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Hickory council approves rezoning for Council on Aging site despite neighbor stormwater concerns
Summary
The Hickory City Council unanimously approved rezoning petition 25-04 to allow the Catawba County Council on Aging to buy a roughly 4‑acre site at Acorn Lane and Clark Way and develop community‑serving facilities; neighbors raised stormwater runoff concerns during the public hearing.
The Hickory City Council voted unanimously on Oct. 21 to approve Rezoning Petition 25‑04, clearing the way for the Catawba County Council on Aging to pursue a site at the intersection of Acorn Lane and Clark Way.
Planning Director Brian Frasier told the council the property — owned by Catawba Valley Medical Center/Catawba County — is currently split zoned R‑2 (residential) and CC‑1 (community commercial). "The applicant is requesting to rezone the property in its entirety to community commercial CC‑1," Frasier said during his presentation.
Frasier described the parcel as roughly four acres with sole access from Zion Church Road via Clark Way, located adjacent to medical and commercial uses along the NC‑127 corridor. The Planning Commission held a public hearing on Sept. 24 and voted unanimously to recommend approval; staff said the rezoning is consistent with the Hickory by Choice 2030 comprehensive plan given the site’s access and surrounding land uses.
Neighbors who attended the Planning Commission hearing and the council public hearing expressed concern about existing stormwater runoff and the potential for increased runoff if the site is redeveloped. Frasier said the county applicant’s engineers would be required to meet current stormwater controls and work with city staff to ensure post‑development runoff would not worsen conditions for the properties behind the site.
Vicki Blevins, representing the Council on Aging, told the council the nonprofit has served local seniors since 1976 and that the Mountain View property would allow outdoor space for walking trails and gardening. She said the Council on Aging has an accepted offer on the parcel that is conditioned on the rezoning and that the organization would start fundraising for construction after acquiring the land.
The council opened a public hearing, heard the support statement from the Council on Aging, and then approved the rezoning by a unanimous voice vote. No specific site plan or construction funding was presented to the council at the hearing; Frasier and staff said future grading and stormwater plans would be reviewed through the city’s development-review process.
Key details from the record: the applicant is the Catawba County Council on Aging; owner is Catawba Valley Medical Center/Catawba County; access is via Zion Church Road/Clark Way; planning staff described the request as consistent with the comprehensive plan; neighbors raised stormwater concerns; Planning Commission recommended approval; council approved the rezoning.
