Asheville council denies conditional‑zoning amendment for Meadows at New Hawk Creek after floodplain and access concerns

Asheville City Council voted on Nov. 18 to deny a conditional‑zoning amendment for the Meadows at New Hawk Creek, a planned 27.05‑acre development at 767 New Hawk Creek Road that would have added 49 single‑family lots and 35 townhomes.

The motion to deny, made by a council member who asked to be recorded as the mover in council minutes, said the amendment was not reasonable or in the public interest and was inconsistent with the city’s comprehensive plan. The motion cited reliance on proposed infrastructure (a vehicular bridge and related fills/retaining walls) that, the motion said, could cause substantial negative impacts to the environment, existing infrastructure and neighboring properties.

Staff planner Sam Starbaum told council the amendment would change the site’s vehicular access and noted the property remains zoned as 'residential expansion' under the Unified Development Ordinance; he emphasized the council should evaluate the application against those residential‑expansion standards rather than RS‑4 rules. The applicant’s attorney, Derek Allen, argued the Sleepy Hollow access condition included in the 2024 approval had been rendered void by the city attorney because the condition relied on property the applicant did not control; Allen said the amendment simply acknowledges that the development must comply with the underlying ordinance that directs access to an arterial/collector (New Hawk Creek Road). Allen and the developer said the bridge and updated hydraulic modeling show no meaningful upstream or downstream impact and that previously negotiated concessions (tree canopy preservation, public greenway easement, sidewalk extension and discounted lots for nonprofits) would remain.

Opponents, including multiple Hawk Creek residents and several technical speakers, told council the revised site plan places engineered fills, retaining walls and a new vehicle bridge inside or adjacent to the Haw Creek floodplain and wetlands. Local ecologists and residents said the bridge plus embankments would reduce floodplain storage, increase downstream flood risk and could function like a berm or partial dam in heavy storms — concerns heightened after recent flooding from Hurricane Helene. Several speakers asked council to require an updated hydrologic and hydraulic (H&H) model and other technical specifications before approving any major modification to the access across the floodplain.

Supporters of the amendment, including neighborhood association leaders and housing advocates, urged approval to move forward with housing production and the pedestrian and sidewalk connections that the approved plan would provide. They said delays worsen an affordable‑housing shortage identified in the Bowen housing report; supporters described the project as 'missing‑middle' infill near planned sidewalks and transit and said the concessions negotiated last year matter to the neighborhood.

Council members debated alternatives during the meeting, including conditioning the project on the applicant securing a legal access via Sleepy Hollow (including a potential eminent‑domain path), asking the developer to pursue a NCDOT driveway permit to New Hawk Creek Road, or denying the amendment and leaving the applicant with the previously approved plan and its continuing uncertainty. After public comment and extended council discussion, the motion to deny carried. The denial leaves open other legal or administrative avenues the applicant may pursue — including seeking permits from NCDOT or pursuing a judicial determination.

The council’s decision ends this amendment request for now; council and staff said project‑level technical reviews and future staff or county coordination may still occur if the developer pursues alternate routes or permits.