Lexington council approves Magna Gray conditional zoning after negotiated changes and traffic analysis

The Lexington City Council on Feb. 2025 approved a conditional zoning ordinance for a 130-acre Magna Gray residential subdivision off Plaza Parkway and Fairview Drive after the developer and neighborhood representatives reached new conditions over the weekend.

The vote followed a multi-hour public hearing and a staff presentation on the conditional zoning process and potential site constraints. City planning staff and the developer presented a traffic impact analysis and a revised site plan; neighborhood advocates and attorneys described negotiated conditions that they said addressed primary concerns about connectivity, buffering and future access.

The zoning change approves a site plan showing up to 357 dwelling units with a stated maximum of 375 units; the developer presented the plan as low-density relative to the city's land-use plan, at about 2.71 units per acre on the current layout. Tom Terrell, attorney for Magna Gray, said the applicant removed townhomes from the proposal and committed to single-family product types. Terrell said the project will include 28% natural open space, a roughly 3,000-square-foot swimming pool and cabana, two pickleball courts, playgrounds and three designated school-bus stop locations with shelters and lighting. He said Mr. Floyd, Magna Gray’s principal, estimates roughly $6,000,000 in grading costs to address steep topography and streams on the site.

Planning staff and the developer described multiple traffic-engineering analyses. Chase Smith of DRMP, the transportation consultant referenced by the developer, reported that the study modeled background growth and improvements and that most modeled intersections would retain their level-of-service category into the projected build year; one intersection was modeled to see an average delay increase of about 12–13 seconds. The developer agreed to construct turn lanes for the new Fairview access and to fund required roadway work tied to NCDOT permits. NCDOT Division 9 staff described separate, locally administered projects and reviewed turn-lane geometry that will be required for the Fairview access.

Neighborhood representatives and counsel for adjacent subdivisions described four substantive additions to the planning-board conditions that were negotiated with the developer over the weekend. Those additions (accepted by the developer and incorporated into the ordinance) include removal of specified lots and minor realignments on the site plan, limits on grading behind certain lots (graded only to achieve required slopes), a requirement that Kensington Drive be closed through the city’s statutory process with the city initiating the closure and the developer paying closure costs, and a guarantee that a utility easement connecting the site to Kensington will be no wider than 40 feet and not be paved or become a through street. The developer also agreed to place a berm at the Kensington entrance to prevent vehicle access; that berm and a covenant in the homeowners association were described as measures to prevent future vehicular connection to Kensington or Highgate.

Councilmembers asked detailed questions about street cross-sections, speed-calming, curb-to-curb widths, the homeowners association’s role in enforcing on-street parking restrictions, and environmental protections. Staff said stormwater, sedimentation and erosion controls must meet state and local standards and be reviewed during civil plan review. The applicant agreed that all infrastructure will be built to the city’s Infrastructure Development Standards (LIDS) and that cul-de-sacs would follow LIDS limits.

Council considered and approved a statement of consistency and reasonableness that said the proposal supports the 2022 land-use plan’s objective to supply varied residential building types and to protect established neighborhoods through open-space and edge treatments. The statement passed 5–3. The council then adopted the conditional zoning ordinance, with the final ordinance including the planning-board conditions, the four negotiated additions and the berm condition. The final adoption vote was 5–3.

The ordinance requires the developer to build the West Bypass segment crossing the property, construct a new connection road (labeled Road J) to Fairview Drive south of Highgate Lane, provide a 50-foot access easement to Fritz Street for future connectivity, and construct required turn lanes and other traffic improvements as part of the development costs. The ordinance also establishes design standards: prohibited vinyl siding on primary facades, a minimum number of one-story plans and other façade and setback requirements, limits on on-street parking for lots under 50 feet, and HOA responsibilities for common-area maintenance and stormwater device upkeep.

Councilmembers who opposed the ordinance cited remaining traffic and compatibility concerns. Supporters said the negotiated changes, additional buffering and legal commitments from the applicant reduced the development’s impacts. The developer and staff said additional technical reviews and permitting steps remain before building permits are issued.

The council’s action now directs staff and the developer to proceed with the conditional-zoning implementation steps in the ordinance, the LIDS civil-plan review and NCDOT permitting for state-access work. The city also will initiate the statutory process to close Kensington Drive; the applicant agreed to pay the publication and recording costs required by state law.