FROM STAFF REPORTS

Mooresville town commissioners on Monday approved a rezoning and annexation request that clears the way for the construction of 350 townhomes as well as commercial development and open space on a 52.2-acre site at 443 Alcove Road.

North State Development agreed to more than a dozen conditions for the project. While the townhomes are currently slated to be in the $400,000 range, North State promised that 5 percent of the units would meet the criteria of “attainable housing.”

The property had been zoned for corridor mixed use, meaning a developer could have built 930 units “by right” on the site. Because the property was not previously within the town limits, providing water and sewer service would have been challenging, but not impossible, the developer said.  

David Dupree, North State’s managing partner, told commissioners that his firm had worked with town staff and neighbors to address concerns about the development’s potential impact.

“We’re a local developer so we take pride in what we do. We’ll be here to work with the town,” he said.

The project included a total of 600 apartments and townhomes when it was originally submitted last fall. North State reduced the number of units to 480 in April and then to 350 in the days leading up to Monday’s meeting. The development will be built in two phases.

“I think we’ve finally got it right,” Dupree said during Monday’s meeting.

Mayor Chris Carney said town officials have lost their appetite for apartments and have shared that message with developers. A recent changed to the town’s UDO made it more difficult to get zoning approval for apartments.

Under the new zoning designation for the Alcove Road property, apartments are not allowed.

“I’m thankful for the fact that you’ve heard we don’t want any more apartments,” Carney told Dupree. “I’m appreciative that we’ve been able to move the needle. I think the board has been very upfront about that.”

During a public hearing before Monday’s vote, several nearby residents also expressed their appreciation that the developer had listened to their concerns and modified their plans.

To comply with the town’s ordinance, the developer must connect a road to Pauls Lane so first responders have a second access road to the new development, something Pauls Lane residents were not excited about. North State will put in a gate to limit access to emergency vehicles, and once another access road is built, Dupree said his firm would remove the gate and replant trees.

North State has also agreed to pay for any road improvements – regardless of whether the Fairview Flyover is built — required by the N.C. Department of Transportation and the town as the result of a traffic impact analysis.

The Cornelius-based firm also agreed that certain types of retail businesses would not be included in the commercial part of the development.

“I don’t think you could ask this developer to do any more than he is doing,” said Tom Helms, who has lived in the nearby Queen’s Cove neighborhood for 33 years.

Before the vote, Commissioner Lisa Qualls called the path to the final development proposal “arduous” for residents as well as town officials and staff.

“We hate traffic too. We’re tired of apartments. We want great stuff here. We want infrastructure. We want everything that you all want, too,” she told the crowd.

“The best thing that’s happened is we have continued to push back and push back and push back against a developer that wants to do the right thing. Most of the time, we don’t get developers that want to do the right thing. They want to come here, slam it down our throat … and leave.

“To move from 900 units to 350 units is huge,” Qualls added. “Is it going to be perfect? No. Are we going to love it? Probably not. But it is the best we can get to at this point.”

Commissioner Eddie Dingler said the board had worked to “protect” residents’ interests.

“I don’t think we can do anything else that is going to protect you that is going to hold up in a court of law,” he said. “We can’t just say ‘No.’”

Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the rezoning and the annexation.

The town stands to garner about $2 million in tap fees from the development, and Dupree estimated the development would generate $750,000 annually in property taxes for the town.

RECOGNITIONS & PRESENTATIONS

Also during Monday’s meeting:

♦ Police Chief Ron Campurciani presented the MPD’s Criminal Investigations Division with a Unit Citation for its recent efforts to apprehend child sexual predators through Operation Artemis. 

The chief also singled out Detective Skyler Tuckler for leading the operation.

“What she did was really, really amazing to organize this,” Campurciani said.

Town Manager Tracey Jerome also presented Detective Tuckler with the Employee Spotlight Award in recognition for her efforts. “She’s an excellent example of the incredible people we have serving our community every day,” Jerome said.

More than a dozen men have been arrested as a result of the sting operation targeting predators who attempted to meet underage boys and girls for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity. Operation Artemis was a collaborative effort of the MPD and several local, state and federal partners. Read more about the operation HERE.

♦ Assistant Police Chief Robert Dyson recognized the 19 members of the 2024 Citizens Police Academy. The 13-week program is led by various members of the MPD.

♦ The Community Relations Committee presented its 2023-2024 Annual Report.  

♦ Mayor Carney recognized Miss Iredell County Jaime Logan. She will compete in the Miss North Carolina Pageant next week. Her community platform, Beyond the Game, focuses on increasing participation in sports.

OTHER BUSINESS

In other business:

♦ The board approved a request from the Engineering Department to adopt a resolution awarding a professional services contract to Freese and Nichols, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $200,000 to update the Town’s Land Development Design Standards Manual. 

♦ Commissioners approved a request from the Engineering Department to adopt a resolution awarding a contract to Pavement Technology, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $246,403.50 for the pavement rejuvenator portion of the annual street resurfacing and preservation program. 

♦ The board approved a request from the Finance Department to approve an ordinance to amend the annual budget to increase the Building Permitting & Inspections (BPI) Fund revenues and expenditures by $100,000. BPI has exceeded revenues by over $1,000,000 during the first year of operations.

♦ Commissioners approved a request from the Finance Department to approve an ordinance to amend the budget to transfer funding in the amount of $1,622,921, set aside for street resurfacing, into the Powell Bill Fund to be utilized for future street resurfacing. This accounting procedure will prevent funds for street resurfacing from automatically rolling into the General Fund at the close of the fiscal year.

♦ The board approved a request from the Finance Department to approve an ordinance to amend the Catawba Avenue Infrastructure Project Ordinance and the Center Avenue Culvert and Greenway Project Ordinance by transferring $1,434,000 in American Rescue Plan Act Grant Funding from the Catawba Avenue Infrastructure Project Ordinance to the Center Avenue Culvert and Greenway Project Ordinance to be utilized for construction and closing the Catawba Avenue Infrastructure Project.