NEW HANOVER COUNTY — The New Hanover County fire marshal won’t stand in the way of Hilton Bluffs, whose development team is now pushing the project forward with one access point to the 1,800-home development.
Copper Builders and Paramounte Engineering representatives were present in Wednesday’s New Hanover County Technical Review Committee meeting to discuss revised plans for Hilton Bluffs with New Hanover County staff.
The meeting did not include approval of the plans, as staff noted Copper Builders would need to make some changes based on the feedback received.
READ MORE: Hilton Bluffs’ plans updated with one access point, developer seeking exception to fire code
Despite some back-and-forth with the Fire Marshal David Stone over whether the project could proceed with one access road, Stone said Wednesday he could not require a secondary access road per North Carolina Session Law 2021-183 Senate Bill 308.
“However, one roadway access for a development of 1,800 units does raise significant fire safety concerns,” he said.
The state fire code requires at least one secondary entrance for emergency access with developments of Hilton Bluffs’ size. However, the state law cited by Stone states the fire code official “shall either not require two fire apparatus access roads” or allow for alterations to make some sort of access road possible for developments where compliance is “technically infeasible.”
Stone initially issued a letter to Copper Builders in June permitting one access point, though he rescinded his decision a month later, calling it “premature.” The initial determination was made when Copper Builders had cases pending with the county board of adjustment involving two access points into nearby Wooden Shoe and Marathon Colony neighborhoods.
Residents of the subdivisions subsequently filed an appeal with the county to remove the access points, stating they went against the neighborhood covenants. The developers removed the access points at its July BOA hearing and told Port City Daily the deal was reached after Stone’s initial letter permitted a sole access point.
When Stone rescinded his decision, Copper Builders appealed to the state fire marshal’s office.
Stone’s stance in Wednesday’s TRC meeting seems to render the appeal to the state moot.
Around 10 people spoke during the TRC’s public comment period raising concerns about the single access road, due to the property’s proximity to the Cape Fear River and location within a coastal community prone to hurricanes and flooding.
“Would you move your family into a neighborhood with only one way in and out that is located in a hurricane-prone coastal county amid extensive wetlands with portions in the FEMA floodplain, is adjacent to a designated hazardous waste site, is surrounded on three sides by tidal waters in a community that would generate more than 14,000 daily car trips a day on a single road?” Castle Hayne resident Mary Anne Cray said. “This project is unsafe for our community as well as destructive towards our environment, you should look out for its citizens, not the developers.”
If the road becomes impassable for any reason — even just traffic unassociated with inclement weather — fire crews could struggle to respond to emergencies and residents could be left isolated, many speakers feared.
Aside from Wooden Shoe and Marathon Colony, Copper Builders said it sought out a secondary access with all other adjacent property owners, which are already limited because the property is largely bordered by wetlands in Sledge Forest and the Cape Fear River. These property owners included Nuclear Fuel Holding Co., Inc. (General Electric) and three individuals — Robert Payne Jr. and Laurie Payne, Kevin Hommes, and D. Webster Trask.
Copper Builders said the property owners did not agree to an easement using their land after 14 months of negotiation. Additionally, the General Electric property was ruled out due to “sensitive materials, controlled operating conditions, and site security requirements.”
On Wednesday, Stone acknowledged the developer’s efforts to establish a secondary access point, as required by the state fire code, were infeasible due to rejected property easements. However, he requested the developer “re-examine adjacent property easements” to confirm a road connection is indeed infeasible.
If Hilton Bluffs was to move forward with one access point, Stone said Copper Builders would need to comply with Section One and Appendix B107 of the state fire code.
Part of the requirements include prohibiting subdivision residents from parking on the neighborhood’s streets to ensure a fire lane remains open. Stone asked this requirement be stipulated in the HOA covenants.
Per the TRC comments, each home within Hilton Bluffs would also need to include a sprinkler system.
Additionally, the roads will need to be 26 feet wide, exclusive of curbs, to ensure firetrucks can turn around. Allison Engebretson, a landscape architect from Paramounte, said her team would need to ensure the access road from the entrance meets this requirement; she also noted the developers would most likely incorporate valley curbs, built to withstand the weight of firetrucks.
The technical review committee also made several other comments unrelated to Stone’s assessment on Wednesday, though most remained consistent with comments provided on the original site plan.
A representative from the planning department noted the revised plan triggered the requirement for a second road stub for future connection, aside from the one included in the current site plans. Engebretson said she would work with adjacent property owners to ensure the stub is best placed for a potential future connection.
Most of the public commenters acknowledged the TRC’s mandate to approve the plans if the development meets the land code, but urged the TRC to require strict adherence.
“Require this project meet every single requirement and condition before you ever consider whether to approve it, because a developer’s poor choices and profits should never come before the safety and the well-being of the good people in this community,” Kayne Darrell, founder of Save Sledge Forest, said in the meeting. “Approval should be earned, not guaranteed.”
Both Sam Franck, attorney for Copper Builders, and Jerod Patterson, president and CEO of the Business Alliance for a Sound Economy, urged the TRC committee to follow the land code in regards to the approval of Hilton Bluffs.
They also didn’t believe TRC should allow public comment; the county confirmed the ordinance allows for interested parties to speak at the TRC meeting.
“Let TRC be the TRC and keep public input where it can actually inform and contribute to the decisions that are being made at the given time,” Patterson said.
Port City Daily asked when the plans would be approved by the TRC and the appeal status still pending from the Southern Environmental Law Center regarding Hilton Bluffs’ original site plans.. The SELC appeal is scheduled to be heard by the board of adjustment on Sept. 22. However, it is unclear if SELC will need to file a new appeal based on the revised plans, if the TRC indeed approves them.
A New Hanover County spokesperson said it could not comment on pending litigation.
The SELC, who also had representatives speak at the meeting, did provide a statement after the meeting:
“We appreciate the County taking time to hear public comment today, which is expressly required by local ordinance when reviewing this type of development. In exercising this opportunity, we raised several issues that warrant careful consideration. These issues focus specifically on the application of technical standards, precisely the task before the TRC. We respectfully urge the TRC to carefully consider the relevant concerns and comments raised today and in written comments from the Southern Environmental Law Center and the concerned, interested citizens of Castle Hayne.”
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