Neighbors condemn CSX rezoning request

“ROCKINGHAM — The neighbors of a potential future industrial site spoke out harshly against CSX Transportation’s rezoning request on Tuesday, with several penning impassioned letters detailing the ways this change could negatively impact their lives and more than 100 others signing petitions against it.

CSX requested that the county rezone a parcel on either side of Marks Creek Church Road from Rural Residential/Agricultural Residential to Heavy Industrial. The property has a tax value of $193,390 and comprises 167 acres.

The series of letters and the petitions seemed to have made an impression on the commissioners. The opposition focused on the loss of quiet country life, damage to the surrounding ecosystem and water supply, and ”immediate” damage to property values if a new industry came to the area.

Commissioner Tavares Bostic expressed a desire to find a compromise — though deliberations are required to be held until the vote Thursday — and Commissioner Jimmy Capps agreed that the opinions of these residents “should be taken into consideration” on this issue and that “this isn’t something we can vote in and push them out.”

Chairman Kenneth Robinette encouraged the commissioners to drive out to the parcel in question to see if for themselves as they prepare to vote on the matter.

No decision was made Tuesday. The vote on whether to allow the rezoning will take place at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 8.

To listen in on the meeting Thursday morning, call 1-415-655-0001 and use access code 172-848-0827. Those interested can comment and ask questions of the county by sending them to County Clerk Dena Cook at dena.cook@richmondnc.com. Comments and questions will be accepted until October 7, 2020 by submitting them by email or dropping them off at the Richmond County Administrative Building drive-thru window located at 1401 Fayetteville Road, Rockingham, NC 28379.

Planning Director Tracy Parris read six letters against the rezoning, three of which were signed onto by a total of 106 others, and two in favor. Those who signed on to the letters against did not include their addresses, so it is unclear if they are residents of the area. About 60 of those signatures were in support of a letter and petition from Marks Creek Presbyterian Church.

The two in favor of the rezoning were from a representative for CSX and Richmond County Economic Developer Martie Butler. CSX already owns this land and wants it to be zoned consistent with its other properties in the area in the hopes of attracting other industry.

“This property is well positioned for future development and we will communicate with the county as decisions with any potential customers present,” the CSX letter reads.

The letter from Marks Creek Presbyterian Church expresses fears that nearby residents, which include descendants of the original church members dating back to the 1860s, would be exposed to toxic emissions and noise pollution and have to deal with damage to roads and transportation delays caused by greater traffic. The letter also notes, as others did, that the parcel in question is about 100 yards from the watershed that Hamlet uses for its water supply and water pollution would be a serious risk. Residents in the area rely on wells for drinking water.

“We realize we are a poor county and need industry to increase our tax base but we implore you to seriously consider the long-lasting effects for the community and for our church,” the letter read. “We are not a ‘pop-up church’ but rather one that will continue to exist and contribute in the community.”

Another letter pointed to CSX having already clear-cut the area as a sign that the decision is already a “forgone conclusion” in the eyes of the company. This letter was written by a couple with a combined 41 years of military service who sought to retire to the area to get away from the “hustle and bustle,” but the new noise pollution from an industrial site would ruin that.

“We came to this area to retire and be closer to family. We had dreams of finally having a home located away from the hustle and bustle of the city, a place to unwind, a place of quiet solitude — we have found that place,” the couple’s letter reads. “We have enjoyed gardening and sitting on our porch enjoying the quiet, peaceful evenings: a dream come true. So (to say that) recently learning that the land adjacent to ours may be rezoned as Heavy Industrial was immensely disheartening is an understatement.”