Lewisville residents have chance to provide input: County Planning & Development sets Forward 2045 public meeting at Mary Alice Warren Community Center

Published 12:05 am Thursday, September 21, 2023

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LEWISVILLE — For the Town of Lewisville, a routine approval of a facility-fee exemption request last Thursday night for the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Planning & Development Services to use the Mary Alice Warren Community Center could offer a unique opportunity for local residents.

The facility will be the site of one of eight public input meetings in Forsyth County in October to gather opinions, views, ideas and thoughts from community members for Forward 2045, the county’s next comprehensive plan.

The meeting in Lewisville will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 25, from 6-8 p.m. Stacy Tolbert, the town’s assistant manager and planner, confirmed that this will be part of the revision and reviews of the current Legacy 2030 Update, which was adopted a decade ago.

Council member Fred Franklin then said that he was made aware that a survey was going out that some town residents may be receiving and that if they do, “to please respond to it because that will help us tie into this on down the road.”

Mayor Mike Horn then followed up by saying residents should not only respond to the survey but also go to the meeting “when the planners of the county can hear your thoughts on what Lewisville should be, how we like it and what we would like it to be. And what you say at that meeting will be incorporated into the revision of the Legacy plan, so it is an important event for you to attend.

“As you know, the county does all the zoning outside of the town limits of Lewisville, and sometimes they take a look at zoning that maybe we don’t necessarily agree with because it doesn’t conform to our vision of Lewisville and what the surrounding community should be.”

The new comprehensive plan of “planning our path forward together” is for Winston-Salem, Forsyth County and all of its municipalities. The survey is also available online by going to forward2045.com and clicking on “Survey” at the top of the page.

In other new business items, the council approved multiple items regarding Lake at Lissara Phase II Section VII — including setting public hearings for an annexation request, rezoning request and special-use permit for a PRD (Planned Residential Request) request, all for the next council meeting on Oct. 12.

Tolbert said that the first resolution of an annexation request is for property off of Lissara Lodge Drive in the Lake of Lissara development and also backs up to frontage along Plemmons Road, involving continuous annexation for property already in the town limits of Lewisville.

The next resolution for rezoning is contingent on the approval of annexation with the bylaw to assign Lewisville zoning instead of Forsyth County zoning for the property.

Tolbert added that the zoning would remain RS-40, the current zoning “and what is already in that area for the properties in the town of Lewisville — residential single-family where the minimum lot size is 40,000 square feet. That is the predominant zoning district in our rural areas in the western portion of town.”

The final resolution for the special-use permit for the PRD permit for the same property involves five additional lots to be added to the Lake of Lissara development.

In an approval, at the briefing and action meeting on Sept. 7, the council approved a resolution directing the clerk to investigate the annexation petition for the Lake of Lissara property.

In another news item, new electric vehicle charging stations have been installed across from Shallowford Square on David McKee Street, where up to four vehicles can be changed simultaneously.

Electric vehicle users will pay $0.25 per kilowatt-hour. The fee will cover the cost of the electricity used plus a small amount toward the charging station infrastructure. As part of the international Chargepoint network, motorists can use their Chargepoint account or tap their credit card for service.

The construction contract for the project was $48,305, which will be partially offset by a $20,000 rebate award from the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality.

In other highlights from the Sept. 14 meeting, the council:
• Also approved another facility-fee exemption request for the Lewisville-Clemmons Chamber of Commerce for three events in 2024 — Jan. 27, for Lewisville Game Night, a family-friend night with games, food and other activities; and Feb. 1 and June 6 for Leadership Lewisville/Clemmons.
• Heard that there will be a Candidate Forum on Oct. 19 at 7:30 p.m. at town hall. The event will be sponsored by the Lewisville Civic Club.
• Heard that Nathanial Barry was recognized as “I’m One of the Reasons Lewisville is a Great Place to Live.”
• Received an update from Town Manager James Ayers that Eyes of Silver — Doobie Brothers Tribute band will be the next concert at Shallowford Square on Saturday, Sept. 23, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
• Approved a new benevolence policy.