City of Raleigh to Rezone Park, Make More Traffic

This week, the City of Raleigh, North Carolina may approve a rezoning that would evict more than 160 families from Homestead Village Mobile Home Park.

The rezoning would clear the way for the redevelopment of the 38.58 acre site into a mixed use retail and residential site along Capital Boulevard, immediately north of 540.  Homestead Village is currently zoned for Manufactured housing and residential-4.  It can have as many as 230 homes, although it only has about 180 lots on the site.

The rezoning would allow the developer, who has not been identified publicly but is represented by attorney David York, to build 1,355 new residential units.  The submitted plan would allow a 30,000 square foot office building.

The City of Raleigh Planning Department notes that the plan is not consistent with the Capital Boulevard Corridor Plan.

The traffic impacts are significant.  Currently, there are no mass transit options in this area.  Having so many people using Capital Boulevard as their neighborhood thoroughfare makes little sense.  The plan would include a buffer as well as the construction of new access roads.

The 2020 Plan almost included a transit corridor for this area.  There is discussion now (by the Special Transit Advisory Commission) of making the area one of the chief priorities for transit spending in the 2035 plan.  This might include commuter rail and/or enhanced bus service.

A traffic impact analysis will not be prepared prior to the rezoning decision on May 21st.

Full details of the plan are available here.