BRUNSWICK COUNTY — A major subdivision proposed for northern Brunswick County hit a setback earlier this month when the planning board voted to deny a project on Green Hill Road, citing mounting pressure on the region’s roads and schools.
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The Brunswick County Planning Board voted 4–2 at its Nov. 10 meeting against the proposal for 1,450 single-family homes to be built on nearly 785 acres off U.S. 17 and Green Hill Road. Despite recommended approval from staff, the board cited concerns about school capacity and traffic safety, determining the project’s strain on public infrastructure outweighed its technical compliance with county regulations.
Attorney Matt Nichols, representing applicant CLD Engineering, claimed the project met and in some cases exceeded Unified Development Ordinance standards. CLD Engineering is behind other projects in Brunswick County including the 744 unit Coastal Club of the Carolinas development in Calabash, approved by the board in 2022.
Nichols contended the planned development zoning made more sense for the project than the site’s current Rural Residential designation. If the site plans were approved, it would also then zone the property as a planned development.
Under RR, a developer could build as many as 2.9 homes per acre across the property, he said, while the planned development approach allows the units to be clustered and more land set aside as open space. The project proposed 1.85 homes per acre, below the RR maximum and the max 3.6 homes per acre under planned development zoning.
Nichols also pointed to project benefits, including 310 acres of dedicated open space — 39% of the site, compared to the 15% minimum for a planned development. He said the stormwater system was designed for a 100-year storm event, above the county’s 25-year standard, and buffers along Green Hill Road would increase from the required 20 feet to 50 feet.
Seven residents spoke at the meeting, some pointing out the board recently denied the Cherrytree Tract proposal in September — a 1,000-home planned development in Winnabow located roughly 5 miles from the Green Hill Road site. The board was concerned with traffic safety and flooding during the Cherrytree hearing.
Referencing flooding concerns again, board member Jim Board asked Nichols about the site’s history with drainage issues. Nichols said community meetings revealed many residents worried about flooding on the property but he said the project’s stormwater design would improve drainage on-site.
Some residents still feared it would worsen on neighboring land, as expressed by resident Glenn Kai. Kai told the board he has repeatedly observed how heavy rainfall can affect emergency access.
“When it rains like that, you can’t get fire engines in there, you can’t get ambulances in there,” Kai said. “We do have boats that can get in there, but that’s the biggest thing. Somebody had a medical emergency, we’d have to pull them out.”
Ultimately, the board’s decision on the Green Hill Road development was influenced by the documented capacity crisis facing Brunswick County Schools. The development falls in the northern section of the county, which has been identified as having critical demand for new schools. Specifically, the development would feed into Town Creek Elementary, nearing capacity with two modular classrooms in place and North Brunswick High School, which staff noted is at capacity even after adding 18 classrooms last August.
The school district’s projections, presented to county commissioners in October as part of a $349.6-million bond request, showed the severity. Due to a lack of space, BCS anticipates having to house 320 students in modular classrooms across the northern region in the next two years. High schools countywide are expected to exceed capacity by 2029.
During public comment, resident Shannon Curcio said school capacity hit home for her personally.
“My daughter here will be school age in two years,” Curcio said, “and I already have serious concerns about her safety and education at Town Creek Elementary School.”
Roadway safety was also a problem for residents. Green Hill Road is two lanes and about 2,200 cars take the route to U.S. 17 each day, according to NCDOT traffic volume data from 2022. A traffic impact analysis for the development indicates it would bring an estimated 11,814 additional trips per day.
Resident Haley McFarland said the road is already difficult, if not dangerous, to travel — particularly for emergency vehicles. She described instances of fire trucks struggling to turn onto U.S. 17 from Green Hill Road due to drivers failing to yield.
“Those minutes the trucks are waiting to pull out could very well have cost someone their life or their home, but 12,000 more cars a day, [at] the same intersection — are you actually kidding me?” McFarland said.
In light of the high influx of traffic, CLD Engineering suggested making 19 roadway improvements, to include signalizing the existing intersection at Green Hill Road and U.S. 17, as well as adding U-turn lanes on U.S. 17. Ryan Stevenson, a traffic engineer for the applicant, said if approved, roadway improvements would be a priority to complete first, in tandem with the early stages of construction.
Despite the commitment, some board members were skeptical and still concerned more vehicles in the area would worsen congestion.
“That section of road is already an absolute trainwreck. Period. End of story. Putting a light there is just going to make it worse,” Vice Chair Jason Gaver stated, referring to U.S. 17 and N.C. 87. He said the current light installed there has made the road “completely worse.”
Eventually, Gaver made the motion to deny the project, calling it an “easy” decision.
“To the applicants, I want to make sure you hear me very clearly — the plan you have presented is well done. Unfortunately, the area cannot support it,” Gaver said.
Board members Howard Stocks and Richard Leary voted against the denial, but did not voice their reasoning.
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