CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte leaders on Tuesday night decided to move forward with a new development in south Charlotte that would bring hundreds of new apartments and a middle school to an area neighbors say is already too crowded.
Located on Tom Short Road, just north of Ardrey Kell Road near Waverly, the Cato property is currently just 125 acres of farmland. With the rezoning petition from Childress Klein Properties and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools moving forward, that farmland is expected to become a bustling community with more than 900 apartments, townhomes, houses and a middle school.
Tuesday's meeting came after a public hearing in March saw members of the community protest the development and several other petitions on the table, saying they don't want any more traffic congestion in their neighborhoods.
Several people spoke up during that public hearing, voicing their opposition to the project.
"If the Gillespie rezoning was an exhibit for overcrowding and over-densifying Charlotte, the Cato rezoning is exhibit 1B for that," Glen Danzinger said.
The proposed Gillespie development would build 640 apartments and townhomes, mostly for a retirement community, on 53 acres in Piper Glen. City Councilman Ed Driggs, who represents the area, said the land will be developed no matter what, it's just a question of whether it will be houses and duplexes or high-density housing.
Driggs says the Cato project has potential to benefit the community without making traffic worse.
"I'm just hoping on Cato in particular that we can work with the residents to achieve and improvement on the Storm Water side and a minimum impact on traffic," Driggs said.
The developers are promising several community benefits, like diversified housing, preserved natural areas and a new school that will help relieve overcrowding at nearby Jay M. Robinson Middle School.
Contact Destiny Richards at drichards5@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
WCNC Charlotte To Go is a daily news and weather podcast you can listen to so you can start your day with the team at WCNC Charlotte.
SUBSCRIBE: Apple Podcasts || Spotify || Pandora || TuneIn || Google Podcasts || iHeart
All of WCNC Charlotte's podcasts are free and available for both streaming and download. You can listen now on Android, iPhone, Amazon, and other internet-connected devices. Join us from North Carolina, South Carolina, or on the go anywhere.