With new homes, Charlotte developer to revamp dangerous Lake Norman-area intersection
A Charlotte developer will revamp a dangerous Lake Norman-area intersection as it builds a large housing community approved Tuesday by the Mooresville Board of Commissioners.
Cambridge Properties will spend $1.5 million in road improvements at its Witherspoon Woods development, company president Jay Priester told the board.
The board unanimously approved a rezoning that includes up to 175 one- and two-story single-family homes on nearly 63 acres of former farmland at Kistler Farm and Rocky River roads in east Mooresville.
The developer spent three years working with town planners and concerned neighbors on a concept “that I feel will work for everybody,” Gary Witherspoon, whose family owns the property, said Tuesday during a public hearing.
Cambridge Properties significantly trimmed the number of homes proposed. The developer also agreed to road and other improvements, including a gate and 30 feet of vegetation between the development and the neighboring Woodlands community.
The developer will build a roundabout to ease traffic concerns at Kistler Farm and Rocky River roads, Priester said.
Per a traffic study required for the project, the developer also will build a northbound left turn lane on Coddle Creek Highway (N.C. 3) and an eastbound left turn lane on Rocky River Road into the development.
The development will preserve 17.85 acres, or 29% of the property, as open and active-recreational space. Included will be a neighborhood park, walking trails, an observation deck and seating areas, according to the developer’s rezoning application.
That surpasses the 25% requirement under town zoning rules, Cambridge Properties officials said. The developer also will build a pedestrian bridge and connect its trails to the nearby Dye Creek Greenway, Priester said.
Twice turned down, developer tries again
In March 2024, commissioners rejected the original Cambridge Properties plan for 299 homes, including 182 townhomes.
Commissioners sided with neighbors who mentioned what they called already dangerous conditions faced by children walking in the dark to nearby schools, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.
In July, commissioners denied the developer’s request for a waiver to the town rule requiring a developer to wait a year before bringing a rejected request back for consideration.
Commissioners may approve a waiver if the developer cuts the number of proposed homes and offers other ways to make the plan more agreeable to neighbors and town officials.
The new request eliminated all townhomes and trimmed the number of single-family homes by 124. That cut the density from 4.69 homes per acre to 2.81, which is fewer homes per acre than neighboring developments, Priester said.
In November, the Mooresville Planning Board unanimously recommended the new plan.
Homes will be of various styles, include at least 40% masonry exteriors and have two- and three-car garages, Priester said. The developer will install 10-foot wide sidewalks and 6- to 8-foot tall shrubs, he said.
“In my 14 years (on the board), I’ve never seen a developer work so hard with the neighbors,” commissioner Lisa Qualls said.
Commissioners also unanimously approved annexing and extending utilities to the site.
