Villages of Summerfield Farms (proposed)
(This proposed project is also related to the "de-annexation" topic within News & Notices.)
Resident and developer David Couch proposed a large development concept at the 9/22/20 Council meeting (his site is villagesofsummerfieldfarms.com). There were no formal submissions about this development plan at the time, but Mr. Couch's proposal generated a lot of community reaction. Initially, the proposal involved Summerfield, Guilford County, and Greensboro, although the concept has evolved and land use decisions are the critical piece before this project could advance. Such decisions will not be made apart from Summerfield citizen input. Town hall has shared information from the beginning and it is understood that residents are passionate about how our desirable town grows. At Council's 10/13/20 meeting, it was agreed that the town would meet with other parties and report back to the Council and the community. Following are updates with the newest at the top.
10/12/23 update: The OSM-V text amendment was revisited by Council 10/5 following a General Assembly threat of de-annexation of 978 acres via House Bill 5 (HB5). The text amendment passed and the Legislature's vote on HB5 was delayed for the moment. The UDO mechanism for Mr. Couch to proceed is availabe if he chooses to pursue it with a rezoning and detailed development agreement.
2/22/23 update (from manager): Council held a public hearing 2/21 and over 300 were in attendance. Council voted 4-1 against the proposed OSM-V district amendment and cited inconsistency with the Comprehensive Plan in several Objective Areas.
2/17/23 update (from manager): Council will hold a public hearing for text amendment #3 on Tuesday, 2/21, at 6:30p. The meeting will be at First Baptist Church Summerfield in its Community Life Center.
The agenda along with text amendment case details (link "D Town Business") can be found here.
1/3/23 update (from manager): The Planning Board will hold a public hearing (the first) for text amendment #3 on Thursday, 1/26 (not its normal Monday date), at 6:00p. Due to the expected large attendance, the meeting will be at First Baptist Church Summerfield in its Community Life Center.
The latest text amendment request (#3 linked below) was linked below last May. The applicant forwarded additional information in late December, and that info is also posted (#3—12/20/22 supplement linked below). Following a Planning Board recommendation expected on or after 1/26, another public hearing will be held at the Council level prior to a final decision being made.
5/11/22 update (from manager): A new text amendment request was submitted 5/10/22 (#3 linked below). The application and submittal haven’t been reviewed in detail, so the sufficiency of the submittal has not yet been determined by Planning and no scheduling of hearings has been planned.
4/13/22 update (from manager): Council held a public hearing 4/12 and voted 4-1 against the proposed OSM-V district amendment.
3/29/22 update (from manager): Council held a public hearing 4/12 and voted 4-1 against the proposed OSM-V district amendment. The Planning Board held a public hearing 3/28 and voted 3–2 to recommend approval of the OSM-V district as proposed/written. Another public hearing will be held at 6pm at the 4/12 Council meeting at Laughlin Professional Development Center (7911 Summerfield Rd.). The hearing will be followed by deliberation and potential action on the amendment (not a rezoning or the project itself).
3/14/22 update (from manager): Mr. Couch applied 2/8/22 for a new text amendment (#2 linked below)—this time to create a new OSM-V (Open Space Mixed Use–Village) district. The request is in progress and an optional Informational Meeting is scheduled for 6pm Thursday, 3/17, at Summerfield First Baptist that will focus on the amendment. The purpose is to educate citizens, receive feedback, and address concerns in a Q&A format. and the meeting is in addition to required public hearings that will follow. The process involves Council considering the text amendment and if it were to be approved, Mr. Couch has indicated that he would submit a rezoning request (second step) and a Negotiated Development Agreement (NDA) would be necessary to specify project details.
8/6/21 update (from manager): Mr. Couch asked that his text amendment to add a new MPVD zoning district be withdrawn following community and Planning Board concerns. He indicated that the plan will continue to evolve, his design team is continuing its work, and more specifics will be available. Council will consider whether to accept or deny the withdrawal at its 8/10/21 meeting.
7/21/21 update (from manager): Mr. Couch submitted an application 7/9/21 for a text amendment (#1 linked below) to the Unified Development Ordinance to add a new zoning district—a Master Planned Village District (MPVD). It will require a process that will always be referenced on the town calendar.
6/21/21 update (from manager): The community continues to discuss the proposed project and the jurisdictions continue to explore the mechanisms involved, but to date the project has not been formally submitted to the Town of Summerfield.
10/19/20 update (from manager): Mayor Barnes and I met with area leadership Friday as directed by Council with the purpose of assessing the multi-jurisdictional interest of all parties. The meetings ended up separated—we met with Greensboro first, followed by a similar meeting with Guilford County. Apart from Summerfield’s representation, David Couch, Tom Terrell (Couch's attorney), and Andy Scott (Couch’s consultant), first-meeting participants included David Parrish (Greensboro manager) and Charles Watts (Greensboro attorney). Second-meeting participants included Jeff Phillips (BOC chair), Marty Lawing (Guilford manager), and Mark Payne (Guilford attorney).
Mr. Couch made separate presentations to Greensboro and Guilford County, each similar to what was presented publicly at Council’s 9/22 meeting. Each jurisdiction had questions and relayed their stance that a collective effort would be necessary for such a large-scale project, but neither party pushed to lead. There were initial questions about the needed mechanisms, particularly related to the proposed special tax district. Representing attorneys agreed to talk more in the coming days about tax districts. It was made clear that Summerfield would be sharing pertinent information with the community.