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Blowing Rock council approves conditional rezoning for Shops on the Parkway, 4-1; requires added parking
Summary
The Town Council approved a conditional rezoning for phase 1 of the Shops on the Parkway redevelopment, allowing three residential buildings (27 units) and imposing conditions including upgrading 3 additional parking spaces (total 64) and architectural upfits if later phases are not built.
The Blowing Rock Town Council voted 4-1 on Aug. 12 to approve a conditional rezoning for Shops on the Parkway that allows a phase 1 buildout of three residential buildings and related site work, with conditions including an increase in the project's parking to 64 spaces.
The ordinance rezones the roughly 17-acre parcel at 278 Shops on the Parkway Road to a conditional zoning district to permit redevelopment from a single-level retail center to a mixed-use center. The council's approval covered only phase 1, described by the applicant as three condo buildings containing 27 units.
Kevin Rothrock, the town's zoning administrator, told council the applicant's revised phase 1 reduces the condominium portion from an earlier 34 units to 27, splits a single long building into three shorter buildings (each about 96 feet long), and lowers maximum roof heights so the tallest gables would not exceed the revised 52-foot limit identified for phase 1. The applicant also changed exterior materials away from heavy stucco toward vertical board-and-batten siding, bark siding, rock and primarily architectural shingles with metal used as accents.
The proposal originally provided 61 parking spaces. The town's code calculation would require 64 spaces for the mix of two- and three-bedroom units; council added a condition increasing the project's required and provided parking to 64 spaces as part of the approval.
Rothrock and the applicant's team said stormwater detention on the site will be modified with bioswales and drainage structures to ensure there is no increase in runoff. The applicant agreed to provide a sidewalk connection to the Middle Fork Greenway and to make dumpster screening and landscaping upgrades where existing site deficiencies were identified.
Council also accepted a staff-recommended condition intended to protect the town's visual character if the applicant builds only phase 1 and then stops. Under that condition, if the applicant elects not to proceed with subsequent phases, upfits to the remaining shopping-center buildings'including painting, roofing, siding, rock treatments and timber features'must be completed within 36 months of issuance of the final certificate of occupancy for phase 1.
Rothrock said the conditional rezoning creates a site-specific zoning district for the whole parcel; any future phases would require separate submittals to the planning board and council and could not be built without subsequent approvals.
Motion and vote: A motion to accept the proposal as presented (with staff and planning-board recommendations) was made and seconded; the motion was amended on the floor to require a total of 64 parking spaces for phase 1. The council voted: Kat Berry, aye; David Arwood, aye; Melissa Pickett, aye; Doug Matheson, aye; Mayor Pete, no. The motion passed 4-1.
What was approved tonight covers only phase 1 as depicted in the applicant's revised site plans. The council did not, and will not, approve future phases as part of this vote; any later phases would return to planning board and council for review and approval.
Key project details cited at the meeting include: phase 1 reduced to 27 units (21 two-bedroom, 6 three-bedroom), three buildings of approximately 96 feet in length, a maximum building height capped at 52 feet for phase 1, initial parking proposed at 61 spaces and amended to 64 by council, required sidewalk connection to the future Middle Fork Greenway, stormwater treatment upgrades, and a required cosmetic upfit to the remainder of the shopping center if the developer does not proceed within the specified timeframe.
Council members spoke in support of the redesign'noting reduced massing, more green space and changes to materials'while some members and members of the public had earlier expressed concern about density, short-term rentals and long-term traffic or commercial impacts. The applicant reiterated that nothing beyond the three buildings could be constructed without return to the town's review process.
Next steps: The ordinance as conditioned will be filed as the town's conditional zoning for the parcel; future phases will require separate planning-board review and council action.
