Chapel Hill’s latest affordable housing plan could add 100-plus homes on public land
A plan has been submitted that could add over 100 new, affordable homes on town-owned land off Homestead Road in Chapel Hill.
The 2200 Homestead Road project proposes 115 to 130 apartments, duplexes and townhouses on a 14-acre site. The three planned apartment buildings could be up to three stories tall, with duplexes and townhouses up to two stories.
The site, identified as surplus public property several years ago, sits between Weaver Dairy Road Extension and the railroad tracks. The Town Council and town staff have been talking about how to use it for a mixed-income community since 2017. The site currently is home to the Hope Gardens and also includes the vacant Sport Art Gymnastics building.
It is zoned for Residential 4-Conditional Use, which allows medium- to high-density residential construction.
The plan being considered would add one- to four-bedroom units and 181 parking spaces, all within walking distance of a bus stop, the Seymour Senior Center, Homestead Park, and Seawell Elementary, Smith Middle and Chapel Hill High schools.
The neighborhood could include over 33,000 square feet of recreational space, including a basketball court, nature trail, greenway and playground. Hope Gardens would be relocated to the northern end of the property, accessible from Weaver Dairy Road Extension.
Most of the housing would sit near Homestead Road, south of streams and wetlands that cross the center of the site. A stormwater pond could be built next to the Vineyard Square townhouses to the east.
The town’s goal is housing for individuals and families who earn between 30% and 115% of the area median income, which is $90,900 for a family of four in Chapel Hill, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
That includes individuals earning between $19,080 and $73,140 a year, up to a family of five earning between $29,460 and $112,930.
The town is partnering with three local nonprofits to build the homes:
▪ Community Home Trust, which typically sells townhouses for 30% to 50% below market value — roughly $90,000 to $155,000 — and could keep them affordable for at least 99 years. Buyers can earn up to 115% of the area median income.
▪ CASA, serving those with very low incomes and special populations, including veterans, people who are homeless and people with disabilities. Its apartment buildings could stay affordable for at least 30 years.
▪ Habitat for Humanity, which sells homes to households earning up to 80% of the area median income — up to $50,900 for a single person to $78,550 for a family of five. Those could remain affordable for at least 99 years.
The town also could partner with UNC Horizons, a maternal health care program, to establish a master lease offering subleased apartments to its participants and graduates.
Affordable rentals, homes
Affordable housing continues to be a challenge in Chapel Hill, where 58% of renters spend more than 30% of their income on housing — the threshold at which experts say housing starts becoming unaffordable.
Although rents dropped slightly this year, town staff noted in a recent report that Chapel Hill’s median rent this year was $1,378, roughly $100 more than the median rent in Raleigh or Durham.
Over 22% of Chapel Hill homeowners also spend more than 30% of their income on housing, with the median home value hitting $410,105 this year, a 6% increase over last year, town data showed.
Since 2008, the town has set aside money in its affordable housing fund and planned with community partners how to keep or add more affordable housing. The scarcity and the cost of developable land has complicated the issue, as well as limits on what the town can require from developers.
This year, the town also has budgeted over $6 million for affordable housing, including roughly half of a $10 million affordable housing bond that voters approved in 2018. By working with nonprofit partners with access to grants, town officials hope to leverage public money and land to build at least 400 new housing units and preserve 300 existing units over five years.
More Homestead Road traffic, density
The proposed project will provide a significant portion of those new homes and also contribute to a years-long increase in the density of housing and loss of trees along Homestead Road.
Development is underway now on two projects near the corner of Homestead Road and Weaver Dairy Road Extension. A third, The Courtyards at Homestead Road, was completed in the last few years with 63 ranch-style homes serving adults ages 55 and older.
The 198-unit Overture apartment building, another 55-plus project approved last year, is slated for adjacent land, and across the street, Bridgepoint was approved in 2010 with 53 townhouses and some commercial space. That developer recently asked to build another townhouse instead of the commercial portion.
The council will consider that request Dec. 9.
Bridgepoint and 2200 Homestead Road would share a driveway onto Homestead Road, and the Homestead neighborhood also would share a second driveway through Bridgepoint onto Weaver Dairy Road Extension.
Both projects together are expected to add 681 more cars to surrounding roads by 2025, a traffic study found. The study anticipated backups at the Homestead Road driveway but did not recommend any road or intersection improvements.
Bike and pedestrian improvements would be part of the project, similar to what the town asks from developers. The town also is finalizing a plan now to fill in the gaps left between developments, which force pedestrians to navigate tall weeds and deep ditches, or risk walking on the road’s narrow shoulder.
The plan will add sidewalks and bike lanes from the Seymour Senior Center to Merin and Seawell School roads. The project also will upgrade the railroad crossing signals on Homestead Road.
