisions, Councilmember Adam Marshall should recuse himself from Items H.6 and H.7.
Thanks,
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