Sheffield Farms Would Bring 702 Units to Farrington Mill Road

A 702-unit housing project called Sheffield Farms is set for consideration by the Durham Planning Commission on Feb. 13.

The proposal would turn 218.5 acres of rural residential land to planned-development residential, with a mix of single-family homes, townhouses, and apartments off Farrington Mill Road. Developer Erica Leatham of M/I Homes in Raleigh isn’t committing to any affordable housing units. Instead, planning officials report, the developer will contribute $300,000 to Durham’s Dedicated Housing Fund.

If approved, the neighborhood would be served by Creekside Elementary School, Githens and Rogers-Herr middle schools, and Jordan High School. No City of Durham or N.C. Department of Transportation roadway improvement projects are slated for the region, but the developer is expected to improve Farrington Mill Road with the creation of shared through/turn lanes at Barbee Chapel Road, Farrington Road, and Stagecoach Road. The plan also includes a 10-foot-wide shared multi-use path along the frontage of Farrington Mill Road.

Transit service isn’t provided within one-quarter mile of the site.

The zoning proposal is consistent with 14 of 24 applicable policies under the new comprehensive plan. Inconsistencies include, among other things:

• The site isn’t within a 15-minute walk to nearby amenities and doesn’t preserve land designated for recreation and open space.
• The site is identified in the comprehensive plan as a Future Growth Area. To remove that designation, a lift station serving that entire area must be built. The developer hasn’t committed to build the lift station or force main.
• The site is in an “environmentally unique and sensitive area,” and no sustainability commitments have been offered.
• The city and NCDOT identified improvements to the surrounding roadway network needed to accommodate the development, but the applicant wants to “condition all improvements, which could ultimately lead to improvements not being made/required. The surrounding transportation system cannot support development of the proposed intensity without construction of the mitigation measures” officials have identified. “The applicant has indicated that they are unwilling to include the required improvements without condition,” the report stated.­­

According to a traffic impact analysis conducted by Kimley-Horn, Sheffield Farms would include:

• 284 single-family homes.
• 90 townhouses.
• 575 low-rise apartments.

The project could generate 437 new trips during the morning peak of traffic and 583 new trips in the afternoon.

Even if the developer agreed to roadwork improvements, the project might still hit snags with some neighbors due to right-of-way constraints and proximity to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers land.

The Planning Commission meets at 5:30 p.m. in the first floor council chamber in City Hall, 101 City Hall Plaza.

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