BY DONNA SWICEGOOD
A divided Statesville City Council voted on Monday to approve the first reading of an annexation request for the site of a proposed 385-home development off Hill Haven Road and Shelton Avenue.
Council members Kim Wasson, David Jones, Doris Allison and Joe Hudson and Steve Johnson gave the request the necessary votes for approval. C.O. Johnson, Amy Lawton and Lisa Pearson voted against the request.
The vote was the same for the final approval of a rezoning request for the property. The property, which was previously zoned by Iredell County at R-20, was rezone as Statesville R-8.
A second reading of the annexation request will be considered at an upcoming meeting.
One of the concerns expressed at the October meeting was the impact on sewer capacity at the Third Creek Treatment Plant. City Manager Ron Smith and William Vaughan, public utilities director, both said the plant is below capacity even with the addition of this development.
Angela Matthews, Brian Martin, Cathy Eudy, Mike and Becky Edelbrock, and Matthews’ son, Camden, all spoke against the annexation request.
Martin said he was concerned about the traffic issues that could be created with the addition of those homes. He said getting in and out of the will be development difficult and will create traffic backups.
As part of the rezoning conditions, the developer will be required to conduct a traffic impact study and agree to implement recommendations of that study.
Eudy said she was against the annexation because of environmental issues such as runoff that could cause contaminants to flow into a nearby pond that is used by a farmer for his cattle.
Angela Matthews told the council that higher density housing will lead to more crime, which will create the need for additional resources from the Statesville Police Department.
Her son also asked the council to reject the annexation request. “This is not what I want to see happen in my community,” Camden said.
Council member Steve Johnson said the property, with the rezoning, could have been used under the county zoning for residential development.
CONCRETE BATCH PLANT APPROVED
The council also gave its approval, following an evidentiary hearing, for the issuance of a special use permit for a concrete batch plant at 552 Buffalo Shoals Road. Elite Ready Mix was seeking the special use permit.
Steve Johnson asked about plans to create a buffer between the plant and a residence that abuts the property. The plan, owner Bobby Koehler said, is to leave mature trees that are already on the property in place, and Johnson said he was happy with that plan.
ANNEXATION REQUEST DENIED
Council denied a request to allow a resident on Museum Road to tap onto city water without annexation. The vote to deny the request was 7-1 with Steve Johnson casting the lone no vote.
The request was on behalf of an elderly resident whose well has “gone bad.”
PLANS FOR FIRE STATION 5
Council also approved a request to proceed with financing the renovations of a home that is on the property where Fire Station 5 will eventually be built.
The property, on Gaither Road, includes a house and that will be used as the temporary home for the fire station, Chief Glenn Kurfees told the council.
Kurfees said the addition of Fire Station 5 will help with response times, especially in the Crossroads area. He said the fire department will be able to respond to calls as far north as Jane Sowers Road within four minutes.
The chief said interviews have been conducted and they are ready to make offers to 15 firefighters to staff the new station. Hiring them now will give the fire department six months to get them trained and be ready to staff the station by next summer.
The cost to purchase the property, renovate the house and bring the new hires on board is approximately $3.5 million.
The renovated house, Kurfees said, will serve as the temporary Station 5 until funds can be allocated to build a permanent structure.
CONSTRUCTION UPDATE
The city manager also gave council an update on several ongoing construction or improvement projects.
♦ The new terminal at the Statesville Regional Airport is nearing completion with a soft opening planned for December 1.
“It’s beautiful. It’s looking like an airport terminal,” Smith said.
♦ Construction of the parking deck at the Statesville Police Department is proceeding as planned and renovation of the police department building should begin in the near future. The anticipated completion of the project is August 2026.
“It’s moving pretty fast,” Smith said.
♦ The horseshoe pits at Martin Luther King Jr. Park are in the process of being converted to pickleball courts. “It is an easy project because of what was already there,” he said.
♦ Meanwhile, the waterline replacement project that has been concentrated around Hartness and Brookdale roads is also proceeding. The project is replacing 80-year-old waterlines.
UPCOMING DEVELOPMENT
Smith also told council about a five-year look at the addition of new homes, outside of developments, that have added to the city’s tax base.
Since 2020, 425 new single-family homes have been built and four multi-family developments have also been added. He said the new homes added more than $400,000 in new tax dollars to the city.
CONSENT AGENDA
As part of the consent agenda, which is approved in one motion unless a council member asked for an item to be removed for further discussion, council also approved:
♦ Second reading of the annexation requests for the Compass Data Center at Stamey Farm Road and Hickory Highway; and the property at 533 Gaither Road for Fire Station 5 and for 407 and 417 Central Avenue.
♦ A 10-year lease with the United States Civil Air Patrol for $2,200 at the Statesville Regional Airport.
♦ A request for permission to demolish of 118 and 120 W. Front Street. The demolition will be paid for by the developers of the Vance Hotel property.
♦ A privacy policy and terms and conditions for a text system for the city’s outage management system. Those who sign up can receive text messages for outages and expected time of restoration of power.