Downtown development tops next week’s agenda

Mon, 03/12/2007 - 8:32am
By: John Thompson

The battle lines have been drawn, and next week’s meeting of the Tyrone Town Council could be one for the ages.

On one side is developer Burt Clark, who wants to makeover the town’s downtown area and bring a denser development to the area, along with a residential area that would cater to the area’s growing population of senior residents.

On the other side is members of the Tyrone Neighborhood Alliance, along with Councilmen Grace Caldwell and Gloria Furr who maintain the area should stay a bedroom community and maintain lots sizes of at least one acre.

Developer Burt Clark and his company Olde Town Tyrone wants to develop nearly 54 acres near Palmetto Road and Swanson Road as office space and age-restricted single family homes for seniors.

Town Manager Barry Amos said 13.89 of the acreage would be developed as office, while 40 acres would be for senior residents and contain 146 homes. The total acreage is spread over two tracts that is also bordered by Arrowwood Road on the west.

“This fits in with what was approved by the Mayor and council last year as part of the master plan for the downtown area,’ Amos said earlier this year.

But at the Town Council retreat in February, Caldwell said she had approved for the plan to be included in the town’s comprehensive plan, but did not agree with denser zoning.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at Town hall.

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