The City Council talks about the need for development in East Greensboro at every meeting, but rezoning requests for property in East Greensboro are routinely voted down.

In keeping with that tradition the Greensboro Zoning Commission voted down a request to rezone 34 acres from Guilford County Agricultural to Greensboro Planned Unit Development (PUD), for a residential community at 3617 and 3635 McConnell Road on Monday, Sept. 16.

Since the land is currently in unincorporated Guilford County, it would have to be annexed and receive city zoning which means the issue has to go before the Greensboro City Council.  In cases that involve annexation and original zoning, the Zoning Commission only makes a recommendation.  This request will go to the City Council with an unfavorable recommendation as a motion to deny the zoning request made by Zoning Commissioner Ray Trapp passed by a 4 to 3 vote.

Almost all the opposition to the request was from the Clapp family members who said that the proposed residential community was not compatible with their farming community. But the handwriting is on the wall for that area, as Commission Zac Engle noted the Zoning Commission has seen three requests in the past year for this area of McConnell Road near the interstate.

Among those speaking in favor of the request was Madison Carroll representing the Carroll Companies which owns the Innisbrook Village Apartments that are directly across McConnell Road from the property up for rezoning.

The Generalized Future Land Use Map (GFLUM) designates the area as Mixed Use Corporate Park.  Amanda Holdierne of Isaacson Sheridan who was representing the property owner, William Causey, and the developer, Evolve Companies, noted that mixed use corporate park was designated as a mix of uses including residential.  Holdierne said that this would be a unique development of 150 units with free standing homes, townhomes and apartments with the amenities and on site management of a large apartment complex.

The planning department recommended against the zoning because according to its report residential is supposed to be a supporting use while corporate uses are the main use. However, these 38 acres are a small portion of the extremely large area designated Mixed Use Corporate Park by the GFLUM.

The majority of the Zoning Commission agreed with the Planning Department that the property should not be developed for residential use and next month the City Council will have the opportunity to weigh in on what mixed use corporate park means.

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