A new neighborhood offering more places to live, work and catch a bus to UNC and downtown Chapel Hill got its official launch Tuesday across from Southern Village.

At a ceremonial potting bench in a clearing just off U.S. 15-501, representatives from Beechwood Organization and Beechwood Carolinas joined Chapel Hill Mayor Jessica Anderson to break ground on South Creek, a $500 million, 43-acre mixed-use development with an 80-acre natural preserve.

The N.C. Native Plants Society gathered plants from the land this summer, some of which were potted Tuesday. The plants will be saved and replanted in Sarah P. Duke Gardens in Durham, said Aaron Nelson, president of the Chamber for a Greater Chapel Hill-Carrboro.

“I just love the fact that we are infiltrating, sending some of our growing plant life from Chapel Hill over to our friends at Duke, to grow and be nurtured and near their Gothic architecture,” Nelson said.

Construction crews will start the groundwork at South Creek later this month. The first building will be apartments with 10,000-square-feet of ground-floor retail across the highway from Southern Village’s Market Street business district, said Steven Dubb, principal and president of The Beechwood Organization. Work on the condominiums could start in 2025, he said.

RETAIL, RESTAURANTS AND A PUBLIC PARK

The full buildout of South Creek will take several years, adding 92 apartments for rent and 606 condos and 100 townhomes for sale. The market-rate townhomes and condos could cost from the $300,000s to over $1 million, development officials said.

About 100 housing units — 15% of the condos and townhouses and 10% of the apartments — will be priced at below market rates.

South Creek’s business district will include 21,000 to 52,000 square feet of commercial and retail space, with a public lawn and a plaza for outdoor dining. That includes a 6,000-square-foot restaurant with a terrace overlooking Wilson Creek and the park, Dubb said.

The retail mix should complement businesses in Southern Village, which include Weaver Street Market, coffee shops and restaurants, retail and entertainment, he noted.

The 80-acre public nature preserve and trails, as well as Wilson Creek, will be an amenity for residents and the public, Dubb said. More green spaces will be located near the Sumac Road intersection, where co-working and pop-up business space is possible.

SOUTH CREEK REPLACED OBEY CREEK

South Creek occupies a similar footprint that the Town Council approved in 2015 for Obey Creek, which was expected to bring about 700 apartments and over 1 million square feet of retail, offices and hotel rooms to the site.

Obey Creek developer East West Partners went through a multiyear public process to secure a development agreement from the town before failing to find the retail and office tenants needed to start construction.

In 2021, Obey Creek Ventures LLC sold the land to Beechwood Obey Creek LLC, a subsidiary of Beechwood Organization, for $7.25 million, county records showed.

Beechwood originally came to the town with a plan for 350 senior townhomes, but the council asked for more density and a diverse housing mix for individuals and families, Dubb said. It was unlike what they had encountered in other communities that also wrestled with housing and affordability, but “pay lip service to the issue and kick the can down the road,” he said.

WHAT LOCAL OFFICIALS ARE SAYING

South Creek will “truly be transformative,” Anderson said, noting the affordable housing and 80-acre park. “It’s a huge win for Chapel Hill and an amazing model of what Complete Community is all about,” she said, referring to the town’s strategy for housing that serves all residents and neighborhoods that don’t require a car to get around.

It isn’t hard to get a project done in Chapel Hill, “if you engage the community and the neighbors, if you work with the Town Council, if you show the community that you share their values, if you … read the plans for our community in advance,” Nelson said. “This organization has done that, and came out of some council meetings with lipstick all over them … and everybody was enjoying bringing to our community what we long desired.”

MORE PROJECT DETAILS

▪ A variety of housing types and sizes. 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom apartments and condos from 525 to 2,725 square feet; 3-bedroom townhouses with rooftop terraces and garages from 1,600 to 2,900 square feet.

▪ Roughly half of the affordable housing will be sold or rented to people earning 65% of the area median income and the other half will be sold or rented to people earning 80% of AMI — up to $59,360 a year for an individual or $76,320 for a family of three. Housing vouchers will be accepted. Over 600 for-sale condos will comprise most of the housing at South Creek, a 43-acre mixed-use development on U.S. 15-501 across from Southern Village in Chapel Hill. Beechwood Carolinas Contributed

▪ Amenities include green spaces, including an open lawn for events and entertainment and the 80-acre preserve. Three swimming pools, splash pads, a fitness center, game rooms, communal work spaces, and podcasting studios, plus a large outdoor space for food truck rodeos, farmers markets, festivals and other events.

▪ A memorial honors 1960s civil rights protests at the Watts Motor Court and Restaurant previously located on the site.

▪ Connections for cars, bus riders and pedestrians include three driveways, a full intersection at Market Street and a left-turn only intersection at Sumac Road, with a pedestrian refuge and activated traffic signals. Bus stops and the Southern Village park-and-ride lot are within walking distance, and a future bus-rapid transit station is planned at Market Street.

Read more at: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/counties/orange-county/article291933270.html#storylink=cpy

A $500 million mixed-use development in southern Chapel Hill is advancing.

New York-based Beechwood Carolinas will be starting construction this month on its
South Creek development across from Southern Community Park. South Creek will have
up to 815 apartments, condominiums and townhomes in a range of prices. The developer
is specifically targeting helping the town tackle its housing shortage. In addition, there
will be up to 52,000 square feet of commercial space.

Right now, 798 units are planned – 92 are apartments, 100 are townhomes and 606 are
condos. The apartments will be rented at market rate while the townhomes and condos
will range for sale from $300,000 to $1 million.

The first building to be constructed will be the 92-unit apartment building, which will sit
at the entrance to the community along the future extension of Market Street. The
residential building will have 10,000 square feet of ground-floor retail. A 6,000-squarefoot
standalone restaurant will sit next to the apartment building.

After the apartment building is complete, the company will start work on the first condo
building, which will have 68 units.

The apartments and condos will be a mix of one, two and three bedrooms while the
townhomes will be three bedrooms. The apartment building will be six stories, the
condos will be seven stories and the townhomes will be three stories with rooftop
terraces.

There will be two levels of parking in the apartment and condo buildings and the ground
floor of the townhomes will be a garage.

Residents of South Creek will have access to three swimming pools, fitness center, fire
pits, dog park, demonstrating kitchens, podcasting studio, community gathering areas,
amphitheater, stage and more.

The property is just over 120 acres where the development will be on just 40 while the
remaining 80 will be a nature preserve with walking trails. The community and preserve
are split by Obie Creek that cuts through the whole site.

The entire community will take about eight years to full buildout. Steven Dubb,
president and principal of The Beechwood Organization – of which Beechwood Carolinas
is a division – said the development of the land is funded via The Beechwood
Organization while construction of the buildings will be funded through a construction
loan.

This is the developer’s first project in the Triangle as it has spent the past four years
working to identify a new state to expand into. Dubb said that because the company has
spent 40 years in Long Island, New York, building a brand while watching New Yorkers
recently move to the Triangle and Charlotte, it decided to follow suit.

“We thought that maybe our buyers, if they’re looking for a home in the Carolinas, will
recognize Beechwood and feel some comfort with the brand and know the brand –
therefore making our entrance into the area easier,” Dubb said.

Elsewhere in Chapel Hill, the new Rosemary Street parking deck is open, a new Indian
restaurant is planned for Franklin Street and the Durham-Chapel Hill corridor is quickly
growing with development.

Read the original article - https://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/news/2024/09/06/beechwood-carolinas-south-creek-chapel-hill.html

At Beechwood Carolinas, innovative design and construction are an integral part of who we are. From concept to execution, we incorporate cutting-edge technology and revolutionary ideas to create your dream home. Your Beechwood Carolinas home reflects living the way you want, today and into the future. Our holistic and forward-thinking approach to land planning, design, space, and lifestyle enable us to personalize the homes we build to meet your vision.

When working with designers, we consider every angle - literally! Your home is more than just curb appeal, so we develop four-sided architecture, carefully considering side and rear elevations to match the dynamics of the front of the home. From clean, bright white homes to dark, saturated earth tones, Beechwood Carolinas also incorporates fresh and rich palettes to differentiate from other communities for a unique yet timeless home style.

From the start, our design process is very image centric, focusing on every detail from aesthetic to functionality. With 40 years of experience learning and observing how people live, what makes them happy in their homes, how to maximize light and space, and more, we blend our Northeastern roots with the local architecture and ambiance of the South and take it to the drawing board. After the exterior style is determined, Beechwood Carolinas develops the floor plan, constantly keeping the flow of the space and how people live at the forefront of our minds. Before any of our plans are finalized, we create a 3D model of the entire space to truly understand the scale and proportion of the design. Those 3D models allow us to move through the homes we create and see them through the eyes of our buyers.

Some builders or even buyers associate luxury homes with a bigger floor plan, nicer finishes, and a bigger budget. At Beechwood Carolinas, luxury means more. We aim to incorporate differentiating elements that set our homes apart from others in the market that fall within a similar area or price point. We elevate the entire experience with unique features like hidden outlets in the kitchen for clean sightlines, wet rooms with oversized showers and free-standing tubs, or his and hers layouts for a spacious and luxurious feel. It’s the details that make all the difference, so by the time each buyer steps into their home, they feel the passion and thoughtfulness that went into every step of the design.

Luckily for our buyers, we aren’t the only ones that get to enjoy our innovative design process. We use a state-of-the-art program that allows you, the buyer, to make design choices for your home before you even step into our design studio. Using this software to customize everything from floor plans to paint colors allows you to truly visualize your dream home. Our team of professionals is available to guide you every step of the way.

Your home is your sanctuary. At Beechwood Carolinas, we consider your health and wellbeing in every aspect of our homes and communities. Your home gym or spa, outdoor living spaces and even your filtration systems are given as much thought and consideration in the planning process as your kitchen and bathrooms. Air, light, water, comfort and sound are integral features of our home design.

From the beginning of the design process, we consider what features truly make a difference in health and well-being. From carefully designing every room for the best natural lighting and offering more energy-efficient windows to selecting in-house air quality systems and water filtration rough-ins. Every aspect of your home, whether visible or integrated, is designed with your well-being in mind.

In our luxury home collection, we offer floor plans with flexibility. Finished bonus rooms and extra bedrooms give you the freedom of a dedicated work-from-home office or homeschool classroom. Create a yoga studio or meditation cave to center your body and mind. Our innovative and spacious bathrooms allow you to create the perfect at-home spa experience. The bonus garage on The Magnolia floor plan is the perfect space for a private at-home gym, so you don’t disturb the rest of your household with your guilty pleasure workout playlist.

At Beechwood Carolinas, we put thoughtful care into our land planning in order to surround our residents with the grounding presence of nature. If you select a meadow or wooded lot in one of our Union County communities you have gorgeous community green space with easy access to local parks and nature trails. Our Lake Norman community offers waterfront or water view homes with access to over 30 acres of carefully preserved natural land with walking trails and parks.

Our thoughtful planning for your wellbeing goes beyond just our homes. Homeownership at our Broadmoor at Marvin community includes social membership at the renowned Firethorne Country Club. This allows you to extend your lifestyle with world-class golf, tennis, swimming and an array of amenities and services.

Check out our communities in your area to find the perfect home for your sanctuary.

Your Beechwood Carolinas home is available with choices that are good for you and the world around you. Environmentally friendly and resilient building materials along with an array of energy-efficient systems, fixtures and appliances are part of the many ways you can customize your new home. Let’s take a look at key elements that our team values when designing your home.

Eco-Friendly Systems

As a buyer, you want a home that exemplifies efficiency and sustainability. We want to empower those choices by offering eco-friendly systems in each home we build. These are not one-size-fits-all, so we take the time to tailor each system for that space. With that in mind, scalability is a characteristic to look for when exploring various options. Examples that fit the bill and are considered when Beechwood designs each home and its corresponding features include: an electronic air scrubber with UV lights, Low-E windows, and walls with an exterior weather barrier. Each home is also HERS Rated, which meets the industry standard for measuring a home’s energy efficiency.

Functional Fixtures and Appliances

The interior design of the home presents not only the opportunity to create a beautiful space, but also to expand on its energy efficiency. Daily habits such as flipping a light switch on and off or turning on an overhead fan can even become more sustainable with the right fixtures and appliances in place. A high-efficiency furnace, gas fireplace with gas high-definition logs, and other features such as LED lighting fixtures can be more beneficial than alternative options a buyer may have utilized in a previous home. With every community of homes our team designs, we extensively research the products that are placed in each space and continue to look toward the future as new products are constantly coming to market. That way, you can rest assured that the fixtures and appliances we’ve chosen are ready to meet your lifestyle, values and standards.

At Beechwood Carolinas, sustainability and energy efficiency go hand-in-hand when designing and constructing our homes. We want you to feel good about and proud of the space you live in. From eco-friendly systems to efficient fixtures and appliances, a home should reflect what the buyer and the industry as a whole values in today’s home building market.

Sign up for the VIP lists for our communities near you to learn more about their sustainable features.