Bonum Road area to get 96 townhomes

Another 96 townhomes are coming to Lake Wylie.

The county planning commission voted Nov. 9 to approve plans for Ivy Ridge townhomes. The property is just more than 17 acres off of Bonum Road, north of S.C. 49. The site sits just east of Cypress Point, already approved for 358 homes on 155 acres.

Development Solutions Group is working on both projects. Ivy Ridge will have more than 50 percent open space. Consultant Matt Levesque said the townhome project won’t feature major amenities.

“Cypress Ridge has a larger amenity package, so this plan will be utilizing those,” he said. “This will basically be an extension of that.”

The planning commission approved Ivy Ridge where townhomes are allowed in the current zoning.

“It’s development by right,” said commission member William Hooper. “We can’t turn this down.”

County planning staff is working on changes to zoning and subdivision codes that could change what land use is allowed in certain areas. The changes make building more restrictive in some areas but less in others. Now, there are no maximum building density numbers. Builders base their figures only on required lot sizes and open space requirements.

Audra Miller, county planning director, compared existing and approved subdivisions to the amount of homes that would be allowed on those same properties if the ordinance revision passes. Some saw reductions by 100 or more homes. Some would allow as many more homes.

“What defines the property is not just density,” she said, “but what is that property like?”

The ordinance should come to York County Council on Nov. 16, then for second reading and public hearing Dec. 7 before final reading Dec. 21. Because the council heard prior versions, it could retroactively apply the changes to projects that came during the revision process.

“It’s council’s decision,” Miller said.

The planning commission voted not to recommend the latest changes. Changing what developers can do in certain zonings without significantly decreasing density across the board could lead to problems, some said.

“Basically what we’ll see is a ton of rezoning requests,” said commission chairman Bill Hargrove.

Commission members also had concerns with the proposal for a Lake Wylie watershed overlay, which could reach from the lake west to S.C. 161. The process could take six to 12 months if approved by council, and would require more planning manpower.

“This is not the easiest or simplest change you can make to our ordinance,” Miller said. “That doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be done.”

The watershed overlay would be similar to those in Mecklenburg and Gaston counties. The idea would be to identify ways of improving water quality. Planning commission members say that task is much more involved than limiting building density, a goal of many in Lake Wylie who pushed for changes that led to the overlay discussion.

“If we’re going to do anything, this is a much, much bigger problem than somebody clearing a lot to build a house,” Hooper said.

Sediment runoff from construction sites is a main concern, but it isn’t alone.

“When we’re talking about water quality, that’s not the only issue,” Miller said.

Enforcement would be another. The county and state have, for instance, stormwater control requirements.

“It doesn’t stop muddy water from running downhill,” said commission member James Darby.

A stormwater utility, or a separate fund residents would pay into for additional stormwater control efforts, may be needed. Some issues, like natural infill of Lake Wylie, are too big for the county to tackle alone.

“Is it going to resolve the issue?” she said. “No. It could have some hopeful benefit.”

This story was originally published November 13, 2015 at 12:35 PM with the headline "Bonum Road area to get 96 townhomes."