SHALLOTTE, NC (WECT) – One of the fastest growing counties in the state could soon grow even more.
Developers want to build 150 single-family homes on 91 acres near the Shallotte River. Many neighbors who already live there say rising water levels will not make that project easy.
At a neighborhood meeting Wednesday night, an engineer representing the developers answered questions from neighbors about the project. Many asked about the potential impacts this project would have on their environment, from the removal of trees to the risk of septic tanks leaking into the river and traffic clogging their streets and destroying the peaceful atmosphere of their neighborhood.
Terry Alston has lived on Fletcher Hewett Road along the Shallotte River for 28 years, a road that happens to be on the edge of the proposed development.
“That’s a lot of land in a very small space,” Allston said when asked about the size of the project.
An environmentalist said at the meeting that she also could not imagine that so many houses would fit in the area, especially since only two entrances to the neighborhood are planned at Shell Point Road and High Meadows Drive.
“I think the houses need to be demolished. I don’t think 154 houses will be built there,” said Christie Marek of the Brunswick County Conservation Partnership. “And I don’t think that will happen because there are only two entrances and one on each side.”
Marek said that in addition to the size, the location of the project could also cause problems in the long term.
“My first concern is the way it borders the flood zone and almost the river. This area is already flooded,” Marek said.
Alston has experienced flooding firsthand. She said the flooding she experienced at her dock during Tropical Storm Debby was the highest she has ever seen in her decades of living here. She says sometimes, however, the high tide is enough to leave her dock underwater.
“The water is running right over my walkway and the bottom of my dock,” Alston said. “So if it hits me, it’s going to hit everyone else who gets their water from the river.”
Both Marek and Alston say they are not against any form of development in Brunswick County, but they want it to be done “responsibly.”
“It has to slow down,” Marek said. “We can’t because we don’t have the infrastructure to handle the growth. Our schools are already overcrowded.”
“We don’t believe we can stop development, but we ask the Planning Commission and the commissioners to take responsibility and ensure sensible development,” Alston said.
An engineer representing the developer at today’s meeting told neighbors that they had not yet conducted any studies on the project’s potential impacts on the environment, including the river.
These measures must be completed before approval can be given to begin construction. The engineer said that even if everything is approved immediately, groundbreaking for this project could still take one to two years.
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