JOSH DAVIS/BAYSIDE GAZETTE
Attorney Jill M. Odierno speaks on behalf of Toy Town Antiques owners Richard and Debbie Seaton during a Snow Hill Town Council meeting, last Tuesday.

By Josh Davis, Associate Editor

(Dec. 20, 2018) Toy Town Antiques owner Richard Seaton said the Snow Hill Mayor and Council are not telling the whole story when it comes to the controversy surrounding his store.

Seaton was lured to Snow Hill from Berlin in 2016, when the town offered to deed a historic building in disrepair on the corner of Market and Washington streets to him, if certain renovations were done over a five-year period.

Now, it appears town officials are asking that some of the repairs be done sooner, citing safety issues. A large crowd of local business owners and others confronted the Town Council about the matter during a public meeting last Tuesday.

“They don’t want to tell their side of the story. They don’t want to tell people – they just keep on kicking the can down the road,” Seaton said.

Seaton said he did not want to address the legal dispute further, because there lawyers are now involved.

But, he did offer, “It’s really not just about my store – it’s about the whole town.”

He said Councilwoman LaToya Purnell was “out of hand, talking the way she was talking” during the Dec. 11 meeting.

“What they need [people] to believe is that they’re trying to do what’s best for the town – the townspeople don’t like these people anymore,” Seaton said. “They would vote them all out. If it could happen tomorrow, it would.”

He said the public distrust stemmed from several matters, including the recent resignation of Mayor Charlie Dorman, and the theft of $169,000 by former Snow Hill Town Clerk Erica Holland, found guilty earlier this year of embezzling from the town and sentenced to 15 years in state prison.

“[The council] don’t represent the town at all. They don’t represent nobody but themselves,” Seaton said. “There’s a lot more to the story. It just depends on who you talk to.”

Jill M. Odierno, the attorney representing Seaton, said the legal matter was “an issue with the building and we’re taking care of it.”

“Whatever the controversy is, I think it has more to do with other merchants,” Odierno said. “I can’t really give any more comments than I what did already [during the meeting].

“We’re working on it and we’re obviously working to come to an amicable resolution for both the Seatons as well as the town,” she added.

Diana Nolte, a local business owner who spoke extensively during the Dec. 11 public meeting, declined to comment further.

Councilwoman Alison Gadoua, on behalf of the Town Council, emailed a statement on the matter:

“The Town of Snow Hill is working very hard with Toy Town and their attorney to correct imminent danger code violations that must be addressed in order to protect the safety of residents and visitors who come in or near Toy Town,” the statement said.

“There are many misperceptions surrounding the Town’s efforts with respect to Toy Town which has, inevitably, caused tension. In spite of that, we remain hopeful and we will continue to work in good faith toward a resolution that ensures public safety and code compliance. The old Mason Opera House building is a true historic gem. It’s a building that means a lot to the residents of Snow Hill, both past and present. We are delighted to have a business bringing life back to such a historic building. This is the vein that we will continue to operate in.”