Charlotte golf club lawsuit: $20M renovation plan pits members against the board
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Carolina Golf Club faces lawsuit over authority disputes in $20M renovation.
- Board pursued costly clubhouse plan despite member vote rejecting key fees.
- Plaintiff seeks court order to enforce voting rights and limit board powers.
A Carolina Golf Club member in Charlotte is suing the nonprofit over leadership decisions involving clubhouse renovations with a price tag of over $20 million, according to North Carolina Business Court records.
The complaint, filed by Edwin Ham in Mecklenburg County on Friday, centers on a dispute over who has the authority to make decisions: the club’s board of governors or the voting members of the club who are non-board members.
The club near the Pinecrest neighborhood has members who can vote on the nonprofit’s governance, according to the suit. They vote to elect a board with limited powers to manage the club and carry out the will of voting members.
According to the suit, the board proposed renovating the clubhouse with expanded amenities early last year. The suit claims the renovation would “radically depart” from the club’s history as a golf club and would transform it into a country club focused on non-golf amenities.
Carolina Golf Club respects its members and the legal process, club President Jon Jarrett said in a statement to The Charlotte Observer Wednesday. “While the matter is pending, we will not comment on specifics,” Jarrett said, “but the board remains focused on responsible stewardship of the club and delivering an excellent member experience.”
Funding and cost increases raise concerns
The board told voters that the first phase would not cost more than $17.5 million, according to the suit. Based on alleged misrepresentations, the board convinced voting members to approve an $18,750-per-member assessment to pay for the project, Ham claimed.
About seven months later, members were informed that renovations would cost an additional $5.8 million. The board then requested a second per-member assessment fee of more than $3,700, in addition to a monthly increase of $75 in voting members’ capital dues for two years, according to the suit.
In June, voting members rejected the proposal for the second assessment by a vote of 229-166.
“It should have been clear the membership had lost confidence in the board and its ability to implement the renovation,” the suit said. “For certain vocal members of the board, it apparently was not.”
The board decided to move forward with a modified plan to add more golf members beyond the long-standing 500-member soft cap and to take on $2 million in new debt, according to the suit. The board said these actions were within its authority under the bylaws, but Ham claimed they undermined voting members.
Ham and nearly 60 other voters requested a special meeting in mid-July to discuss the renovations and vote on bylaw amendments that would limit the board’s authority. The proposed amendments would require a majority vote of the members to increase the number of members beyond 500 and to take on debt above $1 million.
According to the suit, the North Carolina Nonprofit Act requires the club to hold a meeting within 30 days of such a request.
Later, in early August, the club sent out ballots for the bylaw amendments and promised to hold the special meeting in mid-August. However, on Aug. 8, the board’s counsel sent a letter stating that voting members were not allowed to change the bylaws.
On Aug. 13, the day before the scheduled meeting, Club President Jon Jarrett canceled the meeting, citing undisclosed “conflicts,” the suit said.
Ham is now asking the court to compel the club to hold a special meeting, allow members to vote on the proposed bylaw amendments and count all votes. He also seeks to change the bylaws if the amendments pass, and to stop the board from taking any action inconsistent with the bylaw amendments.
Attorneys for Ham did not respond to a request for comment from The Charlotte Observer.
About the Carolina Golf Club
The Carolina Golf Club is on Olde Steele Creek Road between Wilkinson Boulevard and West Boulevard. Membership is by invitation only.
It was designed by professional golfer Donald Ross in 1929 on a former dairy farm. The native of Scotland is known as one of the most prominent golf course designers in the sport’s history.
This story was originally published August 21, 2025 at 6:06 AM.
