Michael D. Whitehead is requesting that a 65-acre farm at 1617 Ten Ten
Road be rezoned to make way for Seagroves Farm, a subdivision that
initially would have featured 58 townhouses and 114 single-family lots.
But neighbors complained, noting that the town wanted some of the
former tobacco farm for a park. They also had traffic concerns.
Apex's Parks and Recreation Board and Planning Board voted against
approving Whitehead's request.
But since the planning board meeting last month, Whitehead has met with
neighbors and has agreed to reduce the number of townhouses and
single-family homes in the plan and agreed to offer the town a seven-acre
park at the corner of Ten Ten Road, said Bruce A. Radford, Apex town
manager.
The park will include the lake that's on the property. In addition, the
historic house on the property will be given to a historic preservation
organization yet to be named, Radford said.
"It's a positive step in the right direction," said Robin Oke, a
resident of Surrey Meadows, which abuts the property. "We are waiting to
see what [Whitehead] puts in writing, and he has certainly looked at all
our concerns."
Whitehead has until 5 p.m. Friday to put a revised plan before the
town's staff, said Apex Planner June Cowles. If he makes the deadline, the
project will be reviewed by staff and put before the Planning Board April
11. Town commissioners would then vote to approve or deny the project at
their April 19 meeting.
"We think this newly proposed plan will be more palatable to the
neighboring subdivision and the general public," Radford said.
The former farm was the property of Lelia Seagroves Womble, who was 90
when she died in September 2002. A trust was set up to handle her
multimillion-dollar estate, which included the Seagroves Farm.
The Seagroves property is rich in Apex history.
John H. Seagroves, a tenant farmer, bought a 92-acre farm for $540 in
1904, and in 1910 Seagroves and his wife, Nevada, built the one-story
house with a wraparound porch that's still on the property, said Kelly A.
Lally, author of "The Historic Architecture of Wake County." The house
will now be preserved.
Apex officials had long wanted to put a park on a portion of the land,
and the town designated the area as a future park in its 1996 long-range
parks plan. Initially, Whitehead asked the town to allow him to pay a
one-time $150,000 fee instead of creating a town park on the land. His
proposal was rejected.
Oke said Whitehead's current proposal is a good step and that a park on
the Seagroves site will create a nice gateway into the town.
"The residents researched, they found the facts out and they worked
with the facts and worked to make a better plan," Oke said. "Not just for
the communities that neighbor the project, but to make it better for all
of Apex."
