LELAND — Last month the town of Leland, its residents, and a developer were divided over a rezoning request that would convert commercial property to residential.
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The planning board voted unanimously to deny its recommendation for rezoning of 18.85 acres near the Mallory Creek subdivision March 26. The developer, Thomas & Hutton, is looking to build 123 townhomes, situated at the southeast end of Highway 133. The developer was requesting the zoning change from commercial to moderate to high density, multi-family residential.
At the meeting, the town’s planning and inspection staff recommended denial, citing concerns about taking away land from the town’s limited commercially zoned areas. Currently, 1,464 residential units that have been approved, are pending construction or under construction within Mallory Creek or the vicinity of the potential project.
Barbara Scott Akinwole, on the planning board, agreed about wanting to keep the limited commercial zones.
“Unless we want to become a bedroom town for Wilmington, I think we need to give strong consideration to make sure that our commercial base is improved,” she said.
Town staff also cited the project’s lack of alignment with Leland 2045 comprehensive plan, adopted almost three years ago. It centers on ensuring diverse community types and housing options, as well as goods and services are within reach of the people living nearby, and accommodating varying transportation needs.
John Danford, representative of Thomas & Hutton, stated at the meeting he and the firm were “in a bit of an awkward situation” given staff’s disapproval.
“It appears that what we thought we saw in the comprehensive plan when we started this process is not something that staff saw in the comprehensive plan,” John Danford, representative of Thomas & Hutton, stated at the meeting.
Staff told the planning board the project does not align with the plan’s goals of creating jobs with multi-modal transportation options in areas where people live.
Marissa Ernst, town planner, said the site would better fit mixed-use or commercial development. She reasoned just north and south of the site are neighborhood nodes, which are areas that could be accessible to retail or commercial uses.
Danford admitted his project is inconsistent with some aspects of Leland 2045 but argued that no project meets all the criteria. He stated the project offers high levels of multi-modal connectivity, low impact to the natural environment, and a better-suited development to the area.
Alternatively, Danford mentioned the current commercial zoning allows around 104 potential uses, from a coffee shop to a funeral home, so there is no guarantee what will be built. The application mentions “tradeshops, self storage, boat storage, package stores and hotels.”
“We believe a townhome neighborhood is a better option given the adjacent land uses,” Danford said.
The project is within four miles of Belville Elementary School, the Belville riverwalk ramp park, a fire station, and a nursing home.
“We have these great community offerings,” Danford said. “Let’s put people near them so that they can enjoy them. That’s what this project does. It puts townhomes where the amenities are.”
At least one person who spoke at the meeting agreed with the developer.
“Maybe there’s some perfect world where land just stays vacant forever. I know, that’s what a lot of people would prefer, just not the way the world works, unfortunately,” Nicholas Newell, the president of the homeowners association for Mallory Creek, said at the meeting. “If we know something is going to be built on. I would at least prefer whatever is built on him to be as favorable as possible.”
However, three Leland residents shared their concerns about safety, traffic, and privacy.
Mallory Creek resident Kay Schmalz was concerned about the proposed access road that would lead into the development, but also the adjacent Mallory Creek neighborhood. She said it would bring high risk for accidents.
Danford stated it was “a conversation to be had” and noted the site plans labels the Chamber Street entrance as a private roadway. He suggested future plans can be made to place a gate at the entrance.
Staff also took issue with traffic impacts from the development, worried over increased congestion along Highway 133 during daytime peak hours.
Jamar Johnson, the engineering associate for the Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, explained at the meeting the development would bring 887 new daily trips. Peak hours would consist of 58 in the morning and 70 in the evening according to a traffic impact analysis. Johnson added if the site was used for commercial purposes, average daily trips would be higher; however, the amount during peak hours would not be as high.
Newell stated traffic is just “one part of the conversation.” He told PCD he has a long history of speaking out against development, but in this case is in favor of the residential plan.
“What I would hate to see is for the land to sit there and be vacant for the next 10 years, until there’s finally enough population around to where that is commercially viable,” Newell said. “To me that is a bigger travesty than just conceding and having townhomes.”
The property’s four parcels have been vacant since its first purchase in 1997. Mallory Creek Land & Timber INC. acquired the first two parcels in 1997, followed by the third in 2007, and the last in 2009. The land’s taxable value is around $68,000.
Town staff’s rejection of the rezoning request falls amidst their recent efforts to amend the town’s code of ordinance that governs the permissible uses of commercially zoned areas.
In March of this year, the town’s planning staff proposed a UDO amendment to town council that would ban the ability to build residential buildings in commercially zoned areas.
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Currently, single-family residential development is allowed in commercial districts under specific conditions.
Ashli Barefoot, Leland’s town planning manager, explained in a previous article to PCD that when the town established zoning districts in 1990, residential buildings and accessories were permitted in commercial zones to prevent “legal, non-conforming uses.”
Homes that were already in these districts when they were formed are considered legal and non-conforming.
Town staff’s reasoning behind the proposed change is to optimize use of the town’s commercially zoned areas, thereby increasing revenue for the town, which is a consistent objective in other amendments the town is pursuing.
The town is also seeking additional revenue in other ways including a proposed 70% increase in property taxes — bringing $10.88 million of new revenue to the town.
The amendment will go before the Leland Town Council at the April 18 meeting.
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