The Orange County Board of Commissioners recently rejected a proposed senior housing community located at Morrow Mill Road. Finding Fiddlehead Corner unfit for the rural community, the board’s March 6 meeting concluded last month’s public hearing.
If not unanimously rejected by the board, the 55+ housing community from Hands Four Development Cooperative (H4D) would have brought a total of 100 homes, apartments, duplexes, and triplexes to Southwest Orange County.
Representing the developers, LeAnn Brown called the clustered community and its smaller units perfect for those reaching senior status. Featuring amenities like family care centers, a fitness center, and walking trails, much of the 90 acre site would also be left undeveloped for green space.
“It is, we believe, a vision for how to both conserve land and provide housing units for people in a meaningful way,” said Brown at the March 6 meeting.
Fiddlehead Corner (Photo via Hands Four Development Cooperative.)
However, the board specially struck down the zoning permit amendments needed to realize the community, which is currently located within a rural neighborhood activity node. The node intends for small-scale commercial uses to support a rural community, like mom-and-pop convenience stores and gas stations.
According to Chair of the Orange County Commissioners Jamezetta Bedford, it would be “unwise” to allow a zoning amendment for Fiddlehead, as doing so could potentially subject the remaining nine rural activity nodes to similar changes.
“I don’t think that putting this project, which has some really good amenities and some really good aspects to it, in that location is a good decision. I don’t think it’s at all consistent [with the 2030 Comprehensive Plan].”
Despite its location, most board members admired the proposed development itself. Commissioner Marilyn Carter said she is supportive of having clustered communities that could form under the county’s current zoning and conditions, but added how Fiddlehead’s potential uses in context with the surrounding community is something the board needs to wrestle more with.
“As we each on the board consider on its face to be a very worthy project, there is no doubt that we have significant challenges with housing in Orange County and that it’s top of mind for all of us as we deliberate on the Land Use 2050 plan. How we’re going to address some of those challenges, these specific goals that are going to guide us in decision making are important.”
Regardless of how the 2050 plan might change future land-use decisions, Carter said Fiddlehead Corner’s rezoning application is currently too inconsistent with town goals to support.
“I feel that it would take us to a place that we’re stepping away from that consistency in the short term. When we set guidelines for these decisions, we want to try and hold to them, within reason.”
While the county needs more senior housing, Commissioner Sally Greene said one reason she could not support the development was its water infrastructure, despite the development following state regulations for installing community wells.
“What I don’t think we can predict what that looks like in 30-50 years for the people who live in that part of Orange County,” Greene said. “I don’t know what the climate is going to do. It might be fine, but if it’s not, we got some folks who are really out of luck and I personally don’t want to run water and sewer lines all over southwestern Orange County.”
To view the full Board of Orange County Commissioners meeting from March 6, click here.
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They need to break out their wallet and pay the commissioners if they want it to pass.