Planning board recommends conditional rezoning for Hampstead corridor site: 50 townhomes, 20 single-family, 3,800 sq ft commercial

The Pender County Planning Board voted to recommend approval of a conditional zoning map amendment (Rezoned 2025-90) for roughly 20.35 acres along U.S. Highway 17 in the Topsail Township, near Edens Lane and Union Bethel Road. Staff and the applicant presented a revised plan that proposes 50 townhome units, 20 detached single-family lots and a 3,800-square-foot commercial building fronting Highway 17.

Staff presentation and project history

Daniel Brantley, planning staff, reviewed the site and the proposal’s history. He said the property had previously been the subject of a denied higher-density application (September 2024) that proposed about 240 multifamily units and larger commercial space; that prior application had been recommended for denial by the planning board and withdrawn before proceeding to the Board of Commissioners. Brantley told the planning board the current submission reduces proposed residential density substantially and reduces commercial square footage. “They've gone from 240 multifamily units to 70 single-family units,” Brantley said, and the current design shows townhomes and single-family detached units with two access points to U.S. 17 and stub connections for future interparcel connectivity.

Brantley outlined staff’s analysis: the gross density proposed is about 3.46 units per acre, well below the earlier, withdrawn proposal (roughly 12.8 units per acre). He said the project would generate about 1,000 daily vehicle…