UPDATES
HERE WE
GROW AGAIN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE UPDATES, PLUS A LOOK AT UPCOMING PROJECTS COMPILED BY ANNA-RHESA VERSOLA AND RENEE AMBROSO RENDERING COURTESY OF CHATHAM COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
S
teve Newton,
director of the county’s emergency management department, says site preparations are complete for a new emergency operations center at 112 Innovation Way, west of Pittsboro. The center will house 911 communications, emergency management and the Emergency Operations Center. The project is estimated to cost $22,173,651, and the center is expected to be operational by November 2022. “The functions housed in the EOC serve every Chatham County resident, business and visitor, often in their
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worst moments,” Steve says. “Even with modern, compact furniture, the current 911 communications center has already been outgrown. A seventh console is needed now, but installation would significantly reduce the usable space in the EOC. The current facility also has insufficient redundancies in its mechanical, electrical, plumbing and safety systems, and several systems have well exceeded their useful life expectancy.” Steve said that the building systems must be reliable with redundant backup services to fully maintain critical functions because of just how important the services are. CM
WINTER 2021-2022
The Vickers Bennett Group plans to develop Vickers Village, a 103-acre mixed-use community with a combination of residential housing, a commercial area, community gathering space and pathways for pedestrians and bicycles. Approximately 67 acres will be permanently preserved natural space. The village is planned for the area between Jack Bennett Road and Vickers Road and a parcel east of Henley Road. A stand-alone wastewater treatment plant is planned for the development, which will include approximately 111 town houses, 70 singlefamily dwellings and 15 condo units above the retail spaces. Herndon Farms is a 98-acre proposed compact community for adults age 55 and older. The property straddles Highway 15-501, and its western tract borders Briar Chapel. The planned mixed-use community will include 161 residential units, a 140,000-square-foot congregate care facility, a one-story office/day care, community gardens and a barn for events. Developer Saprolite Development LLC plans to provide its own on-site wastewater system. Pittsboro-based Congruus LLC plans to develop 370 acres for a mixed-use compact community called Fearrington Preserve, located on Morris Road across 15-501 from Fearrington Village and directly adjacent to Briar Chapel. Isabel Mattox, a land use attorney representing the developers, requested expansion of the compact community map to include 184 acres. Tim Sweeney, founder and CEO of Cary-based video game company Epic Games, and one of the largest private landowners in the state, purchased 268 acres of mostly wooded land near the intersection of Sam Fields and Alston Bridge roads outside Siler City for just over $1.6 million in September. The purchase was made through Sweeney’s company – 130 of Chatham LLC – and is part of a conservation project to prevent development.