Pelham Road development proposal returns with fewer rentals

Scaled-up plans for a townhouse development on Pelham Road near the Prisma Health Patewood medical campus met continued opposition from dozens of residents who attended a public hearing on Monday evening.

“We’re totally against rentals; we’re totally against multi-family,” said Kayce Sams, a resident of the area.

While Sams said she appreciated the efforts of developer Lat Purser and Associates to address concerns previously expressed by residents, she said the proposed project “would change the integrity of the neighborhood.”

The latest development plan calls for the construction of 130 townhouses on nearly 11 acres north of Pelham Road, between Country Squire Court and Hudson Road.

In March, the Greenville County Planning Commission rejected a rezoning request that would have led to the construction of 132 apartments and 58 townhouses on the property. The move came after more than 1,800 people signed an online petition opposing the zoning change.

Adam Purser told county council members on Monday that his North Carolina-based company had done “a bunch of reviews based on meetings with neighbors.”

Sams said County Councilor Stan Tzouvelekas assured him and other residents that $ 3.5 million in road improvements would be made as part of the development, which is in the district represented by Tzouvelekas.

While the developer has agreed to contribute $ 1 million for 19 off-site road improvements, the source of the remaining $ 2.5 million is unclear.

“We are trying to get money from a lot of different places,” Tzouvelekas said at Monday’s hearing. “Everything has to come together for me to support this.”

City Councilor Dan Tripp said the proposed improvements on and around Pelham Road have not gone through a standard review process.

“It’s not something that he (Tzouvelekas) can commit to on behalf of the board,” Tripp said.

Purser said three-story apartment buildings were phased out from the current plan in favor of chalet-style rental townhouses, resulting in a 32% reduction in density. As a result, he said, traffic from the development will decrease by 20% during morning rush hours and 25% during evening rush hours.

Purser said a third entry to development will be added on Country Squire Court. He also said he was told county officials would seek a conservation easement to prevent the development of a four-acre expanse on Hudson Road across from the proposed development.

Still, Wally Zinck, a resident of the area, said the development will cause traffic jams on Country Squire Court.

“You’re being asked to approve something that we don’t need, that the taxpayer is going to pay two-thirds of all road improvements – it hurts all local residents,” Zinc said.

Monday’s townhouse rezoning hearing is the first step in a three-month process. The request will then be submitted to the Town Planning Commission for review.

There have been four past efforts to change the zoning of the property to a commercial classification, and none have been successful. The rezoning requests submitted in 2006 and 2012 were ultimately withdrawn, and two similar requests made in 2008 were rejected.

Kirk Brown covers government, growth and politics for The Greenville News. Contact him at [email protected] or on Twitter @KirkBrown_AIM. Please subscribe to The Greenville News by visiting greenvillenews.com/subscribe.