LELAND — The Town of Leland will consider offering Sunset Land Investments LLC $164,000 in economic incentives associated with a 162 single-family townhouse development planned off Mt. Misery Road, currently outside town limits.
Council will review basics of the offer Thursday, however, the economic development agreement is not complete. Also, key details including where the $164,000 will come from, are not yet available.
Related: Leland could pay Brunswick Forest developer $3.3 million in incentives
According to Leland’s clerk, although Council will review the topic Thursday staff will bring back associated materials for reconsideration at a later date.
Sunset Land Investments LLC is planning a 41-building townhouse development dubbed Hilltop Townes. Located at the corner of Highway 74, Village Road, and Mt. Misery Road, Sunset Land Investment’s 28-acre property is up for annexation, initial zoning, and an economic development agreement at Leland Town Council’s Thursday meeting.
The project will bring the town an additional $61,000 in annual property taxes upon full buildout, and a projected $79,000 in sales taxes, totaling $140,000 in new revenues.
Incentives on the rise
If the town continues the pattern established so far this year, the funds may derive from system development fees. These fees are paid by developers to the town, kept in a separate account, to connect to the town’s existing utility infrastructure. At more than halfway through the year, Leland has already obligated itself to pay $1,025,000 in economic incentives for three projects using this method.
However, incentive payments may differ in the Sunset Land Investments offer. In each other project — $525,000 to Hawthorne Waterside in February; $100,000 to Bishops Ridge in May; $400,000 to Buster Development in August — Leland used utility extension and access bargaining power. It doesn’t have that option with Sunset Land Investments, which is currently in Brunswick Regional Water and H2GO’s service district.
Also at its meeting Thursday, Leland could opt to pay Brunswick Forest’s developer, Funston Land and Timber, a maximum of $3.3 million in economic incentives. These incentives would cover the developer’s estimated costs to extend utilities west of Military Ocean Terminal Sunny Point (MOTSU) in its effort to build nearly 1,800 new homes.
In total, including the Sunset Land Investments proposal, Leland could bring its maximum obligated incentive total to $4,497,750, if all items are approved Thursday (however, a decision on Sunset Land incentives will likely be pushed back given the agreement is not yet finalized).
Background, utilities
In December 2018, an applicant on behalf of then-property owner Port City Community Church submitted a voluntary annexation petition to the town to annex the largest parcel, at 26-acres.
The petitioner, Charles Poindexter, was at the time pursuing annexation and approval for Bishops Ridge, a 92-unit townhouse development off Highway 17. Ultimately approved and granted a $100,000 incentive, Bishops Ridge was delayed multiple times because of flooding concerns due to the project’s proximity to the floodplain and homes hit hard by Hurricane Florence in Stoney Creek.
The property switched hands to Sunset Land Investments LLC, which continued the original voluntary annexation petition, adding two additional adjacent parcels, totaling 28.4-acres.
All three parcels are currently zoned commercial low-density in Brunswick County. Leland is proposing to rezone the three parcels to R-6 medium residential density with performance standards (you can find details about those standards here).
Hilltop Townes will be served by Brunswick Regional Water and Sewer H2GO for both water and sewer, according to town documents.
A site concept plan shows the project’s entrance will be on Mt. Misery Road.
Hilltop Townes concept plan by Johanna Ferebee on Scribd
Send tips and comments to Johanna Ferebee at johanna@localvoicemedia.com
