Burke Commissioners greenlight Great Meadows Megasite

After nearly a year of speculation, controversy, and political maneuvering, the Great Meadows industrial megasite is a ‘go.’

The Burke County Commissioners voted 4-1 Tuesday to approve conditional Industrial rezoning for portions of the massive site, clearing the way for Burke Development Inc. (BDI) to purchase the property.

Following a lengthy public hearing, which featured numerous speakers who opposed the measure, commissioners Jeffery C. Brittain (chairman), Scott Mullwee (vice chairman), Randy Burns, and Johnny Carswell voted in favor of the request, submitted by BDI on behalf of landowners Great Meadows, LLC.

Commissioner Phil Smith voted against the rezoning, which was referred to the commission for decision by the county’s planning board in August.

In total, 745 acres of the 1,353-acre site will be rezoned for Conditional Industrial use. The remainder of the property was either already zoned for industry or has been deemed undevelopable.

The county worked with Burke’s three most prominent environmental agencies, Foothills Conservancy, Catawba Riverkeeper, and Lake James Environmental Association to come up with a conservation plan that includes buffers far larger than the state requires.

No possible tenants for the megasite have been named, and the conditions of the rezoning outlaw a number of uses.

Opponents have said a lithium-ion vehicle battery factory is planned for the site, although county and BDI officials have repeatedly denied that’s the case.

This is a developing story.