ASHEBORO — The Asheboro City Council met Thursday, February 9, with one public hearing and a few funding items on the agenda.
The council opened the meeting with a public hearing that was continued at last month’s meeting for a rezoning application for a property on Golda Avenue in order to construct a multi-family development.
“This is an application filed by Darren Lucas, who is the owner of the property,” said Community Development Director Trevor Nuttall. “It is a request to take the property from a medium-density residential district (R10) to a high-density (RA6) conditional zoning district for a multi-family development. It’s about 8.5 acres in size, and the property is currently undeveloped.”
Since the January meeting, the applicant made some changes to the plan in order to placate the concerns brought up at that meeting.
Some of those changes included the reduction of total units from 46 to 44, the addition of at least 10 more feet of landscaping buffer on the western property line, and the full continuation of a sidewalk around the property.
However, one of the biggest concerns over the project was the projected traffic impact on a road that already needed improvements.
“Since last month’s meeting, city staff has met to make a recommendation in terms of roadway improvements that would make sense for Golda Avenue in light of its current conditions and in light of this proposal,” Nuttall said. “The staff’s recommendation is for a roadway with new asphalt to be applied to Golda Avenue at either the conclusion of the construction of this project, so as to not damage new surfacing that we may put down, or if the project doesn’t move forward, for the city to do that project as we had originally identified.”
So according to Nuttall, the city will be responsible for repaving and widening Golda Avenue, but will wait for the completion of the project so that the heavy trucks and machinery do not destroy the repaving.
Following the hearing, the council voted to approve the rezoning request.
“I think the concerns of those who were primarily in opposition were relative to the access as it related to Golda Avenue and secondary to Lamar Avenue and then also the closeness and proximity to the back of those properties on Lamar Avenue,” said Councilmember Clark Bell I think the developer has tried to address those and the city has addressed the width of Golda on a consistent basis.”
The council then approved a memorandum of understanding with the North Carolina Department of Commerce to allocate $55 million in funding to construct a water transmission line to the Chatham Advanced Manufacturing Site once a deal between Wolfspeed and the Chamber of Commerce is finalized.
“We have been heavily involved in the economic development for the Chatham Advanced Manufacturing Site,” said Water Resources Director Michael Rhoney. “Particularly the Wolfspeed project. The state has allocated $55 million to the city of Asheboro to construct a water transmission line to the site. In the August meeting, I came to you to share that we were going to contract with Piedmont Triad Regional Council to let them help us provide professional services and do strategic management so that we can get all the players in Randolph County, the municipalities, the county and ourselves, together to figure out a plan and to get the water line from here to there. The department of commerce needs the city to sign a memorandum of understanding so that we have the agreement with them in place.”
The council then approved two change orders relating to the Zoo City Sportsplex Project.
The first was Change Order Number 6 from Terry’s Plumbing and Utilities, which adds $698,496.73 for additional rock removal, an additional retaining wall, additional grading, concrete work, conduit for electrical lines, final grading around fields 5-8 from turf installation, additional change order work for fields 3-4, and fencing.
The second was Change Order Number 7 from Terry’s Plumbing and Utilities, which is $402,260 for seven picnic shelters.
“Those are seven picnic shelters, and a couple of them are really large, like 50 or 60 feet long and 30 or 40 feet wide,” said Mayor David Smith. “They’re various sizes, and they’ll be all over the place.”
The final action was to approve the allocation of $75,000 from the fund balance in order to finance a tribute band concert series.
“We’re requesting funding for a partnership with Downtown Asheboro, Inc for the second year of a four-band, Friday night tribute concert series,” said Finance Director Deborah Reaves. “It was very successful in 2022, and so the city and DAI are partnering again to do that in 2023. Our bands are 1964, which is a Beatles tribute band in May; the Petty Breakers, which is a Tom Petty tribute band in July; On the Border, which is an Eagles tribute band in August; and a Stevie Wonder tribute band.”
The City of Asheboro Council will next meet March 9.
