Mangum v. Raleigh Board of Adjustment, 312 N.C. 640, 669 S.E.2d 279 (2008)

The Raleigh board of adjustment issued a special use permit for an adult establishment (a “Gentlemen’s/Topless Adult Upscale Establishment”) near the Raleigh-Durham Airport. The plaintiff adjacent property owners filed for judicial review of the permit. Two of the three plaintiffs alleged that they were adjacent property owners and the third that she owned a nearby business that would be adversely affected. The trial court reversed the decision to grant the permit. The court of appeals, however, held the plaintiffs did not have standing for judicial review.

The court held that while an allegation of proximity is relevant, it alone is insufficient to confer standing. A credible allegation of special damages is necessary to establish standing. The court held allegations of parking problems, stormwater problems, and crime problems were sufficient to establish “special damages” and that evidence of property value harm is not required.