More urban apartments, townhomes proposed

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Residential construction shows no signs of abating, with developers filing rezoning petitions to build condos, townhomes, and apartments across the city.

In addition, plans are underway for a retirement community on Randolph Road; a large mixed-use development at the Highland Mill northeast of First Ward; and the conversion of a Plaza Midwood warehouse into a brewery.

The Charlotte City Council will hold public hearings Feb. 15 on the requests.

Rockwell Capital is seeking to build up to 16 for-sale duplexes and 51 condos on 2.7 acres at Marshall Place in Dilworth. According to site plans, the duplexes would not exceed heights of 40 feet, while the condo building would contain structured parking and be no taller than 50 feet.

The proposed development south of Atherton Street and east of Euclid Avenue would include 32 on-street parking spaces and 16 surface spaces. The site is currently used for commercial and single-family purposes.

Rockwell Capital is seeking a rezoning to urban residential with conditional uses from single-family residential and general business district.

Last year, the Charlotte City Council denied a rezoning request by Pulte Home Corp. to build up to 37 townhomes at the site. The city staff had found the development plan was inconsistent with the Dilworth Land Use and Streetscape Plan, which requires single-family residential areas to maintain a density of four units per acre or less. The developer’s proposed density was upwards of 13 units per acre.

The property is near South Boulevard, where the Lynx Blue Line light-rail system has sparked a development boom in recent years, with transit-oriented projects sprouting up along the formerly depressed area.

Northwest of uptown, Hopper Communities hopes to build up to 85 townhomes on nearly 5 acres bordered by Wesley Heights Way, Auten Street and Walnut and Duckworth avenues. The townhomes would be no taller than 50 feet, site plans show.

New Bethel Church Ministries owns the tract, which is zoned for single-family residential and conditional urban residential use with a pedestrian overlay. Hopper Communities wants to rezone the property to urban residential conditional with a pedestrian overlay and site-plan amendment.

Pfeiffer redevelopment

And south of uptown, Johnson Development Associates Inc. is seeking a rezoning to build up to 360 apartments and 17,000 square feet of ground-floor retail at the site of Pfeiffer University’s Charlotte campus on Park Road south of Mockingbird Lane.

Plans call for demolishing the current campus and constructing one large building that would not exceed six stories, or 80 feet, in height. The site also would include a parking deck, fitness center, courtyards and a pool.

Johnson Development would construct a private street beginning on Mockingbird Lane that would provide vehicle circulation along the eastern edge to the southern side of the parcel facing Seneca Place.

The company has an agreement to purchase the property from Pfeiffer, which plans on providing local classes in other space, said Ben Graves, president of Johnson Development’s multifamily division. Financial terms of the acquisition haven’t been disclosed.

The Pfeiffer campus is just two blocks south of Montford Drive, which has become a popular nightlife destination with several bars and restaurants and a bowling alley. It is near the Park Road Shopping Center and other retailers, making the site attractive for potential apartment renters looking for walking-distance amenities.

Established in 1885, Pfeiffer University is a private liberal arts college based in Misenheimer. The school also has a satellite campus in Morrisville.

Johnson Development is seeking a rezoning to mixed-use development with optional provisions from conditional mixed-use development.

And in south Charlotte, Greystar GP II wants to build an age-restricted residential development on 6 acres west of Randolph Road and south of Sharon Amity Road. Plans call for up to 198 apartments in a building that would not exceed three stories, or 50 feet, in height. It would include two motor courts with garage access and two courtyards.

The property currently has a single-family residence on it and is home to the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry fraternal organization.

Greystar is seeking a rezoning to urban residential with conditional use from single-family and multifamily residential with conditional use.

Also on Sharon Amity Road, Chen Development is proposing to build 19 townhomes on 1.4 acres. The development would have a minimum of 27 on-site parking spaces. The property, west of Woodlark Lane and east of Providence Road, currently has single-family homes on it. Chen Development wants to rezone the tract to urban residential from multifamily residential.

To the southwest, BNA Homes wants to add up to 74 townhomes on 9.5 vacant acres north of South Tryon Street and east of Wrights Ferry Road. The townhomes would not exceed two stories, or 38 feet in height, and the residences would be limited to 18 buildings or fewer.

The company plans to break ground on the project this summer if its petition is approved.

BNA wants to rezone the property to multifamily residential with conditional use and distributive business district with conditional use from single-family residential.

Retail proposed for mill

As for commercial real estate, White Point Partners and Paces Properties are seeking a rezoning to build a 175,000-square-foot mixed-use project on nearly 12 acres slightly northeast of uptown. The property, in the Optimist Park neighborhood, fronts North Brevard Street between Belmont Avenue and East 16th Street. It features the Highland Mill, which the developers plan to refurbish to include office, retail, event space, and a food hall.

According to site plans, a maximum of 60,000 square feet of gross floor area may be devoted to retail sales and eating and drinking establishments. The project would include a minimum of 449 surface and structured parking spaces and pedestrian plazas.

The developers are among those attracted to the planned extension of light-rail service from Ninth Street in uptown through the North Davidson and University City areas. Parkwood Residences has requested a rezoning to build up to 351 apartments on 3.5 acres bordered by North Brevard and North Caldwell streets and Parkwood Avenue, and Wood Partners of Atlanta is awaiting a City Council decision on its bid to build up to 280 apartments at North Brevard and East 25th streets.

Area projects that have already received the green light include 300 Parkwood’s plans to build up to 50 apartments on 1.0 vacant acre on the south side of Parkwood Avenue between East 17th and East 18th streets. And, further east, Southern Apartment Group will build up to 250 apartments and renovate a 1920s-era warehouse on 3.6 acres on 27th Street between North Davidson Street and Yadkin Avenue. Developer DAMBCA was also given approval this year to build up to 147 apartments in a mixed-use project on the east side of Matheson Avenue between North Brevard and North Davidson streets.

The Lynx Blue Line Extension is slated to begin operating in 2017.

In other developments, Phillip McLamb wants to rezone two adjacent parcels to repurpose an existing warehouse on Central Avenue into a brewery and taproom. McLamb plans on adding a second-floor mezzanine to the warehouse, which sits on 1.0 acre on the north side of Central Avenue nearly across from Veterans Park. It is two buildings to the east of Tommy’s Pub, a neighborhood fixture slated to be demolished to make way for a controversial mixed-use project of 97 residential units and 4,800 square feet of commercial space.

McLamb has petitioned for a rezoning to mixed-use with conditional provisions from neighborhood business district.

In other developments:

*Johnson C. Smith University wants to renovate Mt. Carmel Baptist Church’s two-story brick building on Campus Street to accommodate offices and classrooms. The school also wants to construct a new university building on adjacent property at the corner of Beatties Ford and Mill roads. The university wants to rezone the 1.6-acre property to mixed-use with optional provisions and pedestrian overlay from neighborhood business district with pedestrian overlay, multifamily residential and multifamily residential with pedestrian overlay.

*Stor-All Properties Inc. has filed a rezoning request to construct a climate controlled storage facility of up to 100,000 square feet on 4.1 acres in southwest Charlotte. The property, east of Wrights Ferry Road and west of Steelecroft Parkway, is zoned for single-family residential purposes. Stor-All Properties has petitioned for a change to distributive business district with conditional use.