Developer, landscape architect unveil plans for Carraway Residential Phase III

GOVERNMENT

By Adam Powell
Correspondent

On the evening of Monday, April 14, the Town of Chapel Hill held a public information meeting to discuss a conditional zoning application for a proposed development at 115 Chapel Point Road near the existing Carraway Village community. The project is currently being proposed under the name of “Carraway Residential Phase III,” and is being developed as an extension of the initial two phases.

Wendi Ramsden, a landscape architect at Thomas & Hutton, a Durham-based firm assisting developer Northwood Ravin with the project, was joined by Town of Chapel Hill planner Charnika Harrell and Northwood Ravin representative Adam Golden in presenting the proposed project, which will likely come before the Chapel Hill Town Council sometime this fall.

Development calling for 120-130 or more units, including townhomes, single-family, multi-family

In the presentation, Ramsden highlighted the project’s location on a triangular piece of land running parallel to Eubanks Road behind the existing Carraway Village residential development to its immediate north of the existing village, and running along the I-40 freeway corridor near its exit with Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. (Exit 186).

The development will include between 120 and 130 residential units, with a focus on low-density housing and public spaces. Plans call for a mix of single-family homes, three-story townhomes, and three-story multi-unit buildings, with the multi-unit buildings located along the westernmost boundary, farthest from the freeway corridor.

While current plans call for a range of 120 to 130 housing units, there is a possibility that the number could increase, given the Town Council’s desire for higher-density and affordable housing options for residents.

“The total number of units is about 120 to 130 units,” Ramsden said. “The town has asked us to look and see if there’s a way that we can add a little bit more density. So we are looking for ways to add just really a handful more units. We’re not talking hundreds more – just a handful more than maybe 130 (units).”

Plans call for a mix of multi-family, townhomes, and single-family homes, as well as surface parking, a stormwater mitigation pond, and recreational amenities, including a greenway trail and playground. The project will maintain green spaces and a stream buffer, and will feature pedestrian-friendly sidewalks and connectivity to existing trails.

The immediate area has experienced rapid growth, with both commercial and residential development in recent years. A Starbucks and a Chick-fil-A are nearby, and an adjacent Wendy’s restaurant is currently under construction. While there is retail development in the initial phase of Carraway Village along Eubanks Road, including a Park and Ride lot with bus stops that head into downtown Chapel Hill, this newly proposed phase of construction is intended entirely for residential use.

“This project is going in to the north of what has been built so far,” Ramsden explained. “The site is quite large. It’s this big triangular area. The proposed area that we’re developing is right next to what is already existing (within Carraway Village residential). Really, this project is an extension of the village to the north with additional residential units. What we’re proposing is all residential.”

Plans to leave freeway buffer, stream running through property largely undeveloped

The residential development will be centered on a 6.4-acre segment of the property, located along the south and southwestern borders, closest to the existing community, and south of a stream that runs through the middle of the property. Ramsden explained that the residential development will avoid the steep slopes and wetlands within some regions of the land tract, and the landscape buffer along I-40 will keep its existing tree foliage.

“There is a stream that runs through the middle of the site, and we are keeping all of the development to the south of that stream,” Ramsden explained. “We’re really keeping the development away from the majority of the sensitive areas on site. The other thing we’re doing is I-40 – we are keeping that existing forest buffer in place as the buffer between the residences and the highway.”

Any proposed development in the areas zoned RCD (Resource Conservation District) will be strictly limited to stormwater mitigation and the proposed greenway trail that will run through parts of the property. There will be two points of access for the new community, if approved by the council later this year.

Plans to continue Chapel Point Road through Phase III

Ramsden indicated that Northwood Ravin plans to continue an existing road, Chapel Point Road, which enters the community and accesses the multi-family buildings along the western property boundary.

“We are going to have car access, or vehicular access, from the west,” Ramsden explained. “There is a street right now – Chapel Point Road – that dead ends at our property line. So the road is going to be a continuation of that Chapel Point Road coming through and accessing multi family buildings on the west end, then through some town home clusters, and then it will come down and connect to the existing driveway network that is part of Carraway Village phases one and two. And we’re proposing to have some homes on the east end.”

The landscape architect indicated that the road through the site will connect the driveway area from the existing development and extend to the road that passes by a recently constructed self-storage building, then continue out toward the location of the buses and parking area.

Goal to create harmony with the initial phases of Carraway Village

The Phase III architecture for this newest segment of Carraway Village will be designed to complement the existing initial two phases of Carraway Village residential development. Northwood Ravin aims to integrate this new phase seamlessly with the existing ones, creating a harmonious blend that feels like an extension of what is already there.

“We’re looking at having some public open space that will be like a grill area and some gathering space for the people who live here,” Ramsden explained. “It won’t be just concerning to the people who live in this phase. One thing to point out is that when you’re on the ground, this development will feel just like an extension of Carraway Village. You’re not going to see signs that delineate this as being different from the development that’s already there. It is just going to be an extension of what is already built.”

Ramsden added that there are current plans to construct a trail through the site, coming along the east side of the property, that will connect to an existing trail and come through the site and come down into the proposed green space, connecting to the newly-built greenway trail that was installed as part of the Carraway Village Phase I and II developments.

“There’s going to be some green spaces throughout the site,” she said. “Sidewalks everywhere are going to be very pedestrian friendly, and (we’ll) make sure there’s a lot of connectivity, so that all the people here (in Phase III) are able to walk into the rest of Carraway, the earlier phases of Carraway Village, and also out toward the bus (lines and) transportation area.”

“We’re adding sidewalks that will connect to give people lots of opportunities to be able to get into the rest of the development and use the facilities, and also to be able to come over and use the retail area,” Ramsden continued. “There are plans to – and I think they’re underway right now – to develop some more park space within the first phases of Carraway Village. But there will also be some small park areas in the area that we’re proposing – the new area (Phase III).”

“We don’t have a lot of design right now for what the outside of these new buildings will look like, but the phase III architecture will complement what is existing in Caraway village right now,” she continued. “Lots of sidewalks, some street side parking, but very pedestrian friendly, with lots of green spaces. Architecture, as I say, of the new buildings, will complement what is going on here.”

Plans call for affordable housing component to present this fall to Town Council

Ramsden and Northwood Ravin representative Adam Golden confirmed that affordable housing units are planned, and the project is expected to be presented to the city council in the fall.

“We haven’t finalized our affordable housing program for this project,” said Golden. “It will have its own affordable housing component. Some number of units within the community will be at affordable housing ranges. We haven’t finalized that yet that. There’s a lot of back and forth we do with the town staff to come up with the right program for the site. But that (affordable housing component) will be included. That’ll all be presented. That’ll probably be a big component at the public hearings, and when we go in front of Council and the Planning Commission.”

“We’re still working through some revisions and just some detailing with the creative staff, planning and engineering and the Fire Department and and those kind of reviewers,” Ramsden added. “But we would expect to go to Planning Commission and council in the fall.”

Adam Powell has been a correspondent for The Local Reporter since 2023. A 2001 graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, Powell has served as managing editor of multiple local publications, including the News of Orange County, the Mebane Enterprise, the Caswell Messenger, and the ACC Sports Journal. Powell has won more than 20 North Carolina Press Association Awards throughout his journalism career for Excellence in Education Reporting, Excellence in Sports Columns and Features, and Excellence in Video Production. He has also been recognized by the North Carolina School Public Relations Association (NCSPRA) for Excellence in Education Writing and for his newsletters representing Rockingham County Schools and the North Carolina Cyber Academy. The author of four books. Adam currently resides in Mebane with his wife Julie and children Colt and Jenna. This reporter can be reached at:Information@TheLocal Reporter.press