Plans announced for 2,400 south Charlotte homes + new middle school
Developers announce plans for 2 sites of 100+ acres each
This article appeared in the Feb. 1, 2023, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, a morning newsletter with original and relevant local news for Charlotte. Free and paid versions available. Find out more.
Today's Charlotte Ledger is sponsored by Aetna:
Developers rush to file rezoning changes to avoid new UDO; 2 plans totaling 2,400 homes off Providence Road + new middle school in south Charlotte
Developer Childress Klein and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools disclosed plans Tuesday for 917 homes and a new middle school in the Rea Farms area of south Charlotte — one of a flurry of significant rezoning applications filed in the last few days ahead of a key deadline.
by Tony Mecia
If you like following commercial real estate in Charlotte, it’s been a big week.
Developers have been disclosing new plans with abandon in the last few days, ahead of a midnight deadline last night to have their rezoning petitions considered before new regulations take effect.
Documents filed in rapid succession Monday and Tuesday revealed a wide range of plans across the city, including:
the site of a new middle school in south Charlotte
900+ new homes on 125 acres in Rea Farms
a 1,500-home redevelopment by 3 developers on 115 acres along Providence Road
large industrial buildings in University City and the Beatties Ford Road corridor
apartments in Elizabeth and Dilworth
preserving a historic school on West Boulevard and converting it into apartments
an expansion of the Harris YMCA in the SouthPark area
The filings from the last two days total more than 3,300 homes — the majority of which are contained in plans for two huge developments off Providence Road in south Charlotte.
Typically, the city receives a handful of rezoning petitions a week, and it considers only 16 a month. On Monday, it received 9, and on Tuesday, it received 21.
This week’s rush to disclose plans stems from the City Council’s approval of the new Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) in August. It doesn’t fully take effect until June, but the city set a Jan. 31 deadline for rezoning changes to be submitted and considered under the existing ordinance.
People in local real estate say the UDO’s rules aren’t necessarily tougher on developers, but that there is uncertainty on how the city will interpret different passages. The city has also indicated that it considers the UDO to be a work in progress and subject to regular revisions.
Referring to the existing zoning ordinance, one real estate source told The Ledger, “The real advantage is we understand it.” Another called it “the devil we know.”
City beats city’s deadline: As if underscoring the point, the city itself filed two rezoning petitions on Tuesday, just hours ahead of the deadline, for the redevelopment of its uptown bus station and a planned temporary bus site. The documents that the city-run Charlotte Area Transit System filed with the city’s planning department said the petition “is filed under the existing Zoning Ordinance as a precautionary step to permit possible flexibility in design and construction.”
In most cases, the filings represent plans for the distant future. The ones filed this week won’t be considered by city staff until May or June at the earliest, starting an approval process that usually lasts at least 4-6 months. Many developers are hoping that any economic or financial uncertainly lifts before then.
Some of the highlights from this week’s red-hot rezoning action 🔥 include:
New middle school + 917 homes: Childress Klein and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools filed documents detailing plans for a “mixed-use residential community with large walkable open space.” It would include 682 apartments, 211 townhomes, 24 single-family houses and a new CMS middle school. It’s on mostly vacant land along Tom Short Road with access from Golf Links Drive west of Providence Road.
1,500 homes, retail redevelopment along Providence Road: