BY DEBBIE PAGE
debbiepage.iredellfreenews@gmail.com
The Troutman Planning and Zoning Board voted unanimously at its February 28 meeting to recommend the rezoning of 19.5 acres off Byers Road to conditional mixed residential for a proposed 56-lot single-family home subdivision targeted toward those 55 ages and older.
Alex Bonda, land acquisition and entitlements manager at Prestige Corporate Development in Cornelius, said this is the second phase of the Rocky Creek subdivision, a nearly 54-acre parcel on the west side of Highway 21, just north of the Barkdale/Oswalt-Amity intersection.
Bonda explained the project was split into phases because the developer was unaware this property was for sale when developing phase one. Since the phase one rezoning and annexation process was so far along, Prestige decided to present the new property acquisition separately.
The already approved phase one features 95 homes, 169 townhomes, and nearly 2 acres of commercial space. The HOA and swimming pool and club house amenity in phase one will also serve phase two residents.
Though this zoning designation allows 12 units per acre, the phase two site plan density provides for 2.88 homes per acre, although Bonda said the number of lots will lower because of an intermittent stream bed discovered in a wetlands study on the property at the southern end.
Prestige will update the site plan with the eliminated lots before the Troutman Town Council holds a public hearing and considers the rezoning request on March 10. The amount of open space will increase from 10 to 20 percent as a result.
The three-bedroom, 2,500-square-foot Eastwood homes will have a two-car garage with hardy plank, stone, brick, and stucco facades. Prices will range from the mid to high $300,000 range, according to Bonda.
The phase two lots are wider, rising from 54 feet in phase one to 64 in phase two to accommodate ranch style, lower floor living to appeal to older buyers. The second story features a bonus room to be finished as an additional bedroom, office, or recreation room, as the buyer wishes.
The recently completed phase one traffic study was updated to reflect an additional 56 homes. The preliminary recommendations included extending a north bound turn lane onto Barkdale from Highway 21 from 125 to 150 feet.
The phases will be connected by roads, and sidewalks for walkability will be built throughout both phases. Town water and sewer will serve the homes.
Trees will be planted every 40 feet along the roadways, and each home will have one canopy tree out front. Existing trees in open space and buffers will be preserved as much as possible, the developer said.
Phase one features two-story homes and townhomes geared toward workforce/family needs.
A phase two community meeting in January drew seven attendees, with questions about traffic, buffers, building materials, and project timing predominating.