BY DEBBIE PAGE
Mooresville Planning Board members voted last week to recommend denial of two residential projects after hearing an outpouring of concerns by nearby residents.
FERN HILL ROAD
The board voted 6-1 against DR Horton’s rezoning request to rezone three parcels from Iredell County Residential-Agricultural to Conditional Residential General for a 127.60-acre site, located at 313 Fern Hill Road, for a 275 single-family home development.
DR Horton is asking for the property, currently within Iredell County’s jurisdiction and located between two single-family dwelling subdivisions, to be annexed into the town’s jurisdiction.
The proposed project would have a density of 2.16 dwelling units per acre. The site lies within the Protected Area Watershed, which limits the site to a maximum of 70% built upon area.
The property is located within Tier 4 of the town’s Tiered Growth Map, which is designated as Low Priority Town Utility Provision. The Future Character Land Use Map indicates this site is Peninsula Residential at two homes per acre.
The neighborhood meeting was held virtually on May 28 with a larger than usual number of participants, according to Planner Veronica Bateson. They noted existing issues with heavy traffic and overcrowded schools.
Tim Derylak of DR Horton said the development would address the county’s housing shortage and expand home ownership opportunities. The development would also exceed open space requirements and follow all stream buffers and watershed rules.
Design and permitting would occur in 2026, followed by site preparation in 2027. The first houses would be completed in 2028, with buildout expected by spring of 2032.
The development will have internal sidewalks and trails and have buffering to respect the adjoining developments, with 31.49 acres dedicated to open space. Developers would be responsible for all roads, sidewalks, and infrastructure until the town formally accepts them into town control.
Amenities would include a pool, playground, and possibly frisbee golf.
Bateson noted that the adjoining Atwater development has town water and sewer, providing utility connectivity to this proposed developed.
The draft traffic impact analysis mitigations would require turn lanes at development entrances, a southbound left turn lane on Perth at Fern Hill Road with an updated signal light, and the extension of the southbound left turn lane on Judas Road to Cornelius with traffic light upgrades. The Bluefield/Cornelius Road signal timing would also be “optimized.”
A maximum of 275 single-family detached homes with accessory uses is allowed by right in the Residential General (RG) zoning district.
The homes, on 56-foot-wide lots, would have five-foot side setbacks, with 20 feet in front and 25 feet in the rear. The homes would be made with a mix of materials and have varied rooflines.
Fern Hill Road resident Kelly Hughes contacted Iredell-Statesville Schools Superintendent Jeff James, who told her that Parkertown Elementary is slated to be at capacity at its opening with the current population.
She has also contacted the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality to lodge concerns about sewer lines running through wetland areas. She also cited traffic concerns, the area’s Tier 4 status, the house density exceeding Mooresville’s comprehensive plan, and the construction-related lawsuits against DR Horton across the United States.
Other speakers cited concerns with traffic from the two existing developments, the lack of an in-person community meeting, the density, and possible crime increase. The former land owner, Matt Johnson, cited the historical nature of Native American burial mounds on the property.
Derylak noted that Weathers Creek High School is slated to open in the 2027-2028 school year, with Parkertown Elementary scheduled to open in the fall of 2027. The I-77 Cornelius Road interchange is also scheduled for construction to begin in 2028.
After hearing from all parties, the board voted 6-1 to deny recommendation of the development.
The planning board’s vote is non-binding. The project’s fate will be determined by the Town Board of Commissioners.
BRENTWOOD
Mitchell and Bradley Hager has requested that their 86-acre site located at 141 Black Angus Lane be annexed into Mooresville and rezoned from Residential Limited Services to Conditional Residential General to build 111 single-family homes in phase five of Brentwood.
The proposed development, located between multiple single-family dwelling subdivisions, has a density of 1.3 dwelling units per acre. Lot sizes are a minimum of 7,000 square feet with five-foot side, 20-foot front, and 25-foot rear setbacks.
The houses will be hardie plank, and landscaping will be managed through HOA dues to keep consistency with the existing Brentwood development.
The developers propose leaving nearly 28 acres of open space, with 7.58 as active open space, including a pocket park, vegetated buffer, trails and greenways, a dog park, pause points with benches, and a pedestrian crossing over the creek.
The site lies within Mooresville’s extra-territorial jurisdiction, is located within Tier 1 of the Tiered Growth Map, and is designated for Neighborhood Residential.
The developers had a neighborhood meeting in March and a virtual meeting in April. Concerns about traffic, utilities, density, property values, stormwater and flooding, and amenities were discussed.
The traffic impact analysis required no additional mitigations.
Kristin Hooven, who lives in the adjoining Hampshires development, expressed community concerns about its well, located on an easement on this parcel, and the development’s effect on water quality. She also expressed concerns about the transient nature of the proposed rental home community.
Hoven also said that traffic was a major concern since the Hampshires development’s roads are private and maintained by its HOA. Since the new Brentwood development will be connected to theirs through an existing stub out, they would have more traffic, road wear, and damage.
Jessica Terry agreed, saying that pedestrians and their neighborhood roads were at risk and that the current infrastructure cannot support three times the traffic.
The Hampshires’ roads were supposed to be turned over by the developer once they were to state standards, but conflicts arose about whether the roads met the standards.
Other concerns were about a sewer line located less than 100 yards from the community well, which is professionally maintained at HOA cost, that has ruptured three times, creating a risk to the Hampshires community well.
The developer said the community well was located in green space that they are designing around. He also noted that their rental community residents average three-year tenures.
Board member Michael Cole expressed strong concerns about this new development causing damage to the adjoining neighborhood’s private roads. He supported eliminating the street connection and creating another emergency access to Brentwood to meet UDO codes.
Board member Laura Temple agreed, saying it was “unjust” to put this extra traffic on the Hampshires’ private roads. She supported having the Brentwood developer bring the roads to state standards if his development’s residents was going to use them.
Temple made the motion to deny recommendation, which passed unanimously.
The project now continues to the Town Board for final consideration.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business, the board:
♦ Recommended a conditional rezoning request for a 5.28-acre site located at Williamson Road,
♦ Recommended adoption of a text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance to include other conditions under which fee in lieu would be considered.
♦ Recommended a rezoning request for a 0.78-acre site located at 287 Alcove Road for access town water.
♦ Recommended denial of a conditional rezoning request for a 0.82-acre site located at 1179 and 1181 Mecklenburg Highway (to allow automotive sales and repair with vehicle storage and display in front of the parcel) because of lack of site detail.
♦ Approved an amendment to Planning Board Rules of Procedure stating if a quorum does not exist 15 minutes after a meeting is scheduled to start, the meeting shall be cancelled, and all matters will be continued to the next scheduled meeting without further advertisement