Council holds public hearings on two rezoning requests; one parcel rezoned to B-3, staff seeks broader plan for gateway corridor

Mount Holly City Council on Tuesday considered two rezoning matters affecting gateway properties along West Central Avenue and Belmont/Mount Holly Road.

Paul Lowe presented a staff-initiated request to rezone about 18.15 acres along West Central Avenue from HI (Heavy Industrial) to B-3 (General Business), noting that the city’s future land-use plan designates the area as a ‘‘community corridor’’ intended for more commercial uses and limited residential development. Lowe said the planning commission held a public hearing the prior week and voted to recommend approval; staff also recommended approval. Nearby property owners and brokers who spoke at the public hearing — including Chris Hargett, who owns property at 801 West Central Avenue, and broker Zach Simpson — asked council to “work hand in hand” with property owners and suggested a master-plan approach rather than limiting uses to a single standard under B-3.

Separately, the council considered a rezoning for a portion of a 2.13-acre tract at 501 Belmont/Mount Holly Road (case R-253) submitted by Billy Rick to change the parcel from R-12 (single-family) to B-3 (general business). Rick told the council the commercial buyer under contract plans an 800-square-foot rear addition and needs additional rear parking, and staff confirmed the request was consistent with the statement of consistency in the council packet. After a public hearing with one speaker (Billy Rick), Councilmember Harris moved to approve case R-253; Councilmember Reeves seconded. The motion passed.

For the larger staff-initiated rezoning (R-252), city staff presented use counts for the districts (241 allowed uses in B-3 versus 56 permitted uses in HI) and said notice to owners exceeded state statutory requirements. Several members of the public urged flexibility — for example, retail or mixed-use on the frontage and limited housing toward the rear — and city staff said such phased or conditional plans could be pursued by future rezoning or master planning. The transcript for this meeting does not record a final council vote on the staff-initiated R-252 that night; planning commission recommendation and staff support were recorded.