Housing development The Retreat sees opposition

An online petition started to oppose a student housing development has collected more than 300 signatures — even though The Retreat has not yet been proposed to Chapel Hill Town Council.

Landmark Properties, a development company based in Athens, Ga., is seeking approval for a 38-acre student housing development on Homestead Road that would contain more than 800 parking spaces, 72 townhouses and 102 single-family homes.

Residents who live around Homestead Road have expressed fear that they may face an influx of college students and heavier traffic if the housing development is built.

Landmark’s initial concept plan was reviewed by the town’s Community Design Commission on Jan. 25.

The Town Council must review and comment on the plan before Landmark can submit a formal application.

Wes Rogers, CEO and president of Landmark, said the development would allow University students to live off campus without occupying single-family neighborhoods.

Rogers said The Retreat has been built in other college towns, such as Athens, Ga., Columbia, S.C., and Nashville, Tenn.

But some residents worry The Retreat would disrupt the quiet communities that already exist around Homestead Road.

Steven Clayton, a Chapel Hill resident who signed the Beat The Retreat petition, said the proposed location is not appropriate for a massive development like The Retreat.

“If the University needs more student housing, I fully support that,” Clayton said. “It just needs to be in the right place so it doesn’t do damage to other areas of our community.”

Clayton, who lives in a subdivision off Homestead Road, said he thinks the development could worsen the already congested street.

He said he is also concerned the development would not abide by the area’s zoning law because The Retreat would be built in an area that is intended for single- family homes.

But J.B. Culpepper, director of the Chapel Hill planning department, said the term family only refers to a group of people and does not necessarily mean blood-related.

Scott Radway, a consultant for Landmark, said the zoning restrictions can only place guidelines on the density of a development, not the nature of its occupants.

“In a zoning ordinance, you are not supposed to discriminate against anybody — which in this case would be students,” he said.

Radway said The Retreat is being compared to a student housing development proposed in November 2010 called The Cottages of Chapel Hill.

The initial plan for The Cottages proposed a 33-acre development to contain 891 bedrooms and 946 parking spaces on Homestead Road. It also would have required the area to be rezoned to allow for a higher density.

The proposal for The Cottages was rejected by the town council.

Radway said The Retreat is different because it will not require that the area be rezoned to accommodate the development.

“It will draw students from existing lesser-quality housing and reduce pressure in other places,” Radway said.

The Town Council will review and comment on the concept plan at its Mar. 19 business meeting.

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