Charlotte Council approves Pfeiffer rezoning

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A developer’s request to rezone a Pfeiffer University campus for redevelopment was approved by the Charlotte City Council on Monday.

Johnson Development Associates Inc. plans to build up to 360 apartments, a building with up to 17,000 square feet of retail and offices, and a parking structure on the 5 acres on the south side of Mockingbird Lane in the quickly redeveloping Park/Woodlawn area.

City planners said the site plan implements a desired mixed-use development concept by committing to ground-floor retail space at Park Road and Mockingbird Lane.

The rezoning petition was one of several approved by the council.

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

Johnson Development agreed to purchase the property from Pfeiffer, which plans on providing classes in other space.

The parking structure will include more than 610 spaces, with an estimated 520 exclusively for residential use, attendees were told at a required community meeting in February.

The proposed average apartment rent would be $1,700 a month and most units would be one  and two bedrooms.

After approving projects, the council turned to zoning hearings, during which they heard concerns from many residents over developers’ plans to redevelop 1.68 acres at East Seventh Street and North Caswell Road in the Elizabeth neighborhood for a mixed-use project; to build 180 age-restricted multifamily units on 6 acres on the west side of Randolph Road between Sloane Square Way and Rutledge Avenue; and for a Love’s Travel Stop and Country Store at Sam Wilson Road and West Pointe Drive.

Residents expressed concerns about noise, traffic and congestion, but the planning staff recommended approval of each if certain issues could be resolved.

FCD-Development Inc. said it wanted to rezone 1.68 acres on the northwest corner at East Seventh Street and North Caswell Road to redevelop a site in the Elizabeth neighborhood with a mixed-use development that would include residential, retail, eating and entertainment establishments and office uses.

The project site plan calls for up to 125 multifamily residential units and 30,000 square feet of nonresidential uses, of which up to 15,000 square feet can be devoted to retail and eating and entertainment establishments, planners said.

At a community meeting in January, neighbors raised concerns about the impact of the proposed development on traffic. Many felt the project would exacerbate an already existing traffic problem in the area.

On Monday night, area resident Melanie Sizemore told council members that density and parking were two critical issues that needed to be resolved.

The site is zoned for neighborhood services and FCD-Development wants a change to mixed-use development with optional provisions.

The proposed building height is 60 feet, which drew opposition from council member Patsy Kinsey, who lives in the Elizabeth neighborhood.

The proposed height is inconsistent with the neighborhood area plan, which recommends a maximum building height of 40 feet along Seventh Street, except for a small corner element of 60 feet at Seventh Street and Caswell Road.

“I can’t go for that,” Kinsey said. “I’m nowhere hear happy with this project.”

On Randolph Road, a plan for 180 age-restricted multifamily units at the site that has been home to the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry fraternal organization also drew area residents’ opposition.

The project calls for three buildings with a density of 29.9 units per acre.

One resident, Richard Gibson, urged city officials to reduce the project’s size substantially or, he feared, it would overwhelm single-family homes and townhomes nearby.

Ben Liebetrau a Charleston, South Carolina, director of Greystar, the developer, told council members the project would help meet an “unprecedented” demand for senior housing in Charlotte, especially for those ages 70-74.

The facility wouldn’t be an assisted-living project, he said.

A public hearing on a proposed rezoning to allow a Love’s truck-stop facility, including a convenience store, attached restaurant and a tire shop on 10.2 acres at Sam Wilson Road and West Pointe Drive, also drew residents’ opposition.

Joe Stevens, who lives nearby, said he was concerned about traffic and noise, but Chad Bruner, a Love’s representative, said the site was in a growth corridor and surrounded by industrial uses.

The project would provide a needed stop for truckers and lead to dozens of jobs, he said.

In other actions Monday, the council approved:

*A request by Hopper Communities to rezone 4.55 acres in the Seversville neighborhood for up to 85 new single-family attached residential units, at a density of 18.86 units per acre. The Hopper Communities project would be on land owned by New Bethel Church Ministries Inc. on the north side of Wesley Heights Way, west of Duckworth Avenue and east of Walnut Avenue. The site is less than 500 feet from the proposed Lynx Gold Line Phase 2 streetcar route along West Trade Street.

*A petition by Johnson C. Smith to rezone 1.6 acres on the west side of Beatties Ford Road, north of Mill Road and east of Campus Street in the Biddleville neighborhood, for renovation and expansion of the Old Mt. Carmel Baptist Church building for classrooms and university offices.

The university also would construct an adjacent building not to exceed 12,000 square feet, along with an accompanying parking lot, for its School of Social Work. Further, the university would convert an existing duplex and single-family home to its use or to provide housing for university-affiliated faculty or individuals.

*A petition by Robert Keziah to rezone 7.75 acres at the end of Distribution Center Drive off Statesville Avenue near interstates 77 and 85 to allow light industrial uses. The land is owned by the estate of Nancy C. James and the petition proposes to rezone a vacant parcel in the Crosspoint Industrial Business Park.

Meanwhile, the city of Charlotte’s petition to rezone 12.5 acres of former Eastland Mall property on the east side of Wilora Lake Road between Justin Forest and Hollyfield drives that will allow for a new school was deferred until April 25.

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