At tonight’s South West Citizens Advisory Council (SWCAC) meeting, one of the main topics is the rezoning case Z-21-10 [PDF]. The rezoning is on the corner of Lake Wheeler Road and Kirkland Drive, and based on last month’s presentation, a vote in support could take place during the meeting. The petitioners want to put an Ample Storage facility on the site. This could be the type of development that kick starts the right kind of growth that the Lake Wheeler corridor has been missing for the last few years. There are no guarantees about what development will go on a rezoned property.
Would you vote in favor of rezoning Z-21-10?
- no (50%, 2 Votes)
- yes (50%, 2 Votes)
Total Voters: 4
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The rezoning case is conditional use, meaning that certain restrictions are placed on the zoning (ie, use of the property). If the rezoning passes, those restrictions are effective for at least two years, which is the period before it could be rezoned again. The first round of conditions for this proposal were pretty basic and limited the case to no bars, night clubs, taverns, lounges, land fills, adult establishments, and caps the residential units at 14 units per acres. The second round of restrictions is more confining and will be presented at the meeting.
The land owners are eager to sell the property and Ample Storage is eager to broaden the facility they already have on Kirkland Drive. One of the exciting aspects about this type of facility are the additional businesses that a storage site of this size and convenience could attract.
Many small businesses that carry inventory require a place to store their goods. This location would offer a new location in Raleigh that is convenient to downtown and access to I-40.
The rezoning looks good on paper, but many CAC members are hesitant until they see facts in writing. Too many times, past rezonings have made promises that they couldn’t or didn’t want to keep. The intentions of this rezoning are good, but citizens will remind attendee’s that the SWCAC has been burned in the past.
The rezoning and potential development of this property could set the tone for future development along the Lake Wheeler Road corridor. Do we want something nice, trim, predictable, and respectable, or do we want to leave our future to faith and something that might be anti-productive to the character of our neighborhood?
Tags: ample storage, business, carolina_pines, community, district D, economic_development, growth, lake_wheeler_road, neighborhoods, real_estate, zoning
Nay to this project. I am for the classification of this parcel of land to SC from Residential, with SC being the more flexible use, but not for the purpose of building storage. A storage facility would not attract the right type of business. This parcel of land, along with the residential lots next to it on Lake Wheeler that are up for sale, has the potential to become a vibrant center for the adjacent communities. Placing a storage facility here would create a dead space which would at best serve a few people in the adjacent area, but probably just folks passing through to pick up or drop off stored items. This is already evident with many of the types of businesses down Kirkland (where the land is zoned Industrial), and the traffic at Lake Wheeler and I-40 certainly feels more like you are headed to an industrial area. We don’t need to further promote this condition. The area of Lake Wheeler near I-40 would be a prime location for the day to day needs of local residents, such as retail. As it is, if you are looking to get groceries somewhere other than Food Lion, you need to drive to Cary or to the other side of NCSU. Ditto for other public places such as restaurants. Just about anything you could want or need in our area requires you to drive a distance for it. I have my doubts that folks have been thinking, “I sure wish there was a storage facility closer to home. “
[...] Commission October 14th, 2010 by Jason Hibbets GD Star Ratingloading…You may have heard that Ample Storage is looking to build a new facility on Lake Wheeler Road. At the September 2010 meeting of the [...]