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Town staff recommends amending RZ‑2401 open‑space donation to conservation easement; public hearing next
Summary
Senior planner Patrick Grama presented RZ‑2401, a 56‑acre conditional rezoning (Harris Tract) that would create Neighborhood Mixed Use, Open Space and Residential Mixed Use zones; staff recommends amending the applicant’s proposed donation of the open‑space parcel so the land is instead protected by a perpetual conservation easement.
Patrick Grama, senior planner, presented a conditional rezoning request (RZ‑2401) for roughly 56 acres between Harris Road, Wall Ridge Drive and Devon Square Boulevard owned by Jane Pate and proposed by Church Street Company.
The proposal would rezone about 9 acres to Neighborhood Mixed Use Conditional (NMX), about 26 acres to Open Space Conditional, and about 21 acres to Residential Mixed Use Conditional (RMX). Grama described the proposed uses and rezoning commitments, including a cap of up to 400 residential units in the RMX district, with up to 300 multifamily units and a townhome limit described as “the lesser of 100 units or 25% of total units” in the conditions.
Staff flagged one contested condition: condition 8 would require the applicant to donate the open‑space parcel to the Town of Wake Forest or a conservation entity designated by the town prior to issuance of building permits; if the town declined, the obligation would terminate one year after first building permits. Grama told council staff recommended deleting or amending that condition and instead placing the open‑space zoned parcel into a perpetual conservation easement because of steep topography and liability concerns.
Transportation commitments in the rezoning application include several turn‑lane and access improvements along Harris Road, Purnell Road, Wall Ridge and Devon Square Boulevard and monitoring some intersections for future signalization with proportional fee‑in‑lieu payments if signals become warranted. Grama said some improvements could be built within existing right‑of‑way.
Planning Board history and recommendations: the Planning Board heard the request in December 2024, continued it to late January and at the January meeting recommended approval 6‑0, finding the rezoning consistent with the comprehensive plan. The Planning Board recommended two items for council consideration: that 5% of multifamily units be set as affordable at 80% AMI and that if the town does not accept ownership of the open space the applicant add a perpetual conservation easement as a condition.
Grama said the applicant has not provided revised conditions since the Planning Board recommendation. Staff’s recommendation to council is approval with modification to condition 8 (conservation easement rather than town ownership), and staff notes the proposed open space could count toward unimproved open‑space requirements for the NMX and RMX districts but could not be used to satisfy improved‑park or active‑recreation requirements.
Councilors asked about senior housing options, exterior and site quality controls without a site master plan, the width and composition of buffers adjacent to Joiner Park, and whether the proposed road widening would intrude into park property. Grama said residential care facility uses (including age‑targeted 55+ housing) are listed in the allowed uses but are not guaranteed; development quality would be addressed through the town’s master‑plan and architectural review and the rezoning conditions would run with the land. He said the planning staff could work with the applicant to add a supplemental planting/buffer condition if the council wanted to request it.
Next steps: the council scheduled a public hearing and will act on RZ‑2401 at an upcoming council meeting. No final council vote on the rezoning was recorded during the presentation.
