Henderson County Homes added to large subdivision

One of the biggest subdivisions ever planned in Henderson County got a little bigger Thursday night.River Stone, now being built between Butler Bridge and North Rugby roads, won county approval last year as a "planned unit development" of 524 homes on 176 acres. Under changes the Board of Commissioners approved Thursday, River Stone will have 538 homes. The developers got the go-ahead to buy 3.86 additional acres where they plan to build the 14 additional homes.Even before Thursday night's action, River Stone was the second largest subdivision ever approved in Henderson County. The only one bigger is Carriage Park, with 695 homes, county planner Matt Card said.River Stone is part of a Henderson County development boom that saw a record 2,647 subdivision lots approved last year.The project's homes will be clustered on 132 acres, leaving 47 acres of open space, said Drew Norwood, president of Windsor-Aughtry Co., which is building River Stone.Homes in the development will range from $145,000 for a 1,500-square-foot, three bedroom, two bath home to $250,000 for ones up to 3,000 square feet. Originally planned with 250 "starter" homes geared toward young families, the project now plans 176 in that category, Norwood said. The number of homes geared toward retirees has been increased from 125 to 225, with the balance planned as larger "first move up" homes.The new homes will be of the larger type. They will be located in the north portion of the land, once part of a dairy, near the eastern one of two entrances off Butler Bridge Road. With large subdivisions popping up across the county, commissioners recently appointed an "alternative revenue task force" to explore ways to raise revenues for new schools other than the property tax. Windsor-Aughtry voluntarily agreed to contribute $250 to Henderson County Public Schools for each home sold in River Stone.

Hendersonville neighbors of proposed development express concerns

Neighbors of a proposed development that would bring 280 condo units to Signal Hill Road expressed concern about traffic during a planning meeting Thursday.Florida-based CSMK LLC is seeking city approval for a gated community with four six-story residential buildings complete with underground parking, an outdoor pool and tennis courts. Fountain View Resort Residences would be on eight acres of undeveloped land behind Home Depot off Signal Hill Road near Hyder Street.

Keowhee

View from Lake Keowhee. This developer plans on placing about eight more of these units on the lake front? I've been going to this lake since I was a child. It's becomong more and more like Lake Norman.

Polk board gives initial nod to 32-unit Warrior Ridge project

A proposed townhome development on Warrior Ridge that sparked controversy about building on mountaintops is a step closer to moving ahead.The Polk County Planning Board approved last week the preliminary plat for the 32-unit project, although it appeared to do so reluctantly.Gorden Threlfall, the board’s acting chairman, said the project complies with current county requirements, so there’s no basis for rejecting it. “As a member of this board, I must follow the law, even if it breaks my heart to do that,” he said.Following the planning board’s unanimous vote to grant approval, Threlfall took a moment to address the crowd of concerned residents “as an individual.” He explained that the planning board asked county commissioners to adopt stricter land use requirements for mountaintop subdivisions, but the county board declined to do so.“If you have an argument with this board (about this decision), I would suggest that it’s not with this board,” he said. “We can’t change state law or county law, we can only make recommendations and we made that recommendation (to the county board).”

Slope regulations for Polk may wait for GIS

Residents who want to regulate mountainside development in Polk County by incorporating slope regulations into county ordinances may have a while to wait. Polk County commissioner Jack Lingafelter requested at Monday’s commissioners’ meeting an update on the status of the county planning board’s efforts to regulate building on slopes. Lingafelter said it seems that more and more counties in Western North Carolina are becoming concerned about building on slopes. He asked planners what Polk County can do. Erin Burris of Benchmark, the county’s planners, said that slope regulations would be best implemented after the county’s geographics information system (GIS) is complete, which could be two years from now.

Haywood County Slope proposal supported at hearing

A public hearing on a proposed slope development ordinance in Haywood County revealed what appears to be a shift in attitudes toward mountainside development. Several years ago, a public hearing of that sort would have drawn crowds of angry protestors insisting on freedom to do what they pleased on their land. But no such comments were voiced. Instead, one speaker after the other — many from within the development community itself — agreed that it was time to regulate steep slope development. The ordinance requires developers to submit a slope stabilization plan if a cut-and-fill slope exceeds certain thresholds. Currently, anyone with keys to heavy machinery can slice a road through the mountain or carve out a house site. The ordinance would require a certified professional — such as an engineer — to develop a slope stabilization plan for development that exceeds the threshold.