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I didn't mark anything in the neighborhood business. There's some that I don't know
whether there would be there or not. I sort of doubt there would be, even though it is a
permitted use. It's not, something I would say "no" to necessarily, but I just can't
imagine a church going there. It is just more expensive land than a church normally can
afford.
CROSSWHITE: Have you developed any plans at all for that 27 acres? Any long range?
BOYER: No. We have not tackled that yet. We have a ground lease proposed with Mr.
Grier and his associates for the Robert E. Lee, and that's on the four acres. If he is
successful, if that project is successful, he believes, obviously, that it will be. I
don't take a stand on it. Except for the land that we invest in this project, we are not
otherwise an investor. If he is successful, then that whole project then will become much
more attractive to a lot of people. ,
As you know, and Miss Beckham certainly knows, Lake Norman is developing very fast. This
site, as she pointed out, is right at the Mecklenburg County line, and there is just an
enormous amount of activity going on there. There are not many sites with water frontage
and reasonable access available for commercial activity at Lake Norman. The overwhelming
bulk of the land is residential, and rightfully so. It should be.
HEDRICK: Mr. Grier, would you like an opportunity to comment on your operation? It
seems to be the reason for this proposal.
GRIER: I'll be brief. I'll be happy to answer any questions anybody has We
propose to build again the Robert E. Lee. This time it will be about 20% bigger. We will
be carrying 200 passengers, operate on a daily basis, with one hour cruises, targeted
toward a family-orientad type situation as we had before on daytime, hourly runs. At
night it will be a moonlight cruise just as it was before. The docking facility will be
between the land and the highway. It will be a floating dock capable of holding 400
people for loading and unloading purposes. The facility on the ground will be a
concession stand and the restrooms and the night watchman and caretaker's residence,
either in the concession stand building or in a separate cottage. We will have a hot air
balloon tethered there that says "Robert E. Lee" on it for advertising purposes. That's
all the facilities that we have planned.
HEDRICK: Does anyone in the audience care to comment at this time on this issue?
RON KENNERLY: I'm employed by the Lake Norman Company, and I'm representing Synco,
Inc., which is the managing partner in the partnership owning 80 acres of land in this
vicinity. The property that is the subject of the petition is located right here. I want
to explain to yu first of all why we did not attend the planning commission hearing on
this matter. We don't have an occasion to drive up the interstate, since this land that
we hold is vacant land. Quite frankly we were unaware that there was a petition in the
offing until we read newspaper accounts of the Robert E. Lee. The newspaper specified the
location, approximate size of about four acres of land, and Robert E. Lee being moored
next to I-77. After counseling among ourselves we thought that there was probably a good
place for the Robert E. Lee, as it has been stated by the developers. What we do have
concern with is the magnitude of this zoning petition asking for rezoning of 31 acres for
highway/business zoning district and the potential for impacting existing and future
residential development along this peninsula. That is the purpose of my appearing here
tonight, to discuss with you our concerns about the magnitude of this particular petition.
Hith me tonight representing Synco is Mr. Fred Bryant and Mr. Jim Talbert. At this
time I would ask Mr. Bryent to come up.
FRED BRYANT: I am a professional urban planner. I have been involved in planning in
North Carolina primarily for well over thirty years, most recently operating in the
capacity of a consultant. Most of my experience has been in land use (not clear) . . . .
I was asked by Synco to look at the request as it is being presented. I did take
some time to evaluate the request as it relates to the areas as a whole, to my knowledge
and understanding of the entire Lake Norman area, because I have been affiliated over the
years with a number of matters that have been involved in all four counties around the
lake. I have been in this area since the initiation of the lake itself. I looked at it
from that perspective, but I also looked at it very keenly from the perspective of Synco's
interest in the area. As Mr. Kennerly has indicated, Synco interest is both to the North
and to the South and somewhat to the Northwest of the site. I already mentioned the
Davidson peninsula development which is close enough to this site to express some concern
about the ramifications of the development of the parcel in relation to that location.
But more specifically, as he indicated, they do not have land that is slightly Northwest
of the site in Iredell County, which they expect to eventually come into and apply the
same sort of high quality development techniques that they have to their other projects.
So they do not have those concerns.
But as I evaluate this request on their behalf, I think that as a planner I would say
to yu first of all that I do not disagree that this is a site that would be appropriate
for some non-residential purpose. I think it is. I think it is a site that could be very '
effectively utilized for some of the non-residenti-al functions that your ordinance
provides for. The location is good, it has exceil^nt exposure to the interstate. Access
to it (not clear) . I think the sit= as a whole could find some uses that could be
very advantageous for it and t:..� surroundings as well as from a non-residential
perspective.
Neither do I disagree as a planner to the proposal for the location of the site of
the Robert E. Lee. I think that is the type of amenity feature that the lake area wil t