Despite not knowing what will be built on the property, the New Hanover County Board of Commission on Monday, Nov. 2 approved rezoning eight acres of property on Gordon Road for business district.
Though there were concerns about traffic, ownership and compliance with the county’s land use plan, the commissioners voted 5-0 to approve rezoning the property at the 6700 block of Gordon Road. The zoning will change the land from a residential district to a highway business district.
David Harner, of Paramount Development Corporation in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, told the commissioners that because his company had to act quickly on purchasing the property, it hasn’t had time to develop a plan for its use.
However, he said the lot, located near the intersection of Netherlands Drive and Gordon Road, didn’t work for a residential project. The lot is located across the street from Cape Harbor Apartments and near Eaton Elementary School.
“We looked at some residential layouts, but didn’t like them,” Harner said. “We are more of a commercial development company and the site lends itself to a commercial use.”
Harner said the site would be appropriate for an “office flex” development that could include retail stores in the front and more industrial or “business incubator” type businesses in the rear. He said it could look like the nearby Dutch Square Industrial Park.
A representative of Cape Harbor Apartments said the owners supported the project.
However, commissioner Rob Zapple said with no site plan, there was no way for the board to know if the project would comply with the land use plan.
“If we don’t know what’s going to be there, how can we say with surety that it will match up with the draft plan?” Zapple asked.
Harner said his company couldn’t yet commit to a development plan, but said it would fit within the zoning requirements.
“I could show you a site plan, but in six months, it could go in an opposite direction,” Harner said.
Commissioners also said they had concerns about traffic, especially with a school in the area.
“Regardless of what we do, we have to do a traffic impact study,” Harner said. “If we do a high-traffic development, we have to mitigate traffic concerns.”
The approval did not come without some unexpected last-minute drama, as one resident, Albert Samuel, said he was related to the original owner, Thalia Dukes. After Dukes was declared incompetent by the court, attorney Lawrence Craige was appointed her guardian and sold the property.
Samuel said he did not approve the property sale and signed away ownership rights under duress. Commissioners investigated the claim, while Commissioner Woody White said Craige’s firm was reputable.
New Hanover County Manager Chris Coudriet said there was no mention of, or issue with, the court order during the planning board hearing. White said that there would be opportunities to revisit questions about ownership. Commissioner Beth Dawson, who originally had questions about the property’s ownership, said she was convinced that the proper ownership was established.
email [email protected]
