Yadkin County Planning Board approves rezoning for 3924 Shady Grove Church Rd., 3-2

Chair Peregrino-Brimah presided over the Yadkin County Planning Board meeting on May 11, when the board approved rezoning Case RZ26-005 by a 3-2 vote. The zoning change applies to parcel 146348 (3924 Shady Grove Church Rd.), a 6.5-acre vacant parcel now in watershed class WS-IV, and would change the zoning from Rural Agricultural (RA) to Residential Limited (RL).

Kaelan Everhart, Planning/Zoning Officer, presented the case and outlined the differences between the RA and RL districts. He told the board: "The purpose of the Rural Agricultural district is to maintain a rural development pattern where single-family housing is intermingled with agricultural uses, not having access to public water and sewer systems." He also summarized the county's 2023 Land Use Plan goals, citing Goal 6 (promotion of a diverse housing base) and Goal 1 Objective 4 (preserve productive rural lands).

Ricky Roberts, partner with Myers Investment, said the applicant intends to place five doublewide manufactured homes on the property and that the homes would be new and listed for sale. Board members pressed staff and the applicant on utilities and density: Kaelan Everhart explained dimensional rules including a cited minimum lot size of 30,000 square feet under certain conditions and noted that, because the parcel is in watershed WS-IV, development is additionally constrained and the county's lot/density rules limit the number of homes per acre.

Board members were divided. Hiram Poplin argued the rezoning would advance the county's housing-diversity goal and would not materially harm the rural character; Chair Peregrino-Brimah said rezoning "will be allowing 2 more homes and they will not be able to place a singlewide manufactured home," noting the RL district places more restrictions on housing types. Steve Brown expressed reluctance to convert RA land and worried about precedent. After discussion, Hiram Poplin moved to approve RZ26-005, citing the Land Use Plan references; Danny Carter seconded. The motion passed with three votes in favor and two opposed (James Hobson and Steve Brown).

The board recorded and signed a Statement of Consistency indicating the decision aligns with applicable rezoning guidelines in Section 111-101(c) of the Zoning Ordinance and the county's land use policies. The meeting adjourned after the vote.

What happens next: The rezoning approval allows the property owner, listed in staff materials as Myers Investment, to pursue subdivision and permitting consistent with the new RL zoning and applicable watershed and lot-size requirements. The transcript does not state subsequent review steps or a construction timeline.