Correction: A previous version of this story stated Commissioner Mike Dasher lives in Briar Chapel, he does not. The story has been updated to reflect this information. The News + Record apologizes for this error.
PITTSBORO — Traffic, stormwater and noise were all complaints voiced by neighboring residents at Monday’s Chatham County Commissioners meeting over a proposed 788-unit housing development near Chapel Ridge.
Commissioners approved the Parks at Meadowview development, despite the concerns, in a 3-2 vote. Chairperson Karen Howard, Diana Hales and Mike Dasher approved the development, with Franklin Gomez Flores and Robert Logan dissenting.
Seven residents came to Monday’s meeting to speak about the development. Prior to the issue coming to the commissioners, the county’s planning board received more than 150 public comments about the proposed plans, largely from residents near Chapel Ridge.
Residents who opposed the development said the plan was changed for the proposal. The original plan indicated the development would build 739 units, but the developer, True Homes, redrew sketch plans after meeting with residents.
“The Parks [at Meadowview] process is being steamrolled,” said resident Karen Styres. “We need to be smart about the decision for the community … We all want growth but we want to do it smart.”
Styres and other Chapel Ridge residents in attendance said they submitted a petition with more than 500 signatures urging the developer, planning board and commissioners to reconsider the project. Barbara Arcand was one of those signees and organizers; she took issue with the development because of the problems with the traffic, which she claimed was done inaccurately.
“This development is too different from what we currently have,” Arcand said. “It’s not the plan that has always been in place.”
She said she believes the approval will turn Meadowview into a commuter community that will not be individually owned, while also detrimentally increasing traffic.
Mark Ashness of CE Group, the principal civil engineer who aided in the traffic study, contended that all regulations were followed on the study. He said he met with N.C. Dept. of Transportation and other traffic consultants for feedback on the study before receiving final approval. NCDOT approved the traffic study in April.
The traffic study found the development will generate approximately 3,943 total site trips during a typical 24-hour weekday period — 294 of those trips would be during the morning and 397 trips would be during evening peak hours.
Not all speakers agreed with Styer and Arcand. Three expressed support for the project saying their community needed additional housing with exponential growth on the way.
Chris O’Brien, a current Parks resident, said he was reassured about the need for the project because True Homes “bent over backward” to ensure the feedback of the community was incorporated in the site plans.
“I understand that some people are not thrilled about this project,” O’Brien said. “But the existing residents have been waiting for this to be completed for a very long time.”
He added the increased density while preserving green space aids in helping the county’s environmental goals.
According to True Homes, the new plans increase density slightly while preserving more green space. The approval by the commissioners set the stage for 404 lots to be constructed in phases two through four of construction. Phase one construction, which builds 172 lots, is already under construction.
Phase 5, which contains 163 lots, has not been constructed and is held by a different entity.
The development would bring attainable housing near the otherwise expensive area. The median home price in Chatham is $651,000. The developer said they have a nearly identical development in Johnston County where the prices of town homes were in the $300-350,000 range and single family homes were $400-550,000.
Commissioner Dasher said he believed those estimates would not directly transfer to Chatham County and the price point would be higher. He added, however, that any price below the current “astronomical” average price would be beneficial for the county and future residents.
Prior to the vote on the project, Chairperson Howard expressed her support for the development. She said she was sympathetic to the concerns of residents, but that it was important to welcome in new neighbors.
“At some point, we were all those people who’s arrival was challenged,” Howard said. “We have now seamlessly integrated into the landscape. So much so that some of us are now the ones challenging new developments.”
Howard said the plan offers critical housing options below the current value to allow diversity. She reminded attendees of the strong disdain for Briar Chapel when it was first proposed, but now, she said, those residents are invaluable members of the Chatham community.
“The meat and bones of Chatham are in these new communities,” Howard said.
“All the communities that the old Chatham fought against are now priceless pieces of Chatham,” Howard continued.
She also urged residents to consider that construction and traffic concerns are often a blip in time, and soon these neighbors will also be important members of the community.
Despite his dissenting vote, Logan said he agreed with the points Howard made. But Logan, a resident of Chapel Ridge, also said he was concerned the developer didn’t take enough time with the project and rushed through the redesigned development and he felt the traffic increase would be overwhelming.
After the vote passed, Howard assured Logan and other attendees that there would be continued oversight of the developer as this project develops. All phases of development are scheduled to be completed by December 2028.
Monday’s meeting also saw the board approved economic incentives packages for VinFast and Wolfspeed developments. The two massive economic development projects are expected to generate $9 billion in investment over the next 10 years.
County Manager Dan LaMontagne said the incentives packages provided by the town of Siler City, the county and the state are the main reasons the two companies chose Chatham. Both companies follow the same incentive structure.
Property taxes are reduced at a the following rate, if the companies meet job and investment goals. Performance would be measured by the creation of eligible jobs:
Siler City approved tax incentives on the same structure Monday.
The county also laid out the minimum job creation needed to meet the requirements of the incentive. Along with the property tax reduction, the incentives for the two projects also include land acquisition grants, which reimburse each company for the land they purchased from the county.
VinFast also has a unique incentive where they got permit fees for construction in Moncure waived by the county. The Moncure megasite, also known as Triangle Innovation Point, will also have a full-time building inspector on site during VinFast construction, which is expected to begin early next year.
The next Chatham Board of Commissioners work session is at 2 p.m., followed by the regular session at 6 p.m., on Nov. 7 at the Chatham Agriculture & Conference Center in Pittsboro. For more information visit chahtamcountync.gov/board-of-commissioners.
Reporter Ben Rappaport can be reached at brappaport@chathamnr.com or on Twitter @b_rappaport.