County steps in to help build infrastructure for Valdese Bluffs

A proposed 140-home development in Valdese is moving forward with help from Burke County as local leaders look for ways to address a growing housing shortage.

County commissioners recently approved the terms and conditions of an agreement to help fund sewer infrastructure for the Valdese Bluffs project, a long-delayed development near Draughn High School.

The agreement itself has not yet been approved. A public hearing on the matter will be held at the county’s next regular meeting on May 18, after which commissioners will vote whether to approve the agreement.

The plan calls for up to 140 single-family homes, each expected to be valued around $350,000, adding an estimated $49 million to the county’s tax base, said County Manager Brian Epley.

It will be an interlocal agreement between the county, the Town of Valdese, and project developer Larry Bragg of Natural Land Alliance, Inc., plus a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Burke and Valdese for a phased build-out.

Valdese Bluffs is a project five years in the making that has faced several setbacks, including the cost of the necessary infrastructure doubling from $800,000 to $1.6 million.

Following a study that revealed Burke County’s housing shortage, Epley said he and Board of Commissioners Chairman Jeff Brittain discussed how to help move Valdese Bluffs forward.

Valdese obtained a reimbursement-based grant from the state legislature in 2021 for about $800,000, but the town never reached an agreement with the developer.

At its Aug. 4, 2025, regular meeting, Valdese Town Council members voted unanimously to approve a partial build-out of a sewer system for the development, covering phase one of construction on a plat that Epley noted has difficult terrain.

Phase two will cost an additional $800,000, Epley said. The county and Valdese will split the cost, with the county’s portion being a grant awarded to the town. The money will come from a state grant, meaning it will not come out of taxpayers’ pockets.

The agreement states that Valdese must provide a sewer pump station — in this case, a lift station because of the terrain — and the developer must complete all infrastructure work within three years.

For Burke County, the project represents a calculated bet.

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.”