BRUNSWICK COUNTY — With a few failed motions and some confusion over how to decide on a planned development, the Brunswick County Planning Board essentially nixed the 80-acre Willow Haven site plans earlier this month.
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On Oct. 13, five people of the seven-person board heard from G3 Engineering and Surveying, as well as county staff, regarding the 80-acre development, to be built over three phases. At full build-out, Willow Haven will consist of roughly 230 homes — a conservative estimate by G3’s account. However, the developer was only seeking approval for first 209 homes.
The majority of the property is in the rural residential low-density zoning district and one-third is located in the commercial low density district. By-right, this would allow around 342 homes to be built, so the development would bring fewer homes.
But issues arose for the board over the traffic impact analysis — or rather lack thereof. In Brunswick County, the North Carolina Department of Transportation requires a TIA for projects that meet a 2,000-vehicle-a-day threshold, set by the county’s UDO. An average traffic count, done by Access Engineering Traffic and Transportation Consultants, noted Willow Haven’s 209 homes would prompt 1,970 vehicular trips — just under the metric.
However, G3’s Brady Gantt admitted the full 230 planned homes near the intersection of Mill Creek Road and U.S. Highway 17/Ocean Boulevard Highway would put it over. The completed TIA will be required of the applicant when it needs approval to bring online the other 25 or so at a future date. The TIA is required by construction but not prior to coming to the planning board, Deputy Planning Director Marc Pages told the board.
“We will fully work with DOT, work with the county to get it approved,” Gantt said. “NCDOT is in the process of reviewing the full TIA of the development.”
According to Access’ early numbers, U.S. Highway 17 serves 34,000 vehicles a day in the vicinity, with Mill Creek bringing in around 800. Some residents took issue with these preliminary stats, saying they weren’t up to date.
“They didn’t do a good job,” Southport resident Jennifer Gates, who attended to speak on behalf of family living nearby the development, indicated.
Gates noted discrepancies used in years of pulled data, stating 2022 was used for Mill Creek Road, while the recent numbers actually show an increase in vehicles traveled.
According to NCDOT’s current traffic volume maps, in the last year Mill Creek near U.S. 17 filters through 1,082 vehicles, with 36,000 to 37,000 vehicles driving along the major highway.
“I could have done this from my desktop,” Gates said.
She also took issue with the three new developments being built nearby, wanting to know if they were considered as well when it comes to traffic.
“There needs to be more research into this,” resident Christi Merrick also suggested to the board.
The NCDOT completed a Driveway Warrant Analysis for the project and proposed road improvements. It would require a right turn lane at the entrance off of southbound Ocean Highway East and possibly expanding a left deceleration turn lane in the northbound of Ocean Highway East.
Andrew Hall, a commercial property owner to the north of the development, was not opposed to the subdivision. But he thought the possibility of a deceleration extension wasn’t enough and asked if a stoplight could be considered, seeing as another subdivision is building homes across the way.
“Seems like a lot of energy at that intersection,” Hall said.
Board Chair Clif Cheek pointed to it as a DOT matter. The department decides whether to add a stoplight and assess the scope of developments in relation to Willow Haven.
Pages also indicated the entrance into the development was a restricted portion of U.S. 17 by the NCDOT and thus will not allow more than one entrance into the property. Thus, staff has asked for the entrance route to be 40-feet wide, in order to accommodate emergency vehicles or other motorists that may need to pass by in the event of an accident.
Flooding also drew concerns. Pages said all proposed lots would be outside of the AE flood zone, however a flood study, approved by NCFlood and FEMA, has to be carried out before ground can break on the project. The development has wetlands onsite, which won’t be built upon.
Yet, the property is bordered by Harris Swamp, identified as a floodplain that could encroach some of the lots. If this proves true in the study, the developer would have to remove lots 195-207 and 234-241.
Stormwater ponds will be built to a 100-year flood event and recreational space, 3.89 acres, is more than the county requires (2.46), as is open space at 16.59 acres over the 16.37 mandate. A 50-foot buffer front Ocean Highway is requested of staff, which has become the norm and will be included in the upcoming revision of the county’s unified development ordinance, Pages said. The rest of the property will consist of a 30-foot peripheral buffer.
All are exceptional design elements according to staff, as are flexibility in the designs, including a reduction in lot dimensions and setbacks.
Still, Cheek and board member Jason Gaver were skeptical in regard to public safety, particularly over traffic. Gaver made a motion to deny the project, but it failed to get a second.
Board member Howard Stocks, who said he passed by the site daily, understood the realization of traffic impacts. Yet, he also sympathized with the applicant coming before the board now: “Because working with DOT can be cumbersome.”
Stocks’ colleague, William Bittenbender, then made a motion to table the vote and readdress with the full board in November. But it also didn’t gain traction.
Stocks made a motion to approve the plan, also failing a second.
“We’ve never been here before,” Gaver said, suggesting the motion to table it once again. He asked Attorney Ryan King if it was legal to include reasoning that the full board can’t come to a decision and wait until all members are in attendance.
“You should not be tabling it based on how you think other board members will vote on it,” King said.
“But we’re stuck in this weird place, where we haven’t approved it, we haven’t denied it, tabling isn’t an option,” Gaver said, to which the attorney disagreed on the latter.
King confirmed tabling is OK, but it should come with feedback to the applicant — specifically, be explicit why G3’s plans didn’t meet the wishes of the board.
Both Cheek and Gaver mentioned not having problems with the site development plan itself, but Cheek expressed concerns over not knowing the full scale of the TIA, the scoping analysis in relation to traffic and how it could affect public safety. He requested the board come back when the TIA is complete and also address the plan with the 25ish additional homes, suggesting the flood study may be complete by then as well.
Cheek, who normally breaks a tie vote only, asked to make a motion. Instead of tabling it, he suggested denial.
It passed 3-1, with Stocks opposed.
“It’s denied as presented, but we look forward to seeing it again,” Cheek told the developers.
The board’s determination can be challenged in Superior Court. Port City Daily reached out to G3 Engineering to see what its next steps may be but didn’t hear back by press.
The NCDOT didn’t answer when the Willow Haven TIA would be complete, only that it remains in development.
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