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Board recommends Act 41 to change Chatham‑Cary plan for 6.51‑acre parcel; rezoning and annexation will follow
Summary
The board recommended approval of Act 41, a Chatham‑Cary Joint Land Use Plan amendment to change a 6.51‑acre parcel at 955 Ernest Jones Road from very low‑density to low‑density residential to allow annexation and review for up to 27 detached dwellings; staff and the applicant said utilities, changed ownership, and nearby parkland supported consideration, and rezoning will require later notice and council action.
The Cary Planning and Zoning Board voted to forward Act 41 to Town Council with a recommendation for approval. Act 41 requests a comprehensive plan amendment to the Chatham‑Cary Joint Land Use Plan for roughly 6.51 acres at 955 Ernest Jones Road so the parcel can be annexed into Cary, rezoned, and connected to Cary utilities.
Principal Planner Rachel Smith summarized the request and its context, saying the parcel lies west of the Wake County line near the American Tobacco Trail and several parklands and that, because the property is currently outside Cary's corporate limits and extraterritorial jurisdiction, an amendment is required before a Cary rezoning can proceed. "The applicant requests to amend the Chatham Cary Joint Land Use Plan for approximately 6.51 acres of property addressed 955 Ernest Jones Road in Chatham County," Smith said.
Applicant Matthew Carpenter, representing Toll Brothers and speaking for the developer, described the change as a narrow, technical request: the larger assemblage totals about 21.5 acres and the rezoning application seeks 27 detached dwellings overall; the amendment would allow eight units on the 6.51‑acre portion (instead of six under the prior very low‑density designation), leaving the project's aggregate density below plan recommendations. "The rezoning is only asking for 27 units. So the overall density is below the current recommendation," Carpenter said, noting changed circumstances since the joint plan's earlier mapping (common ownership, new nearby parkland and trail access, and the extension of utilities).
Board members asked technical and process questions: whether adjoining parcels are Chatham R‑1, the status of utility availability, and whether Cary residents received notice for the Chatham hearing. Staff said Chatham County sent notice for its hearing and that Cary's LDO does not require written notice to adjoining owners for comprehensive plan amendments (rezoning would later use Cary's standard written notice and neighborhood meeting procedures). The board discussed annexation and the interlocal process with Chatham County and the need for the rezoning to follow plan amendment approval by both jurisdictions.
Motion and next steps: A board member moved and the board voted to forward Act 41 to Town Council with a recommendation for approval; following a plan amendment, the rezoning application can proceed in Cary with standard neighborhood notice, a posted public hearing, and the separate rezoning review.
Key figures and limits: The applicant seeks initial Cary zoning of Residential‑12 conditional use with the Jordan Lake subdistrict to allow up to 27 detached dwellings across the assemblage (roughly 1.26 dwellings per acre for a portion, about 1.2 dwellings per acre overall as presented). The transcript shows Chatham County approved the corresponding amendment on its consent agenda and unanimously adopted the resolution in June; Cary's formal rezoning and annexation remain contingent on Cary Council action and the interlocal agreement process.
