Board continues Averette plan for a month

A sizable contingent of Averette Road neighbors were in the Wake Forest Town Hall meeting room Tuesday night for the controversial rezoning and master plan for the large Averette subdivision, a continuation of the Tryon subdivision now being built. But they were disappointed because there was no vote.

Instead Mayor Vivian with the approval of the five commissioners continued the questions about the annexation, rezoning and master plan until the town board’s November meeting.

Jones acknowledged that, since the planning board had recommended disapproval of the subdivision plan by a seven to one vote, the developer, Tryon, could request another public hearing in 45 days, during which they could make changes.

The town’s attorney, Eric A. Vernon with Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton, said Wednesday the Unified Development Ordinance gives an applicant the right to request another public hearing if the planning board recommends denial. “The applicant notified staff that it was reserving its rights to ask for a new hearing. It has 45 days from the October 1 joint public hearing to exercise its right to a second hearing. That request means the board had to delay consideration of the matter.”

The current request for the Averette subdivision from Tryon Investment Partners II LLC is for 677 single family homes and 288 townhouses, 965 dwelling units in all if built as requested. The rezoning would change the status of 272 acres, mostly woods and farm fields. The new subdivision would stretch to NC 96, Zebulon Road. There is a fuller explanation of the Averette plan in the Sept. 25 issue of the Gazette.

The neighbors did get to applaud Frank “Spank” McCoy, whose property abuts the proposed subdivision, during the public hearing on its annexation. McCoy asked the town board to delay adopting the plan or approving the annexation for six months or until six errors in the application are corrected. Those errors are providing a final map, not the “preliminary for review only” map; the list of petitioners does not match the property ownership map; an easement is not shown which runs from McCoy’s and Donini’s property to Averette Road; an unnamed stream which flows into Austin Creek does not have a Neuse River Basin buffer on the map; the location of some buffers is missing; and, importantly, the developer plans to move earth to divert 8 acres from the Smith Creek watershed to the Austin Creek watershed.

McCoy said the developer calls it insignificant to divert water from the 8 acres – 0.38 percent of the watershed or 8.86 million gallons or enough to fill 13 Olympic swimming pools – that will be dumped into Austin Creek which flows through the Rock Ridge subdivision where McCoy lives. “It presents an increased risk of Rock Ridge road (Winding Way) flooding,” McCoy said. That is a private road and it will be the residents who have to repair it.

McCoy asked for the six months continuance “to allow time to resolve the watershed appeal as provided in the Wake Forest UDO and for the town board to avoid the appearance of negligence or indifference.

Hugh Nourse, who lives on Wait Avenue (NC 98) east of town, spoke to protest adding 900 more dwellings in the area. “I doubt that 98 can handle that traffic.” He said the state Department of Transportation is supposed to widen the road but it has been delayed until after 2025.

The public hearing about the annexation was continued until next month also.

The board did vote to annex a new subdivision being built on land owned by Alice “Ginny” Soule on Wall Road, Sanctuary Oaks, 18 detached single-family residential lots and 48 duplexes on 14.6 acres.

Two people spoke during the public comment section of the agenda. Robert Champion of 913 Siena Drive said that a neighbor parked her SUV in front of his house for several months and refused to move it. The parked car made it difficult to back out of his driveway, Champion said, and there is limited sight distance at that section of the street because of a hill. He said there is no town ordinance banning a car being parked in front of someone else’s home and suggested there should be.

Louise Springer who lives on Heritage Springs said the signs the town uses now to advertise that there will be a rezoning or other change in status of a property are small and difficult to see. “Why can’t developers be made to publish their projects” in a local newspaper, she said. As it is, with a rumor mill going, “there is so much misinformation” about projects. She also noted that Rolesville has a new express bus to Wake Tech, Triangle Town Center and downtown. She asked about Wake Forest’s plans for a park and ride lot.

Part of the consent agenda approved unanimously was another step in completing the Smith Creek Greenway. The town will contract with Kimley-Horn for right-of-way services along the future corridor for $197,150, a Clean Water Management Trust Fund project.

The board did agree to approve the update to the comprehensive transportation plan and “provisionally” agreed to sign the historic consolidation agreement with the Wake Forest Fire Department effective July 1, 2020. It is provisional because the fire department’s board of directors has not yet met to sign the agreement.