Burke commissioners OK steps forward with housing developments in Icard, Valdese

Commissioners paved the way for two new housing developments at Monday’s meeting, unanimously approving an agreement to help build infrastructure for Valdese Bluffs and a rezoning application for the developer of Chestnut Springs.

The room was packed with residents concerned about both, who waited for nearly two hours to speak due to a heavily-loaded agenda featuring a presentation on the proposed 2026-27 budget.

Five speakers opposed the Chestnut Springs development. Two spoke in favor.

One Burke County resident, Susan Butterworth, opposed both developments. She was the only audience member to address Valdese Bluffs.

CHESTNUT SPRINGS

On a 31.6-acre lot at 3637 Miller Bridge Road in Icard, Chestnut Springs is a project proposed by Pisgah Brothers Developments that would build up to 85 new homes costing between $250,000 and $300,000.

Commissioners recently approved a slower build-out for the project because the Indian Hills pump station is operating at 93% capacity. Building fewer homes each year will help prevent overwhelming that sewer system.

Most speakers shared traffic concerns and asked commissioners to deny the rezoning request.

Hildebran real estate broker Brandy Huffman said there is a lack of affordable housing in the current market, and that it is sorely needed.

Butterworth’s concerns lie in the county’s water and sewer infrastructure in light of the proposed data center in Hildebran, which residents widely believe will consume millions of gallons of water, Charlotte’s request for more water out of the Catawba River Basin, and sewer capacity issues on the eastern side of the county.

Commissioners were thoughtful and acknowledged the public’s concerns. The board then voted 5-0 to approve the rezoning request.

VALDESE BLUFFS

This project has been in progress for five years and has faced several setbacks, one of which was inadequate funding for sewer infrastructure.

The county is stepping in to help Valdese make the 140 single-family home development near Draughn High School a reality by covering half — about $800,000 — of the expense to build infrastructure.

Each home is expected to be valued around $350,000, adding an estimated $49 million to the county’s tax base, said County Manager Brian Epley.

The agreement states that Valdese must provide a sewer pump station and the developer must complete all infrastructure work within three years.

Epley said the developer must build the first 27 homes in that three-year timeframe.

“They have to pay back ($14,440) for every unit that’s not delivered on time,” Epley said. “There are also penalties for homes that don’t meet that ($350,000) value.”

Butterworth repeated her concerns about water and sewer infrastructure.

She also said the county could make more money by focusing on bringing businesses in.

“You can get a lot more money off of that than the (140) houses that you may have in there that you are paying money to build on top of a failing infrastructure,” Butterworth said. “We all know it’s (Valdese infrastructure) failing, but it’s the elephant in the room. Nobody’s dealing with it.”

Butterworth encouraged commissioners to watch Valdese’s most recent meeting on YouTube. She said there is a lack of communication in the town and that council members have not even seen the full study outlining pay raises for employees.

“This is the stuff that’s going on down there that you guys want to build on top of. I think you really should take a look at what’s going on in Valdese.”

Butterworth concluded by saying she would like commissioners to freeze any new housing developments until the water system has been fortified.

Commissioners voted 5-0 to move forward with the agreement between the county, Valdese, and project developer Larry Bragg of Natural Land Alliance, Inc.