CITIZENS AGAINST REZONING 9500 LIGON MILL
Say NO
To REZONINGRZ-25-01
The beautiful section of Ligon Mill Rd between Main Street and Burlington Mills Road has always been a quiet area filled with single family homes on large lots. Recent development around us has increased traffic and left our base schools (Heritage) overwhelmed.The proposed rezoning of 9500 Ligon Mill Rd, a 9 acre tract in the heart of this area, will allow the number of homes to more than triple the current zoning. Lot sizes will shrink to by half and setbacks will be reduced.
The property is highlighted on Wake Forest's official zoning map. Everything in yellow is "General Residential 3" (GR3). Around this area is Rural zoning shown in green and Light Industrial shown in grey.
Keep it GR3
Say NO to GR10
Stand with us
GR3
3 Lots per acre
Similar to Rural
Mainly Single Family
GR10
10 units Per Acre
3 Times As Dense
Mainly Townhomes
Neighborhoods
Margots Pond **
Porto Fino **
Smith Creek **
Forest Mill **
Country Place
Whippoorwill Valley(** See Voting Map Below)
Voice Your Concerns
WAKE FOREST VOTING MAP
If your address is green below, you voice is TWICE as important since you can vote in Wake Forest elections. Zoning is a political process and voting for or against officials is a critical way for us to ensure our neighborhoods are protected from rezoning and over development.
WF Board of Commisioners
Contact each of these board members and let them know RZ-25-01 is a critical issue for you.The board and the mayor will hear recommendations from the planning department and then vote.2025 is an election year. Make your ballot count!
Three Major Concerns
Neighborhood Inconsistency
Changing from larger estate sized and large suburban lots to small dense lots will create inconsistency in the community.This will lead to another major concern, lower property values for the surrounding existing properties.
Increased Traffic
Ligon Mill Rd is already very busy. Adding 90 more homes would add to the challenge. Consider that the main traffic pattern of this proposed neighborhood would add even more traffic to these already known hot spots:MAIN STREET at US1
BURLINGTON MILLS at US1
US 1 to and from Raleigh
FALLS OF NEUSE at US1
School Overcrowding
The proposed property is zoned for Heritage High School. Heritage High school has been capped since 2015 and is not accepting more students. Adding 90 more homes would only make this worse.
FAQ
Does the developer own the property?
No, the developer has the property under contract but has not closed. They are stalling while they attempt to rezone the property through RZ-25-01. You can see pictures of the property on the current real estate listing.
Why does rezoning matter?
Each property owner has the right to develop their own property, but it isn't without restriction. Property owners have to consider regulations from federal, state, municipal, local and HOA prior to development.In the case of 9500 Ligon Mill, the property is in the ETJ of Wake Forest. That means, that although it is not in the city limits currently, it is controlled by Wake Forest zoning regulations.The purpose of zoning laws is to regulate the use of land and guide development by dividing an area into different districts for specific purposes, such as residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural uses. These laws help to prevent conflicts between incompatible land uses, protect property values, promote public health and safety by controlling density and building setbacks, and preserve the unique character of a community while allowing for planned and orderly growth.In this case, swapping from GR3 to GR10 would lower surrounding property values, congest roads more, over crowd schools and destroy the unique character of this section of Wake Forest.
Why would the WF Board approve this?
Simple... MONEY. More density brings more tax revenue.
Can the property be developed without rezoning?
Of course! If the property remains GR3, the developer could still develop the property within the GR3 guidelines. The resulting development would likely be approximately 27 single family homes (GR3 = 3 lots per acre). Each home would be on 1/3 acre lots similar to the adjacent neighborhoods of Porto Fino, Smith Creek or Margots Pond.
How have the board members voted in the past?
The board is elected every two years on odd years. Here are examples of cases voted on by the commissioners during that time:
RZ-22-05-01
RZ-23-02
RZ-23-12
RZ-23-06
RZ-23-11
RZ-24-04*
RZ-24-06*All were unanimously approved except RZ-24-04While the board voted very pro-development in these cases, none of these involved a request to increase density of a GR# residential district.
| Name | Vote For Rezoning | Vote against Rezoning |
|---|---|---|
| Vivian Jones (Mayor) | 7 | 0 |
| Ben Clapsaddle | 7 | 0 |
| Faith Cross | 6 | 1 |
| Keith Shackleford | 6 | 1 |
| Nick Sliwinski | 7 | 0 |
| Adam Wright | 7 | 0 |
How do I find the zoning rules?
Zoning rules for Wake Forest are listed in their Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).
"The General Residential Districts are established to maintain previously developed suburban residential subdivisions for their existing or approved low-to medium density single-family dwellings and related recreational, religious, and educational facilities. Intended to act as a transitional zoning district between rural development in the county and the urban development of the town, these regulations are further intended to discourage any use which would be detrimental to the predominately residential nature of the areas included within the district."
What are the biggest concerns?
Incompatibility with the existing neighborhood character
Negative impact on traffic, infrastructure, and public safety
Lack of adequate public school capacity at base school
Negative impact to nearby property values
Negative environmental and ecological impact to Swift Creek and the Neuse River watershed
Proposed lot sizes do not provide adequate parking and rural location does not allow for other forms of mobility