On November 26th, 2024, the BOC voted to accept a conditional rezone that allows for the construction of a 190-unit age-restricted (55+) apartment building.
The existing zoning of Economic Center requires that non-residential uses be built and well-established before any residential units can be constructed. Beginning with a suggestion by outgoing Town Manager Jeff Wells, this requirement was claimed to be fulfilled by the presence of the Atrium Hospital on the property next door. The intent of the requirement is to balance out the already heavily-residential tax base, but the Atrium Hospital fails to do this because it is a non-profit which pays no property tax.
The project was voted through by Commissioners McMillon, Wesolek and Hall, but Mayor Murray and Commissioners Wedra and Daunt were able to require the following conditions:
- Maximum height of the building shall be 50′ (4 stories), and the Site shall be graded in such a way that the height of the active adult building be no more than 5′ taller than the adjacent Atrium Hospital.
- The Applicant shall work with adjacent property owners to identify and install either a 6′ privacy fence or additional landscaping at the rear of the existing service drive and proposed sidewalk extension. It is understood the intent is to preserve existing healthy and mature trees and shrubs that currently provide screening.
- Pedestrian crosswalks and the associated signs at the intersection of Sunset Hills and Providence Road, subject to NCDOT approval prior to the Site’s first certificate of occupancy.
- Stamped asphalt, high visibility pavement markings, and/or similar for proposed pedestrian crosswalks within the parking lot as required by Ordinance.
The developer was also asked to establish the commercial piece first, and supply payment-in-lieu instead of counting the retention pond towards the required amount of park land, but both of these requests were refused.
The following video is queued up to the discussion of this project: