Buncombe County board approves 107‑unit Emma Road townhome PUD over affordability objections

The Buncombe County Board of Adjustment on Saturday approved a plan unit development (PUD) to allow 107 townhome‑style units at 815 Emma Road, dismissing appeals by neighborhood residents and the community organization Poderema who warned the project risks displacing longtime mobile‑home residents and driving up housing costs.

Neighbors and community advocates testified the Emma neighborhood is unusually reliant on mobile homes and lower incomes, and said the proposed high‑density, townhome project would send a market signal that could accelerate sales, rent increases and future redevelopment. The board approved the PUD after hearing technical testimony from the developer’s traffic and engineering consultants and cross‑examination of market‑impact and appraisal experts retained by opponents.

The board’s approval was conditioned on the developer’s final site plan review and several site controls specified during the hearing, including property‑internal signage near Emma Road to warn drivers of pedestrians and a requirement that the developer request a sidewalk/crosswalk evaluation from the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and work with the agency. The permit also requires a recorded final plat and standard site‑development approvals before vertical construction.

Why the board acted: the board framed its decision around the PUD standards in the county ordinance and the testimony submitted during the evidentiary hearing. Proponents — led by developer Justin Coulter and his team — argued the project fits the R‑3 zoning district when regulated as a PUD, that traffic impact analysis reviewed by NCDOT showed acceptable levels of service, and that the applicant had made plan changes (unit moves, added sidewalks and privacy fences) after earlier hearings. The developer testified it will extend sewer infrastructure to serve the site and said it would consider reasonable mitigation conditions requested by the board.

Opposition and expert testimony: residents and the nonprofit Poderema presented three lines of evidence during…