A developer leaves a city fuming after evicting beloved pair of eagles

Beth Witten, mayor pro tem of Auburn, Alabama, got off the phone last month with a housing developer, optimistic they were on the verge of finding a way to save the nest of two bald eagles who had moved into the area years ago, quickly charming and awing the humans below.

Hours later, she felt growing confusion and swelling anger as she learned the developer, despite promises to the contrary, had destroyed the nest anyway.

As word spread, others soon joined Witten in her outrage. More than 3,000 people joined a Facebook group dedicated to the eagles, that had long been named Jim and Pam after the similarly beloved fictional lovebirds on the TV show “The Office.” Nearly 10,000 signed an online petition demanding justice for the newly homeless eagles while calling on people to boycott the developer.

“These two that have mated and that are bonded built their nest, have lived in that nest year after year – they have very much become a part of your community,” Witten said. “All of those things together really emphasize how important Jim and Pam are to this community.”

The drama surrounding Jim and Pam’s doomed nest has only grown over the past month. Witten and other city officials formally requested that federal authorities investigate whether the builder, Georgia-based Hughston Homes, broke the law in destroying the nest on the company’s 76-acre property where it hopes to create a 48-unit housing development. The hubbub comes as the bald eagle, long a symbol of freedom in the United States, is set to become the country’s official national bird.

Hughston Homes did not address specific questions about whether the company lied to or misled Auburn city officials about its decision to destroy the bald eagle nest. But Tyler Findley, Hughston’s land acquisition and development director, said the developer “continues to be fully cooperative with both the City of Auburn and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to address confusion around the permitted removal of an unoccupied eagles’ nest within a developing neighborhood.”

“We are committed to being good neighbors and responsible stewards of the natural resources in the Auburn community, and that begins with a transparent understanding of what is lawfully permitted by modern conservation standards,” Findley said in a statement to the Washington Post. “Auburn residents are encouraged to reach out to us directly with questions or concerns.”

Hughston Homes said the nest was unoccupied, a claim nearby residents contradicted. One of them, John Braswell, provided videos to the Post that, he said, shows Jim and Pam using the nest hours before it was destroyed.

Auburn – both the university and the city – forged their relationships with bald eagles more than a century ago. For at least that long, “War Eagle!” has been Auburn University’s battle cry. For nearly a quarter-century, eagles have soared above tens of thousands of fans before each home football game, circling Jordan-Hare Stadium before landing in the middle of the 50-yard line as fans cry “War Eagle, Hey!”

Because of the university’s prominent and enduring presence in the city, the power of the eagle as a symbol transcends football and even the school itself, Witten said, noting that fans and residents can throw out a “War Eagle!” to quickly bond with strangers wearing Auburn gear, whether in the next town over or halfway around the globe.

“It’s our greeting, our battle cry,” Witten said, adding: “The eagle has deep meaning for this community.”

Optimism turns

to outrage

In 2005, the city annexed the plot on which Jim and Pam would eventually build their home, city records show. Hughston Homes later bought it, and in June, the city’s planning commission approved the developer’s plan to build a development called Heritage Ridge. One commission member acknowledged the existence of the eagle nest and residents’ concerns about it, but said the birds were the purview of federal officials.

The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act forbids the killing, destruction or disturbance – referred to as “taking” – of bald eagles, their nests or eggs. But the law allows people to obtain permits to destroy bald eagle nests so long as certain conditions are met.

On Oct. 30, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s permit office in Atlanta issued Hughston Homes an “Eagle Nest Take Specific Permit” for an alternate nest. One of the conditions was that Hughston Homes ensure that there were no adult eagles, viable eggs or eaglets present before destroying the nest.

When news about the permit broke two weeks later, residents sprang into action, including Witten. She said she contacted Findley, Hughston’s development director, several times, culminating late afternoon on Nov. 15, when they scheduled a meeting between city officials and the developer for the following Monday to discuss the fate of the nest.

Findley assured her that nothing would be done with the nest until after that meeting, Witten said. Less than an hour after they got off the phone, Findley sent her an invite to the Zoom meeting for the following Monday.

“I felt very optimistic, very encouraged,” Witten said.

Early the next morning, all of that optimism vanished when Witten learned that someone had cut down the tree and destroyed the nest. She spoke with Findley, who confirmed that Hughston had cut down the tree, and he had been there when they did. He apologized, saying that “it was out of my hands.”

Witten told him she was disappointed and outraged.

“It gives the appearance of bad faith, acting as a bad actor, doing things nefariously,” she said.

Witten told Findley she would do everything within her power to make sure Hughston’s actions were investigated to the fullest, and city officials spent that weekend strategizing about how to make that happen. Eventually, the city manager directed the city attorney to request that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service find out whether Hughston had violated the conditions of their permit or broken the law.

Spokeswoman Vanessa Kauffman said the “U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service does not provide comment on active or ongoing investigations.”

Hughston Homes did not respond to specific questions about Witten and Findley’s communications in the days leading up to the nest’s destruction. But in a Nov. 15 open letter, the developer said it bought the property before it knew of the nest, and upon learning about it, worked closely with authorities and the company’s “wildland expert” to follow federal authorities’ requirements “precisely.”

“The time of year tells us that there are no eggs, hatchlings or young chicks incapable of taking on life outside of the nest present in the nest,” the company said in its letter. “We took this step with the knowledge that these resilient birds are capable of establishing a new nest close to their former habitat.”

The uproar was swift and fierce. People quickly registered their anger online, and some have created shirts, buttons and yard signs supporting the lovebirds and trashing the company that destroyed their nest.

Seemingly unaware of the drama surrounding their old home, Jim and Pam are already creating a new one, Witten said.

They’ve been seen flying around with sticks and other materials needed to build a nest, she said. Witten declined to specify the location of the new nest but said it’s not on Hughston’s property.

Jim and Pam did stick around the area, presumably to stay close to the university’s fisheries center, which Witten described as “a natural buffet for them.”

“It’s my understanding that it’s a viable spot,” she added, “and they should not have any issues.”