A Decade of Developer Lies regarding the “Big Canoe” trademark; and how the POA is stabbing local Realtors in the back.

The Big Canoe Developer claims to have a trademark on the term “Big Canoe”.  The Developer is telling the truth about that.  But the Developer has been lying about the scope of that trademark, and has been bullying the community, local businesses, and even the U.S. Postal Service for decades.

Before I continue, I want to share an email I sent the Deveoper representatives, after recently being threatened with harrassing legal action.  On this specific issue the Big Canoe Developer disgusts me, and its time to put a stop to it.  So I am fighting back.  Read the Letter – Click Here (4 Pg PDF).

The following is in 4 parts:

Part 1: The Truth, and the Lies, about the Big Canoe Trademark
Part 2: How the POA is succumbing to Developer pressure and harming the other Realtors
Part 3: How this hurts the Big Canoe Community AND the Regional Community
Part 4: The Solutions

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Part 1: The Truth, and the Lies, about the Big Canoe Trademark

The Big Canoe Developer does have a Trademark on “Big Canoe”.  However, a little known fact is that their first trademark application was REJECTED.  You CANNOT Trademark a geographic location, and that is exactly why they were rejected – under Section 2(e) on geographic grounds.  Here is a copy of the rejection – (Click Here (9 Pg PDF).

The Trademark Office did allow that the Developer had spent so much time, money, and effort in the development of their business name “Big Canoe”, that it had “acquired distinctiveness” in the service area provided by the Developer.  You can view a full copy of the Trademark history finally issued – Click Here (40 Pg PDF), but below is the 1st page view which sums up the issue involved…..

When looking at the above, it is easy to understand that you probably shouldn’t use the word “Big Canoe” in your business name or website if you are in the Real Estate business – but that any other use most likely would be allowed.

Soon after reacquiring their trademark in 2006, the Big Canoe Company sued IBA Real Estate for the use of their website, www.bigcanoerealestate.net.  Honestly, they should have.  I would have.  It was a clear violation of the trademark, since it was a direct use of the term “big canoe” combined with “real estate” in IBA’s website, with real estate specifically being THE service area covered by the trademark.  And the trademark mediator agreed, and ruled in favor of Big Canoe Company (the Developer).  Read the ruling – Click Here (7 Pg PDF).

And this is where the LIES and BULLYING started.  With this ruling in hand, the Developer immediately went to the USPS and pressured them to stop using Big Canoe, GA 30143 as a location.  They went to local businesses and starting pressuring them to stop selling merchandise with “Big Canoe” on it. They implied that they basically “owned” the entire term.  But the truth is that their trademark is very limited and defined as ONLY having to do with a specific Goods & Services International Category 036, as follows, “Real Estate Services, namely, real estate brokerage and management.”  And as I stated in my response letter to the Developer as they threatened me…

“I will print T-shirts, Coffee Mugs, start the Big Canoe Locksmith Company, Big Canoe Landscaping Co, Big Canoe Farm, Big Canoe Bike Rental Co, or any other damn “Big Canoe” company or product that I want to as long as it clearly doesn’t indicate competition with the Big Canoe Company or its subsidiaries in regards to Real Estate Services – and there is not a damn thing you are going to be able to do about it. “

But none of this stopped the Developer previously, as they threatened everyone they could find who was using the term.  They relied upon their big size, and mean sounding lawyers to intimidate.  Recently this has included the Big Canoe POA.

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Part 2: How the POA is succumbing to Developer pressure and harming the other Realtors

First, it is important to note that the Developer also owned (past tense) another trademark – in the form of the “3-Triangle-Canoes” Logo, as seen here…

As you can see, it expired in 2009. 

So WHY is the POA now saying that they plan on making a deal with the Developer to point all of our new marketing website Real Estate inquiries to the Developer, in exchange for the use of their logo?  I have done thorough trademark searches, and don’t see any reason the POA should have any problems using the 3-Triangle-Canoes logo, or the term “big canoe”.  After all, the Big Canoe Property owners Association has been using the name “Big Canoe” since we were originally incorporated back in the early 1970’s, almost 2 decades before the Big Canoe Company ever initially filed an application for use.

By cowardly abeasance to the Developer, the POA Board is stabbing the NON “Big Canoe Realty” realtors in the back – by making a deal to use Property Owner monies to fund a new marketing program that funnels all the leads to the Developer (i.e. Big Canoe Realty / bigcanoe.com).

Even if the logo was still under valid trademark protection, I would argue that the stakes are too high to continue using it under these terms, and would call for a new logo design for the POA to use.

But as it stands now, the POA doesn’t need their permission for anything.  What we do need is a new Community Attorney, George Nowack having let us down too often in this publisher’s opinion.

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Part 3: How this hurts the Big Canoe Community AND the Regional Community

• This community needs a healthy and competitive real estate market.  When interest rates are low, and the economy thriving, our market does very well,and nobody seems to care.  But once again we are starting to see things slow down.  We have a very contentious relationship between realtors with the overall negative tone being set by Big Canoe Realty.  The way this works is that whether they admit it or not, many Realtors start playing favorites (or least favorites) in what properties they are willing to promote to clients.  This is bad for the health of the market, bad for buyers, bad for sellers.  This monopolizing of leads being funneled into the Developer is just going to exacerbate things.  If Property Owners perceive that all the markeitng leads are going to be funneled into One Realtor – who do you think they are going to list with?  This is a BAD IDEA that will harm property values, and stifle competition and exposure.  Aside from that, this is also morally wrong, and incredibly unfair to the rest of the community Realtors, many of whom are Big Canoe residents that are basically being forced to fund their competion through the payment of monthly assessments.
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• The Residents of Big Canoe are also being denied a Post Office in part because of the Developer’s “Big Canoe Trademark” position.  They take a very hardline stance in attempting to block Big Canoe from having an official USPS office here, or the establishment of a special zipcode for the comunity.  The USPS has already set up “Big Canoe, GA 30143” as a specifically identified postal option, as seen below….
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  Big Canoe is larger than Nelson and Marble Hill Postal areas combined, and gets an ENORMOUS amount of mail / packages.  As an older and relatively wealthy demographic, located far from mass shopping, residents tend to rely more heavily on shipments from places like Amazon and other online retailers.  This creaes an enormous amount of mail and package volume, and deserves a full time postal facility – for work/cost efficiency for the USPS and their employees, and to better the service for the residents.  The main thing standing in the way of progress is the Developer, and a Big Canoe POA Board scared to stand up to decades of abuse, continuing to allowing the Developer to bully and indimidate at will.  And now we have a General Manager that is also cow-towing to the Developer.
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• There is also another set of “victims” of this Big Canoe Trademark bullying.  Just spend a few minutes on Pickens County Facebook pages and you will see how angry people from other parts of the County are regarding the confusion being caused by this USPS Zipcode mess.  Due to the huge volume of mail and packages received by Big Canoe, GA 30143, many online databases and retailers are starting to default to Big Canoe GA 30143 – even for people that live in other parts of Pickens County that are NOT in Big Canoe.  You can’t blame them for being angry for a situation that is being caused exclusively by the arrogance and greed of the Big Canoe Developer.

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Part 4: The Solutions

1. We need some people in leadership in this community that put the Property owners first, and the Developer second.  So your vote in this next POA Board election is more important than usual.  This publication supports the two ladies running!  We need fresh air on the Board!
2. The local Realtors need to attend some Board Meetings en masse, and pound the tables so to speak to demand fair representation in all Community Marketing efforts.  And the Property Owners need to clearly, and vocally support them in this effort.
3. I have been told by sources that the GM & Board claim that “they have no choice” but to support the Developer in these matters.  An explanation for this needs to be DEMANDED of the Board & GM at every opportunity, and in public forum.  If there is something this screwed up about the process that we are unaware of, then I think we need to know what it is, so that we can put all of our heads together as a community to try and sort it out.  It is after all our votes that are putting these people in power, and our money that is funding every whim of the Developer.
4. The USPS needs to start making decisions based on Actaual Postal Volume Data, and the Best Interests of Regional Residents (inside AND outside of Big Canoe), and USPS need to start ignoring all issues regarding the Developer’s wishes regarding trademark issues.  Giving Big Canoe it’s own zipcode would most likely solve everyone’s problems.
5. Lastly, FIRE George Nowack as POA Attorney, and find a pit bull lawyer that will defend and protect the interests of the property owners, and that is willing to start legally chewing on the Developer’s backside!

Please share our website with neighbors, as we continue to try and correct decades of wrongs within Big Canoe.  Or discuss it on our Facebook Group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/FocusonBigCanoeGA/

Peace,
-david hh / publisher